A newbie to the site, but I loves me some wagons!

Discussion in 'The Welcome Wagon' started by WagonTheDog, Oct 21, 2021.

  1. WagonTheDog

    WagonTheDog Well-Known Member

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    Hello everyone,

    Sorry for such a long introductory post, but I just got to typing and then this happened. lol...

    But I literally just discovered this site a couple hours ago and, without hesitation, I decided to create an account. Unfortunately, I don't have a wagon at this time (hoping that'll change in the future!), but I have always loved station wagons since I was a little kid. I just always thought they looked cool. Well before the current wave of popularity for them.

    Growing up, my parents always had sedans and a hatchback, but the one and only wagon they owned was a well-used 1983 Toyota Cressida model. It's just a shame the body started rusting on it, so they only had it for a couple of years. But I loved that thing and it only further cemented my love for wagons. They wound up giving it to a friend of mine at the time (for free!) who was in auto shop in high school, and he properly repaired all the rust and re-painted it the factory pearl blue colour (which looked awesome). Unfortunately, that summer his family moved away and he took the Cressida with him. After that, we lost touch, so I never saw the ol' girl again.

    I'm a Mopar guy at heart, but I have come to love just about all wagons from 40s Plymouths, Dodges, DeSotos and Chryslers, all the way to 80s/90s GM and Volvo wagons. As well as more modern wagons like the Dodge Magnum and even the new Mazda 3 wagon. Whether American, Japanese or European: if it's a wagon, it's okay by me. lol I just find it refreshing to see any kind of wagon on the road, instead of all the big, bloated SUVs that now dominate the streets. I sure do miss the old days when wagons were king before SUVs and minivans took over.

    As final a side note, (unfortunately) the 1974 Plymouth Gran Fury in my user pic isn't mine. It's just a nice example of a cool 70s family barge that I like.

    Anyway, if you've made it this far, you're a champ. lol

    Cheers and happy motoring!
     
    Last edited: Oct 22, 2021
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  2. HotRodRacer

    HotRodRacer Moderator Staff Member Moderator

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    Welcome to the forums, we are glad to have you. When it's time, the right wagon will come along.
     
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  3. WagonTheDog

    WagonTheDog Well-Known Member

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    Thanks. Unfortunately, money and spare room is a bit tight right now, but like you say, the right wagon will come at the right time. :) I'm open to whatever catches my eye and makes me want to drive it all the time.
     
  4. 60Mercman

    60Mercman Well-Known Member

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    Welcome, and thanks for the hit on my ‘77 Colony Park. Having grown up with wagons in our family from the ‘60’s - ‘80’s I have always loved them. In a way I’m fortunate that my dad bought what he felt he got the best deal on so we had a variety of Chevy, Ford, and Mercury wagons. As HotRod said the right wagon will come along for you when all the stars align. Money, space, and a deal. Good luck and keep us posted as to your adventures.
     
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  5. fannie

    fannie Well-Known Member

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    :woohoo1:another Canadian. We are few on here and really hard to get rid of. :whistle:

    Glad you found your way here, hang out for awhile and before you know it you will have a wagon. There will likely be a few suggestions coming your way.:bouncy:

    :Welcome: aboard.
     
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  6. WagonTheDog

    WagonTheDog Well-Known Member

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    That's pretty cool your dad had an affinity for wagons. That must have been a treat to ride around/drive in such a variety of makes like that. Unfortunately, as I mentioned in my initial post, the only wagon we had as a family was the 1983 Toyota Cressida (the grill makes me think it may have been a 1982 model though, now that I think of it), so that was my only real firsthand experience I had with a wagon growing up. The car my parents had when I was born was a root beer brown 1977 Mercury Zephyr 2 door with a beige vinyl interior that would was so searingly hot in the summertime that my parents had to lay a heavy blanket down on the rear seat for me and my brother, or else our butts and the skin on the back of our legs would just about fry off. lol Not to mention handling those metal buckles were always a million degrees! :eek: Then around the age of about 5-6, they got a just-off-lease 1984 Nissan Sentra 2 door hatchback that was our longest standing family car. They had that through about my first year in high school until it finally rusted out, but I loved that car too. It only had a 70 hp engine, but that little thing took us everywhere. It was small, but versatile and we went on endless camping trips and family vacations in that car. After that, they got the Cressida wagon, then another 1988 Toyota Cressida sedan that got wrecked and written off, then they lucked into a mint condition 1987 Toyota Cressida sedan with only 56,000 original kms/35,000 miles on it! They sure did like their Cressidas! lol

    Anywayyyyyy, I'm rambling again. lol :oops: Thanks for the welcome! :)

    Cheers.

