Station Wagons - An American Classic
The Station
Wagon is an American classic. Station Wagons look better, handle
better, and are more practical than any mini van or "SUV" could ever
hope to be. They make great project cars, hot rods, and even race cars.
It goes without saying that station wagons are the ultimate family car.
Their unique combination of styling, utility , and drivability is
unmatched by any other car. If you've experienced a Station Wagon, you
already know how awesome they are for road trips, vacations, family
life, etc. If you don't know, keep reading to find out why these cars
just flat rock...Pre-History of the Station Wagon
Before station wagons, there were depot hacks...
The
very first Station Wagons were called "depot hacks." Depot hacks
weren't production vehicles; they were based on a commercial chassis
(usually Ford) with a custom body built by independent companies for
extra passenger and cargo space. These hacks (taxis) were used to haul people and their luggage to and from the train depot, hence the term depot hack. Over time, the term station replaced depot, wagon replaced hack, and these specialty vehicles became known as Station Wagons. The first commercially produced wagon, the Star, was introduced in 1923.Treasury of Station Wagon Living
Not just a car but a lifestyle...
One
of the reasons I like wagons so much is they help take me back to a
simpler time. Gas was cheap, families had time to spend together, and
there were a lot less things to worry about. One of the things I really
enjoyed as a kid was car camping
with my family, and station sagons are ideally suited for car camping.
They're easier and more relaxing to drive than a truck, but they have
plenty of room for all your camping gear. The fold down rear tail gate
on many early wagons works great as a small picnic table, and the back
end of many station wagons is big enough to comfortably sleep in if you
don't feel like setting up a tent. In fact, Station Wagons and car
camping go together so well that Ford published a book on all the
aspects of car camping in a '57 Ranch Wagon. It was out of print for
many years but is available again. If you want a good nostalgia trip,
you will enjoy reading this book...
1958 Dodge Custom Sierra Station Wagon
Nothing beats a Mopar 9 Passenger Wagon...
(Photo: Alden Jewell)I love early Mopar wagons, and this 1958 Dodge Custom Sierra is one of the nicest wagons Mopar made in their heyday. It would be awesome with an updated suspension and a new Hemi with a blower...
1957 Ford Ranch Wagon
Not just a car, a way of life...
This is the car featured in Ford's Diary of Station Wagon Living. It's a full sized car, but actually pretty compact for the time - about the same size as my Buick Special. These make really nice cars (especially if you're trying to replicate the projects in the book). I think they came stock with a 292 V8. If I was building one today, I'd go for Ford's 4.6 SOHC for lots more power and lots better gas mileage.
(Photo: gem66 on Flickr under Creative Commons)
Prewar Wagons
Station wagons from 1923 - 1950
Prior
to WWII, most station wagons were classified as commercial vehicles and
had wood or composite wood/metal bodies. These were very beautiful and
today are highly sought after by collectors. Unfortunately the wood
bodies weren't as durable as steel so there aren't many left today - if
you want to buy one, expect to pay a lot of money for a nice one (of
course you can also find one in not so good condition and restore it yourself if
you have the skills.) In 1938, Dodge offered the first station wagon
classified as a passenger car. This started the trend of these cars
being a highly desired form of transformation, even though they didn't
achieve huge popularity until several years after the war.
10 Reasons To Love Station Wagons
Reasons why they're awesome...
Some
people like Pony Cars, others like Muscle Cars, and still others prefer
Sports cars. There are even those who prefer an economy car or a sedan,
not to mention trucks, vans, and SUV's. Wagons are my favorite though,
and here are some of the reasons why...
- Station Wagons look slow, so they make good sleepers.
- They have lots of weight over the rear axle for better traction coming off the line.
- A Station Wagon has 4 doors without the social stigma of being a "4-door."
- They have lots of room to haul the wife, rug rat(s), groceries, etc.
- They're more affordable than most 2-door hod rods.
- If your wife kicks you out of the house, you can comfortably sleep in the back (just try sleeping comfortably in an SUV).
- All your friends can ride with you at the same time.
- You can easily haul several model airplanes and all related gear.
- There is lots of room for storing extra car parts.
- There is lots of room for camping and fishing gear.
The Golden Age
Station Wagons 1950 - 1975
In
my opinion, the best station wagons are American wagons made between
1950 and 1973. In the years following WWII, demand for cars started to
grow. Wagon sales started out slowly, but grew rapidly during the
1950's. In 1951, station wagons accounted for only 3.3% of all car sales
in the U.S. By 1959, they accounted for almost 17% of U.S. car sales.
