Station wagons have been marketed using the French term "break de chasse"[citation needed] (sometimes abbreviated to "break"), which translates as "hunting break", due to shared ancestry with the shooting-brake body style. Here, check out some huge classic ’50s station wagons — from popular vintage brands like Plymouth, Dodge, Mercury, Ford, Pontiac, Buick and De Soto and others — that sported fins & had rear-facing seats. Jeep actually had to use a three-tone paint job to simulate the “woody” look, and that vehicle's faux wood grain, tailgate, and vast cargo space set the tone for all wagons to come. Rear facing jump seats driving these wagons to thanksgiving driving these wagons to thanksgiving we call the back hemmings. In addition to its proficiency in cargo hauling, the E-class wagon provides a luxurious cabin in which to pamper its occupants, complete with optional massaging seats, two giant digital display screens, and an available semi-autonomous driving mode. Similar configurations became the standard on full-size and intermediate station wagons from GM, Ford, Chrysler, and AMC. The Chevy traverse, Buick traverse equivalent, Dodge Durango, and several other cars are really just rounded off station wagons with extra clearance. ", "A look back at the 1963 – 1991 Jeep Wagoneer: A guide to year-to-year changes", "2013 Mercedes-Benz GL450 vs. 2012 Mercedes-Benz E350 4Matic Wagon", "Automotive History: The Short And Odd Life Of The Two Door Station Wagon", "Fashionably Small: The Compact Nash Rambler", "Motoring Memories: AMC Rambler American 1958-1960", "A Short History of the Citroen Traction Avant", "The World's Greatest Wagons: Peugeot 203, 403, 404, 504, 505 – An Illustrated History", "Volvo Celebrates 60 Years of Station Wagon History", "Volvo Cars Gent 2019 production numbers", "Curbside Classic: 1970 Saab 95 – Saab Shows Ford How To Make The Shortest Three-Row Wagon", "Saab 9-3 Sportwagon (2005 - 2011) review", https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Station_wagon&oldid=1003517233, Articles with unsourced statements from November 2018, Articles with unsourced statements from October 2020, Pages using multiple image with auto scaled images, All articles with vague or ambiguous time, Vague or ambiguous time from November 2018, Wikipedia articles needing page number citations from November 2018, Articles with unsourced statements from March 2018, Srpskohrvatski / српскохрватски, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License, D-pillar: Station wagons are more likely to have a. The late 1950s through the mid-1960s was also the period of greatest variation in body styles, with models available without a B-pillar (called hardtop or pillarless models) or with a B-pillar, both in 2-door and 4-door variants. “These details appeal to shoppers who might otherwise be interested in a crossover. Station wagons and hatchbacks have in common a two-box design configuration, a shared interior volume for passengers and cargo[6][7] and a rear door (often called a tailgate in the case of a wagon) that is hinged at roof level. Daewoo Motor followed suit a year later with the first-generation Nubira. The Type 3's rear-engine layout was retained for the station wagon models, but the engine profile was flattened, resulting in a small car offering interior room, as well as trunk space in the front. In France, almost all station wagon models are called a "Break", although the spelling is different from the English shooting brake. "[2], When a model range includes multiple body styles, such as sedan, hatchback, and station wagon, the models typically share their platform, drivetrain and bodywork forward of the A-pillar. Now considered nearly indestructible , the 300TD has strong resale value among those … Years produced: 1986-09Original starting price: $13,068 This was simply a Taurus with an uglier grille and a lot of additional features no one asked for. Years produced: 1948-50Original starting price: $3,425 This vehicle now sells for an average of $92,900 because of what it was: a wood-sided sedan that made room for eight passengers with very few modifications. Station wagons remained popular in Europe[35] and in locations where emissions and efficiency regulations did not distinguish between cars and light trucks.