A Nostalgic History of the Station Wagon

[Alamo]

 

[tmschuller]

Went to a lot of baseball games in the back of my buddy’s Moms country squire wagon. Back seat face the rear.. would stop at the buffet that your food came around on like wheel of fortune but slower… can not remember the name of the buffet

 

[Flingarrows]

Pretty cool

 

[Flingarrows]

Went to a lot of baseball games in the back of my buddy’s Moms country squire wagon. Back seat face the rear.. would stop at the buffet that your food came around on like wheel of fortune but slower… can not remember the name of the buffet

Our family had a 73 Pontiac Catalina Safari. There were 6 of us back then. Quite the car…

 

[Super Bee]

Mom had several station wagons over the years. My favorite was the Olds Vista Cruiser. I loved riding in that thing looking up through the roof.

 

[Alamo]

I think the very first car that I can remember was our black Dodge station wagon with the fins. I don’t know the year model, but we were not flush with cash so I’m sure it was a well used one.

It looked approximately like this, a 1960 dodge matador station wagon. There was also a Polaris model of the same year, and I don’t know which one we had, they look very similar to my memory from my single digit age. Ours was solid black and I don’t remember if I had a luggage rack or not. I recall the fins as being bigger as well, but it may have been a different year model, and this memory is from 60 years ago.

 

[Alamo]

Mom had several station wagons over the years. My favorite was the Olds Vista Cruiser. I loved riding in that thing looking up through the roof.

One of the neighbor moms had one of these for her three boys plus all their friends, and I thought that window was the coolest thing.

 

[Alamo]

Oh, and also, if I recall correctly, the Dodge wagon had a column shift manual transmission.

 

[Flingarrows]

Mom had several station wagons over the years. My favorite was the Olds Vista Cruiser. I loved riding in that thing looking up through the roof.

My buddy in high school had a vista cruise with a 4 speed, and a sister wagon, a 72 Buick sport wagon, with a 455 in it

 

[Bill2905]

My parents owned a yellow '73 Dodge Monaco wagon with the fake wood grain decal down the side. I recall that it had a 400 V-8. It was quite the automobile for its time and we took a lot of family trips in it. In later years, I drove that thing a lot after getting my license.

 

[Ingomike]

Pretty cool vid, some great old wagons in it…

Government killed the wagon with CAFE standards…

 

[Lmo1131]

From about 1966 on my dad drove Ford Country Squire Sta Wags. I even took my driver’s license test in one; nailed the parallel park.

 

[wtburnette]

From about 1966 on my dad drove Ford Country Squire Sta Wags. I even took my driver’s license test in one; nailed the parallel park.

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My uncle had one of these (or one very similar) and I can remember him taking my cousins and I to the drive in in it in the 70's.

 

[funeralweb]

From about 1966 on my dad drove Ford Country Squire Sta Wags. I even took my driver’s license test in one; nailed the parallel park.

View attachment 252514

Had my parents still owned their '69 Catalina wagon when I got my license, parallel parking would have been near the bottom of the list of things I woulda/coulda/shoulda nailed.

 

[mikek]

That’s a cool video thanks for sharing. I love wagons. This is my 66 Nova wagon that I drive a lot in the summer.

 

[88E30M50]

We grew up in station wagons. I think my favorite was a ‘69-ish Buick Sport Wagon, but when my dad moved to Mopar, the Fury wagon that had A/C was nice too.

I was determined to never own a minivan, so my kids were brought up in station wagons too. My taste tend to run a bit different so our family car when the kids were little was a BMW 5 Series wagon.

That was followed later by a 3 Series with a 6 speed manual and for about a year and a half, my youngest had a beautiful 3 series wagon until someone T-boned it on 135.

I’d love to get back into a wagon again

 

[gregkl]

Video too long for me to watch right now but I grew up with wagons. My dad had many wagons over the years, all Buicks. Started with sport wagons and eventually ended up with Estate Wagons. Had those big 455's in them.

My childhood friend had the Chevy version, Kingwood I believe.

Later on in life when we started having kids, my wife drove a Malibu wagon and then a Cherokee XJ which is really just a 4WD wagon.

Wagons are great versatile vehicles. I don't understand the "hate" concerning them. I'd pick a wagon over a mini-van every time.

We have never personally owned a mini-van. I have had plenty as company vehicles and they were useful too, but nothing to like about them as far as aesthetics.

 

[spencer rifle]

I have never owned a car with a trunk. Always wagons or hatchbacks.

Growing up we had a 61 Falcon wagon, a 66 Ranch wagon, and a 72 Ranch wagon (with a 400 V8).

 

[fullmetaljesus]

My first car was a station wagon. An 87 Buick Electra, I loved that dumb car.

I was riding down the street with a buddy in the passenger seat. I made a comment about how the back seat faces the back window. His response was "********!" I assured him it did so while I was driving down the street he climbed all the way back and folded the seat up hopped in it and from then on he refused to ride in any other seat but the very back one.

It was a great first cars dragging my pals around, and having picnics in the back.
And as you can see had one of my senior pics taken with it.

 

[Alamo]

I remember in the mid-70s when my buddies’ family switched from a station wagon to a Chevy Suburban. I had never seen a Suburban in person before, and thought it was kind of neat. I didn’t realize I was witnessing a change of eras.