They were no longer considered utility vehicles, and for many car makers
represented the top of the line in styling and functionality.
The low end wasn't ignored either - both Ford and Plymouth introduced
compact wagons in 1960 (Falcon and Valiant respectively), with Chevy
releasing the compact Corvair station wagon in 1961 and the much more
popular Chevy II (Nova) in 1962. Throughout the 1960's, innovation was
the order of the day as auto makers tried to "one-up" each other. As the
60's came to a close though, auto makers turned more towards product
refinement, although some innovation continued, like GM's "Clam Shell"
tailgate design. Ford and Chevy introduced 2 door compact wagons in the
early 1970's (Pinto and Vega respectively), just in time for the energy
crisis of 1974. The energy crisis, along with new emissions regulations
imposed by Congress, marked the beginning of the end. Production would
continue for 2 more decades, but for the most part the Station Wagon's
best years were behind it.
My Station Wagon Memories
The family wagon was an integral part of my youth...
In 1973, my parents purchased a brand new Dodge Coronet Crestwood station wagon with a 360 4 barrel engine
and an automatic transmission. Since it was a demo vehicle, it came
with all the options available at the time - air conditioning, power
windows, semi-bucket front seats, and rear window exhaust deflector
(a.k.a. spoiler). It was painted a beautiful shade of dark brown
metallic, and was actually a pretty cool car even though I didn't
realize it at the time. It was a huge improvement over their previous
car (a 1964 Chevy Impala) and much more comfortable on trips to visit my
grandparents. The back seat folded down creating a huge area in the
back. When we'd go on trips, my parents would fold the seat down and my
sister and I would sleep in the back.My 3 Station Wagons...
My 3 Station Wagons...
My Favorite Station Wagons
Beauty, handling, performance, and styling...
For
a True Believer, any station wagon is better than a non-wagon, but
among wagons some are better than others. Station Wagon styles are at
least as varied as other types of cars and no matter what your
preferences are there is probably a Station Wagon suited for you. If you
like "sporty," one of the compact wagons (Chevy Nova, Dodge Dart, Ford
Falcon, or Plymouth Valiant) would probably be most to your liking. If
you have a big family or lots of stuff to haul around you may prefer one
of the full size wagons. If you want excellent handling and good road
manners a mid-80's GM wagon (Olds Cutlass Cruiser, etc) might be your
best choice. Here is a list of some of my favorite wagons and why
they're my favorites...1962 Plymouth Valiant Station Wagon
A face that only a mother could love...
The 62 Plymouth Valiant
had front end styling that was, uhmmm, different and not exactly in a
good way. I guess you could say they had a face that only Ma Mopar could
love. Other than the front treatment, though, it's actually a pretty
good looking car.The thing that makes the '62 Valiant wagon my favorite
station wagon, though, is that one of the engine options was a high
compression, 4-bbl 383 big block. The engine compartment is a little
crowded for headers, but the F.A.S.T. guys are running in the 11's
through stock exhaust manifolds so that isn't really a problem. This car
could be both a grocery getter and a street terror at the same time. A
stroked and mildly built Mopar 400 would make this wagon haul a lot more
than just groceries while still having good street manners.1962 Buick Special DeLuxe
Good looking mid-size...
I found my 62 Buick Special
on eBay. It's in very nice Number 3 condition and I bought it for
slightly less than Number 3 price so I'm pretty happy. This little car
has a wheel base of 112", so it's about half way in size between the
compact wagons (Mopar Valiant or Dart, Ford Falcon) and the full size
station wagons. In spite of being smaller than it full size wagon, it
handles like a land yacht but it's still fun to drive. The Buick Special
Series 4000 came with Buick's odd-fire V6 (not exactly the smoothest
running engine ever produced) but the Special DeLuxe Series 4100 came
with Buick's excellent little all aluminum V8. If you can find one of
these in good condition it would make a really nice station wagon to
collect or drive on special occasions. Keep in mind that it's not the
most popular wagon ever produced, so parts might be hard to find. This
is especially important if you find a basket case you want to restore -
at least if you hope to restore it to stock appearance.My 62 Buick Special
Awesome little mid-sized wagon...
My 62 Buick Special is just a little bigger than my 64 Valiant, so I
guess that makes it a mid-size station wagon. The similarities are kind
of eerie... both have 13" wheels, both have similar displacement (215
cu. in. for the Buick and 225 for the Mopar), and they both use engines
that were newly designed at the time the cars were built.Vintage Buick Special Ad
I think this is for a 61 Buick Special but they're essentially the same as the 63 models...
