Hello all, been a while since I've posted but, I've been thinking about a station wagon again. I've decide to expand my search potentially to GM and Ford as well perhaps although, my first love is Mopar stuff but, finding one is more difficult than a GM or Ford. With that said being here are my questions. The first question is what is the best wagon say from the early 70s to the end of the 70s? Why is it the best wagon? Is it easy to obtain? I know this will be subjective and please keep this friendly. The next question I have is what type of wagon can I buy say between a $4,500 to $6,000 range? Junk or am I just dreaming? Lastly, I'd like to know what is the hard to stuff to work on with your choice and the easiest stuff to work on. Thank you in advance.
I think you should be patient and continue looking for your dream Mopar wagon. Don't 'settle' for something else. Your budget is enough to get a fairly nice wagon. It won't be perfect, but it shouldn't need all that much. If you can increase your budget to say, $8,000 or so, that would put you in the ballpark for some really nice ones....... If I was in your place, I'd be looking for the nicest '77 Chrysler Town & Country I could find.......that I could afford. Second choice - a Dodge Monaco, which are almost as nice. If you decide to stray from Chrysler Corp. wagons, the easy thing to do would be to find a nice large Ford wagon, Country Squire or Country Sedan. There are a lot more of them out there, so the prices on them seem to be a bit more reasonable. A good tip - look for a mid 70's LTD wagon ('75 - '77 I think). No 'wood' on them, but they have the nicer-looking LTD front end like the Squire. ................................................................................................................ I see you have your Dakota on CL...... Just some CL ads to think about: '96 Buick Roadmaster. Lots of owners LOVE them. Probably the most bang for your buck. http://indianapolis.craigslist.org/cto/4858252987.html Clean '79 Chevy Malibu, with a lot of mods, decent price (sell off the donks...) http://indianapolis.craigslist.org/cto/4803921053.html Loaded '79 Ford Fairmont. Downside: It's got a 6-cylinder. http://indianapolis.craigslist.org/cto/4803921053.html Really clean-looking '66 Dodge Dart, w/ sland 6, Chattanooga, Tn http://chattanooga.craigslist.org/cto/4837405607.html '69 Dodge Coronet, near Nofolk, VA. http://norfolk.craigslist.org/cto/4892931237.html Very nice-looking '67 Dodge Monaco, Dayton Ohio: https://dayton.craigslist.org/cto/4863148237.html
Thank you. I was thinking more of mid 70s wagon. I'm thinking big block, cruise, tilt, disc brakes, and A/C if it works. My second choice to Chrysler was gonna be GM. Is there any other reason why you're suggesting Ford over a GM "Clamshell" wagon? I'm not sure where my budget would go. I've given thought to a nice C Body Mopar and I've had a couple of offers. One was really good but, I'm looking for no rust at this point. I know that may be a stretch. But, I've been still bouncing the wagon idea and since no Mopar guys have taken me up on my truck I'd figure I would consider stray away from Mopar and see what my other options are. Anyways, thank you again.
I'll let the guys that have actual experience with the GM clamshells comment on them, but I suggested Fords (and Mercurys) because of their numbers, and reasonable prices. A lot of GM clamshells were trashed back in the destruction derby era. You will still find a lot more Ford wagons out there than anything else.
The Ford and Mercury wagons are not only more common, but about half the price given comparable equipment and condition. The tailgate mechanism seems to be less finiky, also. The really good, well equipped clamshells seem to be selling in the low 5 figures, and the comparable Ford wagons in the mid 4 figures. Mechanical parts for both are much easier than the Chrysler wagons, again because of numbers. Personally, I find the Mercury, especially, to have a much nicer interior than the GM wagons, and the seats are much more comfortable than either the GM or Chrysler seats. That is only my opinion, of course. Others may well disagree.
Mopar I have a 64 Dodge Custom 880 ,same as my white 64 for sale.$4500 with the cop wheels and 4000 without. Have not checked engine size either is a 361 or 383 Far from perfect but has Auto ,9 Pass, P/W ,P/B,P/S A/C . Comes with the rocker moldings and good grill .One in the pic has bend in it. I only have a few crappy pics of the brown one .Shoot me a PM and I can take more pics if interested or call 760-247-3693
Depends on what you want. If you want "cool", I'd got with a big block clamshell. If you want affordable, I'd get a 1977-1990 B-body wagon. These will accept just about any engine GM made during the 1960s and 70s as a bolt-in. If you want really kewl, I'd go with a 57 Olds Fiesta hardtop wagon.
Here are a couple... A 1967 loaded New Yorker http://www.stationwagonforums.com/forums/showthread.php?t=35544 A decent 1973 Plymouth Satellite Custom http://www.stationwagonforums.com/forums/showthread.php?t=35551 So one of these has to work... Mebbe you are just toooo picky.... ?
Thank you for the offer. That's a really cool wagon. I have a wagon I think I'm going to pursue. I'm looking for a later one with some of the better stuff like the newer seatbelts and what not but, this one I will keep in mind.
Thanks to everyone for their replies. I've been looking at a few wagons. I do have one in mind I might try to pursue. At any rate I suppose we'll see what happens.
Seeing you are a Mopar lover here is one for you and he wants all the money for it. Now with that being said and the US/CDN dollar exchange rate at about 20/22 % in your favour right now you could buy this one at a good pice. Like if you could get the seller to a 10,500 price it would only cost you about 8800.00 US dollars. http://www.kijiji.ca/v-classic-cars...on/1047577451?enableSearchNavigationFlag=true
