Station Wagons

Do you ever see station wagons on the road anymore?  Once in awhile I do and it takes me back to my childhood.  We had this salmon colored wagon with fins in the back.  I loved that thing.  Of course I would be able to roll around the back WHILE we were driving, no seatbelts required back then.  My cousin's family also had one, like the Brady Bunch.  They had 7 kids, we would all pile in that thing and go to the local drive-in movie.  Only $5 for a carload.  Looks like the mini van is the "new" station wagon these days.

Here's what mine looked like except mine was all pink.

I never see them anymore. I think the minivan took its place.

My mother had station wagons when we were children. We named one of them "Nathan."

Every summer we would load the station wagon up with six kids and luggage for a two week stay at my grandparents' house. It was a really tight squeeze!

_Dodycooks:

Do you ever see station wagons on the road anymore? 

I do seem to see more lately than I used to.

We had one growing up too. I laugh when I watch that 70's show because we had a Vista Cruiser just like the one on there, only ours was purple.

Also, thinking of the vista cruiser and going on family trips......it reminds me of the old styrofoam coolers. I can still hear the suitcases rubbing against the styrofoam in my mind......

That looks similar to my childhood station wagon. There were six kids in my family too. My 3 older sisters sat in the middle row, and we three younger ones would sit in the back seat facing backward. We'd wave to the  people behind us.

Occasionally, we'd go to the drive-in movie on Saturday night. First we'd have our Saturday night baths, put on our jammies and get our hair curled in pin curls (with Wave Set). Dad would pop tons of popcorn. He's put the back seat down, and we'd make little beds back there and watch the movie. Wonderful memories. 

I do see them on occasion and there are several updated versions on the road these days.  When my older boys were little I had one and really liked it, it was Chevy Celebrity wagon.  When I was teenager, a close friend got a station wagon as a first car.  That thing was a BOAT!  Wood paneled sides - it was fancy we tried so hard to kill it! We called it the "silver bullet".  Let me tell ya, with a big ol' V8 engine, that car could move! LOL

I have a mini (by old time standards) station wagon....a 2000 Ford Focus.  I love my little car....I never had kids so I never needed a minivan.  This is as close as I got...LOL!!! 

When I was a kid I thought of station wagons as ugly cars driven by women watching too many kids (either their own kids, or a sign that the woman was easily bullied into being the carpool mom).  Now when I see station wagons they tend to be fairly high end cars, usually European ones like VW Passats, Volvos, or Audis.  If I were choosing between a hulking SUV or minivan and one of those, I'd definitely want the wagon.

But as it is, small household plus high gas prices leads to small cars driven infrequently.

I think the last "real" station wagon I remember was a Ford Taurus.  I don't consider those mini wagons (like Subarus or Volvos) real station wagons, lol.  I'm talking big giant Brady Bunch style!

I suppose the SUV's can also be considered the "new" station wagon, like Suburbans or  Expeditions.

We had a couple of them too. There was 6 kids in our family and when we were small we would all crowd into a regular size car (of course no seatbelts) and I remember sometimes all of us would pile into dad's old truck (it was fun to  ride in the back of it). I learned to drive on that Ford wagon.As we got older mom bought a Ford LTD station wagon (yellow) and later she inherited a Chevrolet Caprice wagon (green) from my grandparents. Both had the woodgrain sides that looked like contac paper.I remember also going to the drive in theatre and paying for a car load. That was one of the few things we could afford to do with so many kids. My dh, dd and I love going to the drive in. We have 2 of them that we can choose from. Though is costs almost as much as going to a regular movie theatre these days. Though it is nice to take along snacks and  if you want sit outside the car.

I only see the volvo, subaru, bmw ones around. Don't see those boats unless they are pretty old.

 LadyFingers, I drove a '96 Passat wagon until 2 years ago. I loved that car! We bought it used. Unfortunately, repairs cost big $$$$$. It was a great car while it was newer. Lots of leg room in the back seat, and very comfortable.

Dodycooks,

We have a taurus station wagon.  I love the room that it has.  With four kids and my mom it's nice that we can all go somewhere together without having to drive seperate vehicles.  Our wagon seats 8 people with the third row folding seat.  The wagon is cheaper on gas than those huge SUVs that seat the same amount of people. 

We even joke about being like the brady bunch.  We have 3 boys and 1 girl at home and 2 step daughters that live across country.  We decided that if the DSDs ever come to visit we could ride in the wagon just like the Bradys.  LOL  Three boys, three girls, and mom and dad!

My dad hated station wagons.  He used to buy the big Detroit road yachts, like Chevy Bel Airs or Olds Cutlass.

I, however, had a 1978 Grand Marquis station wagon.  I loved that thing.  Now I have a small-ish SUV.

DS has a 1999 Saturn wagon and he is already worrying about what will replace it when he needs to get a new one.  Maybe with the gas crunch there will be a return to the traditional station wagon, more compact than the SUVs.   

I see Volvo wagons a lot around here.  And someone who scoots down my street every afternoon (I guess to get their kids from the near-by school) has one of those huge wagons with the wood on the sides.  It doesn't look really old.....but I can't think of what make/model it might be.  It's definitely something from Detroit, though.

I test-drove the "Jag Wag" and considered it for a little bit, but settled for the sedan.  It had a nice retractable cover that completely covered the cargo area & hid the contents.  

DH has fond memories of rolling around in the back of the family station wagon with his younger brothers & sisters.  My family always had staid European cars that didn't afford such shenanigans.