Another Pic of my Buick
Dawn Patrol...
1963 Ford Falcon
Timeless looks...
The 1963 Ford Falcon
was the last year of the rounded body style. The Falcon station wagon
was a compact wagon about the same size as the Plymouth Valiant and the
Chevy Nova. Like those other 2 wagons, the Falcon is light enough to
perform well with an inline six cylinder engine. If I ever get my hands
on 1 of these wagons, that's what I'll use. The 200 is the largest of
Ford's Falcon series inline sixes (not sure about the 250) so that's
what I'd build. The intake is kind of funky being cast as part of the
head, but Offenhauser makes an adapter that (with a little machine work)
lets you mount 3 stock 1-bbl carburetors with progressive linkage.
Clifford Performance sells headers and cams, put together right this
would be a neat little car.1964 Plymouth Valiant
An A Body wagon can haul more than just groceries...
Mopar
redesigned the Valiant in 1963, so the 1963 - 1966 series was
completely different than the 1962 Valiant. They were smaller, lighter,
and much better looking. I think the 64 Valiant Station Wagon
is the best looking of the series; 1964 was also the last year the
Valiant was offered with a push button automatic transmission. You could
run a small block Mopar, but the early Mopar A Body station wagons are perfect for Mopar's Slant Six.
Clifford and Hooker both have headers for the Slant Six, but for a
street car the best exhaust option would be Dutra Duals. A factory 2-bbl
intake setup would work very well on the street and more exotic options
are readily available. You can choose from the factory Hyper Pack
(single 4 bbl), dual 1 bbls on an Offenhauser intake, triple Webers,
even EFI. My Valiant wagon will be running dual Webers on a modified Offenhauser intake.
11 second Slant Six Valiant Station Wagon - Mopars North of the Gate 2009
My 64 Plymouth Valiant
She's seen better days, but the best days are still ahead...
1962 - 65 Chevy Nova
Nice little wagon that could smoke with an I6...
The 1962 - 65 Chevy Nova station wagon
has an unfair advantage over other early compact wagons like the
Plymouth Valiant or Ford Falcon - it readily accepts the small block
Chevy. In my opinion though, this little station wagon is a much better
fit for Chevy's inline 6. The Nova station wagon was produced in much
larger quantities than the Dart, Valiant, and Falcon station wagons, so
it's a lot easier to find one in good condition. Of all the station
wagons on my list, the early Nova wagons are the easiest to find.
They're also more popular than the other wagons, so prices can tend to
be high in spite of the better availability. Even so, nice examples of
the Nova wagon can be found for around $5-15,000 or less if you're
patient. Basket cases can be found for as low $500. Unlike some of the
other station wagons on my list, parts for the Nova are easy to find
(it's a Chevy after all) so you don't need to shy away from the basket
cases for fear of not being able to find parts. This may just be the best entry level station wagon you can get into.1969 Olds Vista Cruiser
A fine full size Station Wagon...
The Olds Vista Cruiser
was introduced in 1964. A really unique feature was a split glass
skylight over the 2nd seat and small glass panels over the rear cargo
area windows. In 1967, the Vista Cruiser was restyled, resulting in one
of the best looking station wagons to ever be produced (IMHO). The
standard engine was an Olds Rocket 350, with the Olds 400 from the 4-4-2
becoming available in 1968. In 1970, the Olds 455 became an option.
Transmission options were a 2 or 3 speed automatic or a 3 or 4 speed
manual. The 69 Vista Cruiser is my favorite because it had the styling
of the early 2nd generation Cruisers (in 1970 Olds changed the styling)
and a "Dual Action" tailgate. The standard engine and transmission
offerings are adequate, but if I ever get my own Vista Cruiser I'm going
to run a Cadillac 500 V8 backed by a 4 speed automatic overdrive
transmission. The 69 Vista Cruiser is a really good looking car and it's
probably my favorite station wagon, even though it's not a Mopar.
Any Full Size Chrysler Wagon
My current favorite is the '72 Town and Country
The ChryslerTown and Country
is one of my favorite full size station wagons. It was available in
both 6 passenger and 9 passenger models; the 9 passenger Town and
Country had a folding 3rd seat that faced to the rear of the car. This
wagon was huge and is one of the largest station wagons ever produced.
