April 14: Volvo launches on this date in 1927

Legend has it that the first production Volvo ÖV4 — Sweden's first all-original automobile — was ready to leave the factory on April 13, 1927, when the engineer put the car in drive only to have it start moving backward due to a improperly installed rear differential. That pushed the debut back until this date in 1927, when the company officially launched. Founded by an economist and an engineer, the company's name was provided by a corporate backer; it's Latin for "I roll."

If you find it odd that a Swedish company would build open-top cars as its first product, you're not alone; Volvo was aimed at wealthy Europeans, but struggled until after World War II, when it was able to relaunch quickly since its factories were spared bombardment. Today it's a unit of China's Geely Motors, but its engineering and executives still work from Gothenburg, Sweden.