[36]. In 1961, Volkswagen introduced the two-door "Variant" body style of the Volkswagen Type 3 (also known as the Volkswagen 1500 - later the Volkswagen 1600). Saved from fbcdn-sphotos-c-a.akamaihd.net. The model was offered through the 1973 model year. Now Available as an aftermarket kit! Jul 6, 2014 - 1962 Chevy II 300 station wagon with rear-facing third row seat. The third and fourth rows were designed for two people each (although these seats were quite narrow in later models), giving a total seating capacity of ten people. Built on the same platform as the compact Impreza, the Forester began its life as a taller wagon. The full-size Country Squire model was produced in higher quantities than the other Ford models. Station wagons with the design featured an optional third row of forward-facing seats accessed by the rear side doors and a folding second-row seat — and could accommodate a 4 x 8' sheet of plywood with rear seats folded. [67] Following a hiatus in station wagon production since the Saab 95 ended production in 1978, the comany introduced the four-door Saab 9-5 station wagon in 1997, which was produced until 2010. One of the first builders of wagon bodies was the Stoughton Wagon Company from Wisconsin, who begun putting custom wagon bodies on the Ford Model T chassis in 1919[26][page needed] and by 1929 the Ford Motor Company was the biggest producer of chassis' for station wagons. Years produced: 1981-2003Original starting price: $5,158 Ford flopped with its first small car, the Pinto — which would explode in crashes. Years produced: 1964-77Original starting price: $3,270 “Hangin' out! Despite the popularity of station wagons in America, station wagon offerings in the U.K. from Ford and Vauxhall were limited to factory-approved aftermarket conversions of the Ford Consul and Vauxhall Cresta, until the factory-built Vauxhall Victor wagon was introduced in 1958. [39][40], In 2011, the Toyota Prius V introduced hybrid power to the compact wagon market, but was discontinued in 2017 to streamline the Toyota hybrid lineup and focus on the RAV4 Hybrid Crossover SUV. Since the 1990s, full-size station wagons have been largely replaced by SUVs with three-row seating, such as the Chevrolet Suburban, Ford Expedition, Mercedes-Benz GL-Class, and Dodge Durango. The subsequent generation of GM's full-size station wagons returned to the upward-lifting rear window as had been used in the 1940s. The final wooden bodied station produced in the United States was the 1953 Buick Super Estate. The Town & Country had evolved into a chromed-out wagon with tailgate and rear washer — and nearly 19 feet of length — by 1968 and got some fake wood paneling in the 1970s (also on its smaller “K-car” in the '80s). [29] The first mass-produced steel-bodied station wagon was the 1946 Willys Station Wagon, based on the chassis of the Jeep CJ-2A. [13] The power operation of both upper glass and lower tailgate became standard equipment in later model years. The roofs of "woodie" wagons were usually made of stretched canvas that was treated with a waterproofing dressing. They were originally called "depot hacks" because they worked around train depots as hacks (short for hackney carriage, as taxicabs were then known). [17][18][19], The first station wagons were built in around 1910, by independent manufacturers producing wooden custom bodies for the Ford Model T chassis. Years produced: 1975-79Original starting price: $3,799 The AMC Pacer has a reputation for being ugly, but it was designed to be little with enough space inside to fit four people comfortably. [5], In Germany, the term "Kombi" is used, short for Kombinationskraftwagen ("combination motor vehicle"). A 1993 Chevrolet Caprice station wagon with a custom-built matching trailer is for sale on Bring A Trailer. South Korean manufacturers do not have a strong tradition in producing station wagons. The majority of these models were two-door wagons and several models were built on the chassis of relatively small cars. 1962 Chevy II 300 station wagon with rear-facing third row seat. Volvo's focus on safety made it a parental favorite until U.S. safety standards finally caught up, which is why we can understand a refresh each time they punch up the engine options, add all-wheel drive, or make multiple airbags, seatbelt pretensioners, side-impact protection, and whiplash-absorbing seat-back hinges standard. With features such as anti-lock brakes, driver airbag, power windows, and a rear-facing rear row of seats, the 300TD started its life as a Cape Cod or Hamptons car. This was back when Buick wasn't just yet another GM brand that needed a wagon, but a near-autonomous badge that could offer its own engines and designs to set itself apart. Competitors marketed their versions as a Drop and Swing or Dual Action Tailgate. The popularity of the station wagon - particularly full-size station wagons - in the United States was blunted by increased fuel prices caused by the 1973 oil crisis. Other station wagons sold in the United Kingdom included the Morris 1100 (introduced in 1966), Vauxhall Viva (introduced 1967), Ford Escort (introduced in 1968) and Vauxhall Chevette (introduced 1976). [citation