Lots of room to haul a large family, camping gear, all your worldly
possessions, etc. To get all that mass moving, the best engine is
Chrysler's excellent 440 (the Town and Country was offered with several
lesser engines as well). If you can find one of these, it would make an
excellent family car (don't expect great gas mileage though), tow car,
or a great project car. No matter what you use it for, the Town and Country is one sweet ride.1970 Datsun 510
Small station wagon for the street or Pro Rally
The Datsun 510
series was a neat little car produced from 1968 - 1974. The coupes were
popular in certain sports car racing classes and are considered
collectible today, but I like the station wagon version of the 510. It
is very small by American station wagon standards, but it has all the
requisites - 4 doors, fold-down rear seat, "wagon" roof line, and rear
hatch. The 510 wagon is also rear wheel drive which is always a plus but
rare for Japanese cars. The engine is pre-smog, reliable, easy to work
on, and easy to modify. For a reliable daily driver you can just leave
the engine stock, but a few hop-ups coupled with a beefed up chassis and
some suspension mods would make the 510 wagon perfect for Pro Rally or
blasting down the fire roads through your local forest. As a street
machine, the 510 would make an outstanding sleeper if you put in a later
model Nissan engine with a turbo running lots of boost. I want one...Datsun 510 - A Really Great Compact
Pro Rally, anyone?
One
of my friends had one of these in high school. Long story... we're both
lucky to be alive, the car is long gone, and it was my fault. Anyway,
I've wanted to find one and restore it ever since. This particular one
is a later model (1980 or 81?) with rectangular headlights. My friend's
510 was an earlier one with round headlights - which look much better
IMO. This would be a really fun car with a late model Nissan turbo
engine.(Photo: dave_7 on Flickr under Creative Commons)
1972 Ford Pinto Station Wagon
Lots of fun in spite of only 2 doors...
1971 - 74 Dodge Coronet Crestwood
I have many happy memories of this car...
Because of the memories I have of family vacations in one of these, the 1974 Dodge Crestwood
is my absolute favorite car. My parents' 74 Crestwood wagon took us
safely on many family vacations, taught me how to drive, got me back and
forth to my first job, and gave me my first taste of independence.
Unfortunately I was stupid at the time and didn't appreciate the finer
points of owning and driving a Station Wagon. One of my last acts before
joining the Air Force was stripping this beautiful, mint condition car
of the engine and transmission and towing the body to the county dump -
an act I'm now ashamed of of and hope God will forgive me for. I still
have the engine in my garage. The Coronet wagon's base engine was
Chrysler's 318, but a car this large really needs at least a 360. 383's
and 440's were also available as options. When I find my 74 Coronet it's
going to run a Mopar 360 stroked to 400 cubic inches.73 Dodge Coronet
Awesome Mopar wagon with Big Block power...
This Coronet station wagon recently sold in Reno - the asking price was less than $5000!!!.
I checked it out but didn't buy it 'cause my wife said if I got it I'd
have to sell my Buick Special and that "ain't happening." It was a very
nice car though - great paint, zero rust (very rare for a Mopar), decent
interior, and a 400 big block. I can just imagine this with a stroked
engine - around 472 inches - and a Six Pack intake. Oh well, some day...1972 Dodge Coronet Crestwood
I learned to drive in one of these...
My parents bought a brand new Dodge Coronet Crestwood wagon when I was 8
or 9 years old and it was the family car for about 10 years. I have
many memories tied to that car - trips to Sacramento to visit my
grandparents, learning how to drive, my first date, cruising with my
friends, crawling under the dashboard to disconnect the odometer so my
dad wouldn't know how many miles I'd put on it when I was out with my
friends... Some day I'm going to have one of my own.1976 - 1980 Dodge Aspen
A nice mid-size wagon...
1995 Honda Accord LX
Another excellent Japanese station wagon...
Classic Station Wagons For Sale
Where to find one...
It
can be tough to find a good station wagon for sale. Most were bought by
family guys, not car guys, and tended to get junked (crushed) instead
of collected and restored. Many others were derby'd by people who didn't
know any better. Still, it's possible to find good deals on classic
station wagons - maybe just not locally. The best source of classic and
vintage wagons for sale is eBay. You might think it's not a great idea
to buy a car from someone you don't know halfway across the country -
and it isn't unless you're careful, do your homework, ask lots of
questions, and be careful (yeah, I know I said "be careful" twice).
Actually, eBay motors makes it relatively safe to buy a car on line.
They have a good system in place for hooking up buyers with professional
vehicle inspection and transportation companies, Even if you decide not
to buy your wagon on eBay, it's worth checking out their listings to
get an idea of what you might pay when you finally find your dream
station wagon. Here are a few to check out...
