A closer look
Before they became shiny status symbols designed to get stolen by teenagers, hood ornaments actually had a highly stressful day job. Early vehicles had exposed radiator caps situated entirely outside the engine bay at the very front of the hood. Because these ancient engines loved to aggressively boil over, a functional thermometer was mounted directly onto the cap so the driver could see it from the cabin. Eventually, the thermometers moved to the dashboard, and the cap was replaced by useless, decorative leaping cats and winged ladies.