needed]. [56] General Motors also introduced the sportier Chevrolet Nomad and Pontiac Safari to their lineup in 1955. The US CAFE standards provided an advantage to minivans (and later SUVs) over station wagons, because the minivans and SUVs were classified as trucks in the United States, and therefore subject to less stringent fuel economy and emissions regulations. The last two-door wagon available in America, the Volkswagen Fox,[citation needed] was discontinued in 1991. Volvo station wagons produced since the mid-1990s are the Volvo V40, Volvo V50, Volvo V60, Volvo V70 and Volvo V90, with the V40, V60 and V90 models currently in production. Others, such as the Morris Travellers, the Austin Cambridge Countryman and the Standard Ten Companion were bespoke. The Roadmaster wagon can seat eight people: three in the front on the bench seat, three in the middle row, and two in the rear-facing jump seats in the trunk area, a feature stolen directly from family wagons of … [34] The Mercedes-Benz E63 AMG in Estate trim is a performance station wagon offered in the U.S. market. Years produced: 1936-presentOriginal starting price: $685 In the early days of the automobile, the station wagon was literally a car you took to get home from a train station, and it had a wooden box on the back to hold luggage. Ford began production of steel-bodied two-door station wagons in 1952 with the Ford Ranch Wagon. The 200 series had huge front and rear crumple zones, three-point seatbelts everywhere, and, in the early '90s, anti-lock brakes standard. Of the two body styles, a station wagon roof (viewed in profile) more likely extends to the very rearmost of the vehicle, enclosing a full-height cargo volume[7] — a hatchback roof (especially a liftback roof) might more likely rake down steeply behind the C-Pillar, prioritizing style[1] over interior volume, with shorter rear overhang and with smaller windows (or no windows) aside the cargo volume. Buyers approved, and none of Dodge's other muscle cars matched the sales of this beast. This is a short video of me running through the gears in our 1967 Ford Country Squire DFRS (Dual Facing Rear Seats) 4-door station wagon (VIN 7U74Q143183). The Ford Country Squire is a model that was easily recognized by its simulated wood trim[47][48] and the "Squire" trim level was an available option in a few different Ford model ranges, including the Falcon Squire, Fairlane Squire, and in the 1970s the Pinto Squire. In 1983, station wagons represented 15% of the passenger car market,[70] reflecting a trend throughout Europe of increasing popularity through the 1980s, with the vehicles becoming less cargo-oriented. [26] By 1951, most station wagons were being produced with all-steel bodies.[20]. The Ford Taurus station wagon (last made in 2004) can hold six people, thanks to a rear-facing third row seat over the rear axle, but if you use it, make sure whoever sits in it has access to a receptacle in which to vomit. Reflecting the original purpose of transporting people and luggage between country estates and railway stations,[4] the body style is called an "estate car" or "estate" in the United Kingdom, or a "station wagon" in North America, New Zealand, Australian and Africa. For a little more, Mercedes offers the AMG E63 Estate Wagon and the R 500. But kids of its era are more likely to remember it for side-facing seats, a magnetic checkerboard, optional CB radio, and hidden rear cargo compartment. Later in the decade, electric power was applied to the tailgate window—it could be operated from the driver's seat, as well as by the keyhole in the rear door. Station wagons are almost synonymous with kids, who seem to love the cars’ cavernous passenger compartments and especially the rear-facing jump seats that many wagons feature. Station wagons remain popular in Japan, although they are in slow decline as the SUVs and minivans have taken over a large portion of this market. “As SUVs and crossovers gain interest among car shoppers, companies are seeing success by applying elements of those vehicles into their wagon options.”