Was flipping through an issue of Road & Track from October, 1959. There's a bit in there about steering wheels, including pictures of past designs. From a lever in a Schoche'schen steam car to the super-deep Oldsmobile wheel from 1959 and the hideous Citroen single-spoke. I still think that Citroen wheel looks like a dong pouring out of the column, with a ring attached to the end. It's unsettling.
The latest thing (or "possible future") at the time was the "safety wheel," which bends forward and expands in an impact. Padded dashboards were just starting to become a thing at the time, so safety was obviously becoming a big concern. No mention of whether or not the steering column could still impale you, but at least they were concerned with protecting your wrists and chest in a crash.
Interesting to read this: "auto wrecks continually prove how necessary it is to surround the passengers with sheet metal which will 'give' during a collision, thus absorbing the force of the impact." Crumple zones in the making.
