I rode in the trunk of the car on several occasions when I was a kid.
There were six kids (actually 8, but two were older and gone from home), Dad and Mom, and the only car running was an MG.
Daddy drove, Mamma held the least one in her lap. Two of us rode behind the two bucket seats where the roof folded back into, and the remaining three of us sat in the improvised rumble seat made from couch cushions. In our case the trunk lid was removed.
In those days there were ZERO seat belt laws, and NO baby seat requirements. All babies rode in the arms of a passenger, and lacking a passenger, the driver held the child in their arms. Too many times to count we older kids were told to watch out for the younger ones and prevent them sailing into the floor boards when the car had to brake.
Seeing folks through the lenses of current US safety regulations paints an obscure picture of life.
We weren't hillbillies. Houston hasn't any hills but what were piled up by heavy equipment. All my still living siblings love the memories of those days. I am so glad I lived in an era when riding in the back of a pickup truck wouldn't get a driver a prison sentence . . . memories no longer Made In The USA