. Volvo Station Wagon With Rear Facing Seats. Since the 1930s, the term shooting-brake (originally a term for hunting vehicles) has been an alternative, if now rarely used, the term for station wagons in the UK. Well, this wagon version of the Chevrolet Corvair not only ran on a sluggish 80-horsepower engine, but tossed that engine in the back of the vehicle like a Volkswagen Beetle. [21] They also came to be known as "carryalls" and "suburbans". Wood panels weren't built for the long haul, which makes a childhood spent in one of these worth cherishing. The long Cutlasses of the 1970s and the shorter, more utilitarian Cutlass family of Cieras, Supremes, and Calaises would make the Cutlass a fixture in family driveways. Rear suspension: A station wagon may include reconfigured rear suspension for additional load capacity, Rear Door: Hatchbacks usually feature a top-hinged, This page was last edited on 29 January 2021, at 11:02. [21][34] While the K platform was also used for station wagon models (such as the Plymouth Reliant and Dodge Aries), the minivan would soon eclipse them in popularity. According to Stationwagon.com, a … In 1956 Ford responded to the Nomad and Safari with its own sporty two-door wagon, The Ford Parklane. Indeed, it's as much a tribute to Roadmasters past as it is to some of the iconic station wagons of the 1960s and 70s, namely the Oldsmobile Vista Cruiser of That 70's Show fame. Years produced: 1957-91Original starting price: $3,677 The Colony Park was a woodgrain-paneled wagon from its start as a somewhat snazzier version of Ford's Country Squire. ", "E61 BMW M5 Touring: One of the best M cars of all time", "A Short History of Station Wagons in the USA", "The Last, Great, Gasp of the American Station Wagon", "Motoring Memories: The history of the station wagon", "Postwar Station Wagons: Mom's Car Makes a Comeback", "About Cars; Chewing Over the Art Of Automotive Design", "Europe's station wagons flourish - The Washington Times", "Comparison of passenger vehicle economy and greenhouse gas emission standards around the world", "BMW Might Kill 5 Series Wagon in Favor of GT Crossover", "Toyota's own hybrid models are eating away at Prius sales", http://www.vw.com/models/golf-sportwagen/?cid=ssem_MHm7hLRR_66236130786_c, "Volkswagen Is Ending Golf Sportwagen Alltrack Production", "2018 Volvo V90 Wagon Will Be Custom Order Only in America", "Against the Grain: 21 Woodies That Weren't Station Wagons", "DI-NOC Siding: Restoring a station wagon's wood grain is now quick and easy", "Jeep's Wagoneer Making Fake Wood Grain Fashionable Again? Its boxy frame became a familiar sight at farmers markets and on leaf-peeping vacations, but U.S. drivers' continued drift toward SUVs led Subaru to stretch the Forester from 14.6 feet to 15 feet, while increasing its wheelbase by nearly a foot. Some station wagons were closely derived from existing commercial van models, such as the Austin A30/35 Countryman and the Hillman Husky. By 1990, however, it was a wood-paneled minivan, following families from one iconic vehicle to the next. The Peugeot 404, introduced in 1960, offered a conventional alternative to the innovative Citroëns for buyers wanting a large station wagon. “Wagons are usually longer vehicles, so people who live in cities will take up a smaller footprint with a small SUV.”. This was followed by the 1963 Mazda Familia, 1966 Toyota Corolla, 1967 Isuzu Florian, 1969 Mitsubishi Galant, 1973 Mitsubishi Lancer and 1974 Honda Civic wagons. Growing up we had many cars, but one of our favorites was the station wagon. The clam shell design required no increased footprint or operational area to open, allowing a user to stand at the cargo opening without the impediment of a door — for example, in a closed garage. roomy enough for two kids as long as they aren't too big. Years produced: 1971-76Original starting price: $4,135 The Grand Safari “clamshell” design made its way onto the biggest versions of the Chevy Kingswood, Belair, and Caprice Estates; Oldsmobile Custom Cruiser; and Buick Estate — and so did a “glide-away” tailgate that glided away only if you exerted 35 pounds of pressure to lower it. Good luck finding an intact model today. Early advertising for the Land Rover version took the name literally, showing the vehicle collecting people and goods from a railway station. Though unusual for its time, the Eagle set the template for the crossover SUV and made all-wheel drive a sought-after feature — and not just for off-roaders. [20][23] Then in 1983, the market for station wagons was further eroded by the Chrysler minivans, based on the K platform. The Citroën ID also had a two-part tailgate and hydropneumatic suspension, which allowed a self-leveling ride-height and automatic brake biasing regardless of the load carried. And of the various ways automakers have increased station wagon seating capacity in the last 50 years, the rear-facing third row seat is the most iconic. The split gate features an upward-swinging window combined with a downward swinging tailgate, both manually operated. Station wagons can flexibly reconfigure their interior volume via fold-down rear seats to prioritize either passenger or cargo volume. “Chrysler's PT Cruiser offered exterior wood, but it was fake, and the Lincoln Blackwood — their ill-fated luxury truck — also had exterior wood,” Kaufman says. 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