    Yeah, we're hard to get rid off. Sort of like a polite stain. :p I'm sure I'll eventually find myself a wagon...or it'll find me. But it's good to know there's a site like this with people who are so dedicated to them! I had no idea this site existed, but I'm glad I found it! I'm sure people will have suggestions, but my problem is that I just like too many cars from too many eras. lol That is, if such a thing can be considered a "problem"! :scratchchin:

    Cheers.
     
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  7. wagoninsane

    wagoninsane Well-Known Member

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    Welcome WagonTheDog! Thanks for all the likes on my media! Like it has been said, you'll find a wagon eventually. I was a member on this site for a couple years when the blue 65 Vista came up on the Wagons For Sale thread here! I just acquired the maroon 64 Vista a couple of months ago off Craigslist ! Hang loose, a lot of great people and extraordinary knowledge 'round here! Good luck with finding your own elusive longroof!.....Longroofs Rule!
     
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  8. WagonTheDog

    WagonTheDog Well-Known Member

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    Hey, you're welcome. I literally went through all 1,175 pages of the media gallery on my first day, so I guess your pics were along the way. lol Those are a couple nice wagons though! What a nice duo. And agreed! Longroofs do rule! Long live the longroof! :D

    Cheers.
     
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  9. Krash Kadillak

    Krash Kadillak Well-Known Member

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    Welcome to the forum, WagonTheDog!
    It's certainly OK that you don't own a wagon right now, or ever, for that matter. I was a forum member without a wagon for quite a few years before I found the 'Way-Back Machine', my 1981 Pontiac Bonneville Safari, in 2012. The Safari went down the road to another owner about a year ago, as I felt a pickup would suit me better at this point in time. There will be another wagon parked in the driveway some time in the future......

    Lots of neat wagons in the Mopar realm. When you're ready to buy, we'll help you track one down.....

    Marshall
     
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  10. WagonTheDog

    WagonTheDog Well-Known Member

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    Well, at least you gave her a good home for the time you had her. If it had been sold to someone else, who knows if they would have taken care of it the way you did to be able to pass it onto someone else. Good on you for looking after her in your care. Those 80s Safari/Caprice/Electra Estate/Custom Cruisers were all over the road when I was a kid, so I always give kudos to anyone who takes care of them. So many of them were crushed, so it's nice to see people who care about them. :thumbs2:

    And yeah, as a Mopar guy, there are a lot of wagons I like. As I do from time to time, I just finished looking at pictures of post-war Dodge, Plymouth, Chrysler and DeSoto models. Specifically all-steel bodied models from 1949 to 1954. I've always liked the look of the 1951-'52 Plymouth 2 door Suburbans in particular. I like their simple grill and how their appointments are endearingly basic, yet understatedly classic. I could imagine myself with one of those. I wouldn't engine swap it either, as I'd want it with the stock flathead six. I could see cruising around in one; staying off major highways (mostly because they're happiest cruising in the 45-60 mph range) and just taking slower, more scenic rural roads without any sense of hurry. I'm open to anything from the 40s through the 80s, so we'll see what comes about...whenever that happens to be. :)

    Cheers.
     
    Last edited: Oct 24, 2021
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  11. Krash Kadillak

    Krash Kadillak Well-Known Member

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    Might be hard to find one of those with an original engine that's running good. I suspect that installing maybe a little Mopar 318 and converting to a 12 volt system wouldn't be all that hard in one of those..... Should be a fairly inexpensive engine swap, too.
     
  12. WagonTheDog

    WagonTheDog Well-Known Member

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    Yeah, a lot of them have been engine swapped, but up here in Canada I have seen plenty of 40s and 50s Mopars with their original flathead sixes still in them. Even restored ones. I don't know what it is, but I just like the originality of those cars the way they are. The Mopar flathead six was also very long lasting, and dead nuts reliable when regularly maintained. My grandfather was also a licensed Mopar mechanic back in the 40s and 50s (I even have one of his brass Master Technician pins from back in the day), and those are the type of cars he drove all the time. I was very close to my grandpa, so keeping the car stock and having to maintain and service it as-is makes me think of him and the cars he would have had to work on back in the day. :)

    In his retirement years, along with a friend of his, he helped restore a few of those old Mopars from the 40s and 50s, as well as cars that were sold at the Auburn auto auctions. They did high quality restorations and even restored an old Cord, but out of all the cars they did, his favourite was a green 1949 Plymouth 2 door Suburban, because it reminded him of the one he had back in the day. I've always liked them too, so my grandpa had good taste. :D
     
    Last edited: Oct 24, 2021
  13. Steve-E-D

    Steve-E-D Well-Known Member

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    :Welcome: to the wagon train, WagonTheDog!
     
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  14. WagonTheDog

    WagonTheDog Well-Known Member

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    Thanks, Steve-E-D! :)
     
  15. OrthmannJ

    OrthmannJ Always looking for old ford crew cabs

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    Seems I'm a little late to the party, but better late than never right?
    Welcome aboard. Glad to have you.
     
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