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Location: We_tside PNW (Columbia Gorge) / CO / SA TX / Thailand
34,610 posts, read 57,588,206 times
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I still have a significant fleet of wagons, and making more at the moment. (B4 Passat; 52 mpg w/ 25 gal tank... It is very popular to find a lower mileage GLX and swap in a TDI )
My wagons are pretty wimpy compared to my friend who has a Checker 'Limo Wagon', for 'hauling' his kid's soccer team
Passat wagon + my 2000GWR Snowbear' utility trailer can do most tasks. (I even used it as a 'cross country 'hearse'' when I had to bury 'dad'.) I am making a slide in 'tear-drop' camper, so I will have a 45 mpg 'motorhome' with my wagon. (also making outdoor shower, hot water heater for cooking, and modular camping goodies.)
Burning cooking, heating, waste oil or JetA can make for pretty cheap 'travels'.
Not quite the same as the Old's vista cruiser we had as a family...
Location: East of Seattle since 1992, 615' Elevation, Zone 8b - originally from SF Bay Area
44,165 posts, read 80,309,828 times
Reputation: 57038
The wagon become unpopular after being associated with the suburban soccer mom, so the manufacturers simply shortened the length and made them a little taller and called them crossovers or SUVs. With few exceptions most crossovers and SUVs these days are really just station wagons with smaller storage areas. Look at the Forester and the 2013 Escape. Station wagons.
I miss wagons as well! One of my favorite previous cars was a 95 Toyota Camry V6 wagon.. That thing was awesome! One of the best cars I've owned. Very comfortable, roomy, reliable, fast and Surprisingly smooth. It even had the jumper seats in the cargo area which faced backwards and could be stowed away in the floor when not in use! 2 kids could easily fit in it. Anyone remember the Camry wagon? They stopped making them in 1996....
What's wrong with a V70/XC70 if you want a Volvo wagon? I am surprised the V50 lasted as long as it did because the market for a wagon that small in the Volvo lineup is somewhat limited, especially once the C30 was introduced as those who wanted a hatchback had an option other than the V50.
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All the world's a stage, and all the men and women merely players: they have their exits and their entrances; and one man in his time plays many parts, his acts being seven ages.
~William Shakespeare (As You Like It Act II, Scene VII)
Wagon guy here. Americans have proven that we don't want wagons. It is a very small subset that wants a wagon with a diesel and a manual trans.
I traded my Mazda 6 Sport Wagon with a 5-speed in 2007 for an...SUV (Volvo XC90). I test drove the XC70 at the time but wasn't happy with the 5 cylinder so I went for a V8 XC90.
BMW is going to bring the new 3-series wagon here too. You can also get an E class wagon I believe. It's pretty nice.
I still have my 1993 MB 300TE. It will cruise along the highway at 100mph quietly and very competently. Its the vehicle I made it back from downtown Boston in 11:15 (880 miles) a few years ago. It gets 22 mpg city and 26mpg on the road. One could get a used one today with 100,000 miles on it in near perfect condition for $2500-4000.
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