Pic Thread: Station Wagons

[special-K]

I guess a mini-van isn't a station wagon. They are the next thing that came along and took their place. Now they are old. I don't want to shift the thread to min-vans, but I just have to share this Astro Van because it is so totally free can cool. I've spotted it before and this time it was parked at Home Depot, so I snapped up some pictures

[FleetsidePaul]

That's a cool Astro. I always like the look of those.

[special-K]

That's an early one, a "flat front", and a window van. You can tell the owner knows exactly what he has and put a lot into it. This isn't California. You just don't see vehicles of that era preserved so well. This guy put into that Astro what you see guys do to pickups. It's just clean and subtly customized. Most people wouldn't take a second look, or would need to look at it a while to realize it was anything out of the norm. I dig the color with red cloth interior. The masses moved away from mini-vans the same way they moved away from station wagons. The uncool stigma hit them, soccer mom/grocery getter. Then, once gone we look back at them and now say "That is so cool!"

I had a girlfriend for a while who drove a white Cavalier wagon. Everyone called it a grocery getter. I thought it was cool. In their time, they were one of the only remaining station wagons. The others you would see would be BMWs, Volvos, Mercedes, etc. Ironically, those were all good for being a status symbol. It was like saying "Station wagons are uncool, unless they are Eurowagons, because those are expensive". The perfect "run to the ski slopes" machine.

But there comes along the Cavalier Wagon, an uncool wagon built from an uncool car. Well, I saw them as pretty dang cool actually. And I learned to respect the Cavalier when I saw so many in the first body style running around when other cars of the same age were not a common sight. It was a great young people car, started car (IMO). They reminded me of what the old slant 6 Darts and Valiants became. Run them into the ground/drive to the junkyard vehicles. I like seeing the Euro wagons done up the way they do the sedans and I'd like to do a Cavalier that way.

[FleetsidePaul]

Well I got my 73 Satellite home. It had sat for 2 years and fired right up with some gas and a battery. Ran fine. It has a nice exhaust rumble. Not bad for a little ole 318. I've got to clean it up. I just need to think which direction that I want to go with it. Now I have 3 projects (Gasp). What the heck... I'm retired.

[Boog]

It looks good. Real good for the age.

[FleetsidePaul]

Originally Posted by Boog

It looks good. Real good for the age.

That's the great thing about living in the desert. There is a ton of rust free stuff up here just sitting around.

Not too many patch panels being sold around here.

My problem is that I want to buy all of them. It's just too hard to pass them up.

[HO455]

Not looking to turn this into a for sale thread but if someone has the hankering these don't come along very often.

https://spokane.craigslist.org/cto/d...475943691.html

I would like to sell my 69 Pontiac wagon project. It has a good 326 with a turbo 350. It already has a front disc brake conversion. It has huge potential but I haven't found the time to finish it. I have almost everything to get it driving except the pulleys and power steering pump. The interior is crap. seat is torn, no headliner or door panels. I have nice tail lights that aren't on it yet. You don't see many a-body gm wagons.

It is 1.5 years into a Washington 3 year registration that is transferable. So it has clean paperwork in my name.

To see it or for more questions email, text or call me at 509- Nine 99-5730
do NOT contact me with unsolicited services or offers

[FleetsidePaul]

Originally Posted by HO455

Not looking to turn this into a for sale thread but if someone has the hankering these don't come along very often.

https://spokane.craigslist.org/cto/d...475943691.html

I would like to sell my 69 Pontiac wagon project. It has a good 326 with a turbo 350. It already has a front disc brake conversion. It has huge potential but I haven't found the time to finish it. I have almost everything to get it driving except the pulleys and power steering pump. The interior is crap. seat is torn, no headliner or door panels. I have nice tail lights that aren't on it yet. You don't see many a-body gm wagons.

It is 1.5 years into a Washington 3 year registration that is transferable. So it has clean paperwork in my name.

To see it or for more questions email, text or call me at 509- Nine 99-5730
do NOT contact me with unsolicited services or offers

My high school buddy's mom had a Poncho wagon just like that. I thought it was fugly. Now I would jump at the chance to get one. I must be getting senile.

Who would have ever thought that I would own a station wagon??? Not me.

[special-K]

I always liked station wagons going back to my childhood. Kids love riding all the way back and it was cool that all the kids could come along. Then came the surf wagon thing, mostly woodies, and the draggin' wagons. I wanted to do a GTO station wagon, like you see people do lately, before I was old enough to drive. Suburbans are station wagons and I always thought those were so cool, along with IH Travelalls. When I learned those could be 4wd, that was it, the ultimate surfer rig. My surfing days were all about running to Cape Hatteras, NC. Used to head down for weekends and back to school on Monday. It's a National Seashore where surf casting is a big deal. Vehicles are permitted to drive on the beach and the surf fishers had some awesome rigs. I remember one surfer rig that stood out, a faded (salt air) mid-60s Travelall 4wd with wide tires on wide black steelies with burlap curtains. I still want that truck! The best I could so was a '66 VW Bus. Those are station wagons as well. I need a printer. I tried taking pictures of some prints. No good

Did I show this creation yet?

