History of the Station Wagon

[flatbutt]

Originally Posted by wdfifteen

When I was 10 to about 16 we had a Dodge Sierra wagon like the one pictured except it was all yellow. It had a 360 V-8 with a four barrel carb. Dad said it would pass anything but a gas station.
I liked to sit in the rear seat because you sat backwards. You got into the seat through the tailgate. I don't remember why (maybe it was designed that way?) but you couldn't open the tailgate from the inside.

Beauty!

[911boost]

I bought a sweet 1968 Buick Sport Wagon from the original owner back around 2009 or so. It was a big block car, a 400 and while heavy it was no slouch.

The paint was shot but I still drove the crap out of it, eventually finding an original GS400 hood and ram air air cleaner parts for it.

I really liked the interior and it had a cool original wood rim steering wheel.

A lot more rare than the Vista Cruiser but basically the same thing. Wish I still had it, but just had too many cars so it had to go. To this day my daughter is mad at me for selling it.

[Scott Douglas]

The only new car my folks ever bought was a '59 Pontiac Catalina wagon. Dad special ordered it from a dealer he found out in the boonies of NJ before we moved out west. Got it delivered out of the South Gate plant.

Police Interceptor engine (389 Tri-Power) with a four speed hydramatic, limited slip rear end, power windows, seat, brakes and antenna, radio and A/C. Oh, and air ride suspension too.

Got my first speeding ticket in that car. I had recently gotten my license and just dropped a friend off at LAX and was headed home about 9PM. Cop missed the yo-yo move a guy up ahead of me made while going from the SD 405 North to I-10 west interchange. I sped up to go around him when some other guy cut across three lanes to make the off ramp at Bundy Ave.

Yeah, I remember details like that when it cost me a new pair of Addidas. I carried that ticket stub in my wallet as a reminder for a lot of years.

That was one car you could literally watch the gas gauge drop as you stepped on the go pedal.

[pavulon]

Don't think anyone has done better wagons than MB AMG.

[astrochex]

Originally Posted by 70SATMan

Crappy photo of a photo that my Sissy sent me but, it’s my new ‘66. You can tell it’s mine by the way I’m leaning on it. Spent a lot of time up on the roof at the drive ins.

My folks had a blue version of this that we drove from SoCal to Illinois. It was a beast.

[MMARSH]

Originally Posted by pavulon

Don't think anyone has done better wagons than MB AMG.

They do look sweet don't they. BMW made great wagons too, but the good ones were never available in the US.

[pavulon]

Originally Posted by MMARSH

They do look sweet don't they. BMW made great wagons too, but the good ones were never available in the US.

Agree. The E63 wagons look fantastic and totally haul the mail especially when breathed upon by Renntech (or others)!

[gregpark]

I sold this 2005 Dodge Magnum R/T to a friend 3 years ago. Very comfy and fast car with a 5.7 Hemi.
My wife and I were doing 85 on the fast lane of I-5 N. on the way to a Redding wedding when an Audi is suddenly just feet off my rear bumper. Trucks on the right, no where to go but straight. "Hang on Hon, let's see what this guy's got" he floored it too and the wagon started walking away immediately. At 130 the car was smooth and happy and the Audi was a dot in the mirror. Backed down to 85 and set the cruise control. When he caught up he maintained a respectful space between us. I'm sure he was surprised (as I was) that a station wagon could be so much faster than his German hot rod. Even my wife laughed out loud even though she usually disapproves of such behavior. I guess in a straight line there's no replacement for displacement

[LEAKYSEALS951]

Wagons!!! Everywhere!!!! I hate em'!!!

[Shaun @ Tru6]

A family of 5, we toured the northeast in a 73 Chevy Kingswood Estate visiting Niagra Falls to the Poconos to Amish Country.

My favorite wagon is the 94-95 E329.





