What ever happened to station wagons?

[Phineas Lamour]

Tom, I love the older wagons too. I've mentioned Shirley RIP (my 77 Country Squire) here before. If i was buying it for a second car it would be no problem. I am planning to sell my PT Cruiser so I need something reliable and good on gas. I will own another land yacht someday. I have had 4 wagons in my adult life and many in my childhood.

 

[Phineas Lamour]

May I suggest the Mazda 5?

Thanks, Wolfen.
I have looked at a couple. If I can find one for the right price I might go with that choice.

 

[AtomicEraTom]

The 77 'Squire is my favorite of all the years they made them. I looked at one, but the dealer screwed me out of it. Sold it to someone else after promising he'd hold it 'til the end of the week when I could get there. Normally, I'd be a bit more understanding, but I bought lots of parts and vehicles from him. It was a loaded one, with every option from power windows, to the 8-track, to the 460 ci engine.

Tom, I love the older wagons too. I've mentioned Shirley RIP (my 77 Country Squire) here before. If i was buying it for a second car it would be no problem. I am planning to sell my PT Cruiser so I need something reliable and good on gas. I will own another land yacht someday. I have had 4 wagons in my adult life and many in my childhood.

Our family car growing up was a '77 Ford LTD wagon, aka a Country Squire without the wood and hideaway lights. It looked just like this, down to the color, but a bit better shape.

 

[scottyrocks]

I learned to drive and took my road test in one of these, my parents' 1973 Chevrolet Malibu station wagon. Ours wasn't an SS but it's hard to find a picture of exactly what we had. Ours was brown. I drove this car for a year before I got my own first car.

 

[scottyrocks]

This is pretty much what happened....



http://money.cnn.com/2011/02/15/autos/death_station_wagon.fortune/index.htm

I'm surprised the article didn't mention that the SUVs didn't have to comply with CAFE standards, making it even more advantageous for manufacturers to push them and drop their wagon lines.

 

[Phineas Lamour]

The 77 'Squire is my favorite of all the years they made them. I looked at one, but the dealer screwed me out of it. Sold it to someone else after promising he'd hold it 'til the end of the week when I could get there. Normally, I'd be a bit more understanding, but I bought lots of parts and vehicles from him. It was a loaded one, with every option from power windows, to the 8-track, to the 460 ci engine.

Shirley was yellow, had power everything, and a 400 Windsor engine. I got her for 300 bucks. Worth every cent too.

 

[Nikki]

I've driven two station wagons in my life and loved both of them. The first was a 1984 Pontiac and the second was a 1999 Ford Taurus. The wagons did everything my dad used his Ford F150 for and without the cost of gas, insurance or maintenance. You can still find a Volvo that's new enough to not need major maintenance for a few years and they're still made by Mercedes as well as Cadillac. I'm sorry to see that wagons aren't made anymore. If I can ever find a classic wagon I can work on myself I will.

You can find 90's model wagons but you might have to put work into them and I don't know if you want to do that.

 

[Rathdown]

On my way back from the airport today I saw a 1959 Chevrolet 2-door station wagon on a used car lot. I'll be back tomorrow for a closer look...

 

[hatophile]

We had a Vista Cruiser with the window on top, pretty much like this one:

I loved that car, lots of great family trips with it, and I could haul plenty of buddies in it too!

 

[AtomicEraTom]

Vista Cruisers are so cool! My favorite Olds wagon, hands down!

 

[hatophile]

I like any wagon with wood (or fake wood) on it.

 

[DeaconKC]

I got my Driver's License in a 1973 Dodge Monaco like this:

 

[1961MJS]

I got my Driver's License in a 1973 Dodge Monaco like this:

Hey, did that have seats facing backward in the very back of the wagon? My neighbors had a station wagon that had that feature, and I'd SWEAR it was a Polaris.

Later

 

[scottyrocks]

Vista Cruisers are so cool! My favorite Olds wagon, hands down!

Now that you mention it, my dad had, after the Malibu, an '84 Olds Custom Cruiser wagon, also a very nice car. Ours was burgundy, and not a woody, but it looked like this:

 

[DeaconKC]

Sure did Mike, I actually had the window blow up when I was a kid and Dad shut the hatch!

 

[Miss Stella]

They got upgraded.

I would gladly chauffeur the grandson anywhere he wanted to go in one of these!!! Niiiiiiice

 

[kamikat]

I've had 2 new wagons as an adult, a 2000 Saturn and my current car, a 2004 Subaru outback. I never thought I could love a new car. I had a series of air-cooled VWs but my husband isn't into working on them they way my dad was. My Subaru is just as good in snow and ice as my old VWs and more.comfortable

 

[AtomicEraTom]

I tried to buy an Olds Custom Cruiser, a 1989 (same body style as the '84) a couple years ago. It was a blue woodie. Just couldn't make a deal happen.

Now that you mention it, my dad had, after the Malibu, an '84 Olds Custom Cruiser wagon, also a very nice car. Ours was burgundy, and not a woody, but it looked like this:

 

[David Conwill]

I tried to buy an Olds Custom Cruiser, a 1989 (same body style as the '84) a couple years ago. It was a blue woodie. Just couldn't make a deal happen.

I looked at one last year about this time that fit that description to a "T", except I think it was an '87. It was rough, though, and after they wouldn't deal on the '89 Caprice wagon I test drove on the same visit, I didn't even bother.

It doesn't help my wife hates faux woodgrain.

 

[AtomicEraTom]

How on earth can anybody hate faux woodgrain?