[mr.mud1]

yes sir,i'm right there with you on the wagons,i've always loved them and have had several,a big block 66 impala wagon that i sold about 25 years ago that i still kick myself for?another 72 3/4 ton suburban that had the raised roof and was an ambulance in North Carolina,i changed the roof and painted it blue and white,instead of all white,another one i let go,a couple of weak moments??here's my wagon and a couple others from around.take care.Greg

[special-K]

That '67 is just right. I had a '71 suburban as a family wagon. Custom Deluxe/10 medium blue, blue interior, and 402. The previous owner was a Vette restoration guy and this was his tow rig. He had put truck rallyes on and had it in very nice condition. I guess I sold it because my wife didn't like to drive it, too big. I'm sure we argued over that a time or two. But finally, due to space and all the other trucks I had, I sold it and here is the dumbest part... I gave her the money!!

Another shift to another end of the station wagon spectrum, here is the '66 VW bus I did up as a Baja Bus for my surfing safaris, and other camping trips. I had built it into a camper. Seats were buckets from a Triumph GT6+. I painted it 68-72 Diamond Reo Meadow Green. That's an external oil cooler on the roof

[3757chevy]

The description on my insurance cards say I have Sport Wagons.

[special-K]

Yep. The first station wagons were trucks. The first trucks were wagons

Not your everyday wagons

[special-K]

...

[FleetsidePaul]

Hurt me Tim. Now my Satellite looks like a complete POS. That's just cruel.

[FleetsidePaul]

Break out the pitchforks and torches but this is seriously what I'm looking for right now. One of the worlds ugliest vehicles ever. That's what I like about it. Maybe I've been watching too much Breaking Bad because I already have the Winnebago. What can I say? I like weird stuff. Park it next to my hearse.

Pontiac Aztek.

[special-K]

Originally Posted by zicc1835

mine

I love that. Resembles the one I had being brown.

Originally Posted by FleetsidePaul

Break out the pitchforks and torches but this is seriously what I'm looking for right now. One of the worlds ugliest vehicles ever. That's what I like about it. Maybe I've been watching too much Breaking Bad because I already have the Winnebago. What can I say? I like weird stuff. Park it next to my hearse.

Pontiac Aztek.

It's cool to go against popular opinion to turn heads around


Ok, that was a stretch. But how about these?

[zicc1835]

Originally Posted by special-K

I love that. Resembles the one I had being brown.

It's cool to go against popular opinion to turn heads around
Attachment 2199500

Ok, that was a stretch. But how about these?

I saw and realized yours and mine are twins the OO Bob “he is still kickin’’@89 painted the mid with the yellow himself parked it in the garage in 1974 I’m on top of making it safe to drive but no other changes to a American Classic💪

[special-K]

Originally Posted by zicc1835

I saw and realized yours and mine are twins the OO Bob “he is still kickin’’@89 painted the mid with the yellow himself parked it in the garage in 1974 I’m on top of making it safe to drive but no other changes to a American Classic💪

I found this old picture

[dieseldawg142]

holy smokes...

[FleetsidePaul]

Originally Posted by special-K

It's cool to go against popular opinion to turn heads around
Attachment 2199500

Ok, that was a stretch. But how about these?

You're getting me in trouble here Tim. My wife saw this photo and the first words out of her mouth were "Is it for sale?'.

She's as bad as me when it comes to cars. That's why we have 18 cars. No brakes on me. She only gets mad when I drag my butt and lose out on one.

Whoever thought an Aztek could look good? I wouldn't mind getting groceries in this one myself and she wants a Trans Am.

[zicc1835]

mine

[4u2nv]

This was at a local car show recently

[special-K]

I like the state of restore it is in. How I remember many older cars being done. A more personalized approach back then. Mine had just had the root beer brown metallic thrown on when I bought it and only got the window stainless trim, no side trim. It also had a green metalflake steering wheel and Monte Carlo seat/floor shifter. I wanted to paint it back to Neptune Green, original steering wheel, seat, shifter, etc. It had a 350/TH350 from the Monte Carlo

[special-K]

This is like going to the high school reunion and you are wondering who the sexy lady is who keeps smiling at you and someone tells you it's that nerdy front row girl Audrey Limpenheimer. Time to take another look!