Win the lottery wagon:

[oldE]

Wagons in my past:
One of my brothers, after he adopted two children to bring the total to 5, just missed buying a Fleetwood 75 limo to haul them around in. Stuck with few choices, he bought a '73 Olds 98 wagon. 455 cu in. The rear glass powered up into the roof. The lower gate dropped into the floor. While he was working up north on the DEW line, I had to rig up an extension to the floor mounted dimmer switch so his (short) wife could drive it at night.
A year later, a BIL asked the local GM dealer to bring in a Chevelle wagon for him. When it arrived, he didn't think too much about the roof rack, the wood grain cladding or the swivel bucket seats. When he stepped on the go pedal, he certainly was not expecting the push of the 454 big block. Darn, that thing would go.
It went much better than the Fairmont wagon my father bought a few years after I left home. It had a straight 6. Its redeeming feature was its handling. Pretty good for the time. After all, it shared the Fox chassis.
Five years ago, my wife spotted a Golf Sportwagon and decided it would be her next car. The thing can carry 12 bundles of shavings, has been instrumental in moving my daughter's possessions at least twice and probably thinks it is a farm truck. Oh yes, it has a trailer hitch and has dragged home lumber for projects and an 11 ft sailboat. With the 1.8 turbo it can get out of its own way very nicely.

Best
Les

[Jolly Amaranto]

In 1956, my dad was over seas so my mom bought a new 56 Chevy and moved us kids to Tucson, Arizona. She traded it in on credit to the local Chevy dealer when we left in 1958 to join my dad on Okinawa.

In 1961 we were back stateside. My dad swung by Tucson to pick up a new wagon from the dealer there using the credit, and drove it to Wisconsin where my mom and us kids took it up the ALCAN highway to Fairbanks while he went back to California before joining us in Alaska. After a year there, all five of us piled into the 61 Chevy and drove to New Hampshire.

Mom sold it before we moved to Guam in 1965 to join my dad again. After a few years there, we came back stateside again and picked up a one year old company car used by the senior management at the company where dad worked in Palo Alto and drove it to Texas where my dad's company assigned him to work for NASA.

[Jolly Amaranto]

A bigger image of the 1961 Chevy wagon.

[MMARSH]

My lottery winning wagon

[A930Rocket]

Originally Posted by Seahawk

1968 Ford Country Squire - yellow with no fake wood.

My seat on trips was in the way back, the two seats that came out of the floor and faced each other, not the back of the wagon.

On our many trips to the Bay Area, I might as well been on Apollo 13 and the rest of family at Mission Control.

No seat belts, no air bags and a bumper rated to "parking lot", all powered by a huge motor on 60/70's tires with drum brakes. What could go wrong

Sounds like ours, but it was blue with the faux wood paneling. No power steering! I remember we were coming back from a ski trip in New England and my dad raised the glass on the tailgate. Not noticing the glass going up, my hand went up with it in my fingers got crushed. Pandemonium ensued, trying to tell my dad 23 feet in front of us, to lower the glass.😂

Similar to this.

[Baz]

Originally Posted by 911boost

I bought a sweet 1968 Buick Sport Wagon from the original owner -snip-

Now THAT is indeed a SWEET ride!

I forgot to post the second of three Volvo stick shift wagons I have owned.

This a '69 I bought off eBay (just like the last one). It was located just north of Ocala so an easy transaction.

The seller was the second owner. It spent almost it's entire life in Fort Myers with the elderly couple who bought it new.

The eBay seller was the younger brother of a person who worked in the service department in Gainesville, and used the car while a student at UF. The car had received service at the Volvo dealership for whatever was needed, so when I got it, it was in excellent mechanical condition. Original paint and interior too.

The carbs had been updated to SU's, too!

I only paid around $1,600 for her. Quite the steal!

[plain fan]

Definitely a fan of wagons and wish that we had more options here in the states. There was a brand new Audi RS6 Avant at last Saturday at Cars and Coffee. It was very impressive but much bigger than I expected.

[70SATMan]

Originally Posted by astrochex

My folks had a blue version of this that we drove from SoCal to Illinois. It was a beast.

Our long trips in it were Illinois to Florida a couple of times and out to Pennsylvania and DC.. Great car to road-trip in. I’d love to find one. We’ve a local hot Rodder that has a really nice ‘65.

[KNS]

Growing up our family had a Ford Galaxy wagon (which we called the Sherman tank) and later an Opel Kadet wagon.

A few years ago I bought my first wagon - a Volkswagen Alltrack. I love the thing! All the utility of an SUV but handles like a (sport) sedan. I put on wider wheels and tires (off an Audi) and a slightly bigger rear sway bar.

Mine is white (not mine but VW photo).

[Danimal16]

We came to California in 1963 in my Dad's new 1963 Laurel Green Chevy Bel Air Wagon. Fond Memories of time gone by.