1972 Buick Sport Wagon
The Breithaupt Family 'Sport Utility Wagon'
1980 Chevrolet Camaro Z28 Wagon custom - Kenner Fast 111's
1967 Chevrolet Camaro Nomad custom - Racing Champions
1965 Chevrolet Chevelle Wagon - Johnny Lightning
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Sure, I have a soft spot for wagons. My first car was a '63 Chevy Bel Air
Wagon with a 327 ci V8. It was fun to drive, almost unbreakable and it sure
beat any bike when it came to doing my paper route. Some 25 years after
the Bel Air Wagon, I finally found another wagon for the full-size collection.
My '72 Buick Sport Wagon with it's 350 ci V8 is more fun and better looking
than the Bel Air. The addition of new paint, 15 in. white letter tires,
chrome wheels and dual exhaust have made it look as good as it sounds. On
a recent 10 day vacation on the Oregon Coast, it easily held parents and
four kids, all our gear and provided 18 m.p.g. on regular gas. For a 33
year old car, it is my idea of a real sport-utility vehicle.
Wagons are back in style. While Europeans have continued to produce great
wagons for many years, American automakers dumped them in favor of van and
SUV models. Now that Ford and GM profits are disappearing as fast as a Cadillac
or Lincoln SUV can empty it's tank, smaller people-haulers are getting serious
attention. The amazing success of the Hemi-powered Dodge Magnum Wagon (Chrysler
300C wagon in Europe) has sent Ford and GM designers scurrying to their
computers. At the same time, the values of older wagons on the collector
market has never been stronger. While '55-'57 Chevy Nomads have been hot
for decades, four-door Chevelles, Country Squires, Vista Cruisers and yes,
even Sport Wagons, are easily breaking five figures at U.S. auctions.
The toy car industry is also following this trend. Maisto is the first to
offer the new Dodge Magnum Wagon in their Playerz series. This is a very
nice all-metal model with good detail and a decent shape. While it has the
obligatory blinged wheels that mark this Maisto series, they are easily
exchanged thanks to the screw-on base.
Muscle Machines has offered several classic wagons from the 1960's-'70's
Their '65 Chevrolet Chevelle and '70 Oldsmobile Vista Cruiser are a bit
on the cartoonish side but at least we have small-scale examples of these
popular grocery-getters. Johnny Lightning currently offers a perfect stock
version of the same '65 Chevelle Wagon. Perhaps they will do a 'wagons of
the '60's' series as they also have the '60 Ford Country Squire. If they
added a '69 Chrysler Town and Country, '69 Oldsmobile Vista Cruiser or Buick
Sport Wagon and a '64 Rambler Classic Wagon, it would be perfect.
Back in the early 1980's, Kenner offered a curious muscle wagon in their
Fast 111's series. I finally found an example of their 1980 Chevrolet Camaro
Z28 Wagon. While I'm not sure anyone ever built such a car, Pontiac did
do a show car wagon based on their Firebird of the same vintage. perhaps
this was the inspiration for Kenner's Camaro Wagon. Utility for this model
is a bit limited by the second V8 sitting in the rear cargo bay. The 'Packin'
Pacer' wagon done by Hot Wheels years before also sported a second power
plant in the rear. Racing Champions offered an interesting first-generation
Chevy Camaro Wagon some years back. I expect this model reflects a car really
created by someone although I have not seen it.
Let's hope that Detroit builds some more great wagons for the current generation.
Hey Buick, turn that LaCrosse into a wagon and it might even sell. |
2005 Dodge Magnum Wagon - Maisto
1970 Oldsmobile Vista Cruiser - Muscle Machines
image courtesy of Rob Gras
1965 Chevrolet Chevelle Wagon - Muscle Machines
1977 AMC Pacer Wagon 'Packin' Pacer - Hot Wheels
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