Wagons are coming back to the US

[NutBucket]

Cadillac brought back the wagon back in 2010. This CTS wagon didn't sell very well, and I imagine the Buick wagon won't either.

When I was a kid, do you know what we called a Cadillac wagon? The answer is, a "Hearse".

If you really want a wagon, here you go http://www.gmfleet.com/cadillac/professional-vehicles/coachbuilder-hearse.html

GM already makes a wagon I want. Unfortunately this is the last year of it and it isn't sold in this country:

 

[mindless1]

Pickup truck FTW. Utility does scale with size if the size is big enough to get 8' long lumber, 4x8 plywood/drywall/etc in, though I expect some station wagons and SUVs can fit 8' lumber if 2nd row seats fold down.

 

[HitAnyKey]

I can assure you it comes as no surprise to anyone that a bigger box can carry more stuff than a somewhat smaller box. But you might also see from the this relationship that this somewhat smaller box can carry more stuff yet than an even smaller one. Given some experience with boxes, you would become aware that their utility function does not scale linearly with size, which is why most of the public is fine with a sedan, therefore somewhat more with that somewhat larger box in a wagon which was the case before they became unfashionable in the US, and so on.

Too funny. I find it difficult to find fault in your argument, especially with the box references.

That being said I still don't see the Wagon coming back in popularity and the car companies seem to echo that argument. I really don't think people care about them as much anymore.

 

[desura]

Doomed to fail, IMO, now that most SUVs aka crossovers are little more than AWD wagons with better ground clearance and visibility. If fuel prices rise enough, then the smaller of the bunch with the best fuel economy may make some traction but those are still competing with hatchbacks. It could make sense for the stereotypical soccer mom, but it always did and nothing has changed today...

Weren't the wagons really gas inefficient anyways? Or at best maybe 10% better?

Ground clearance matters.

 

[Perknose]

2017 V90 Cross Country is pretty. The problem with Wagon's is the additional space you gain is a bit awkward. And you get that stretched car look that kinda bugs me.
Unless your carrying flat stuff like boards or small boxes, I find an SUV or Minivan more practical and easier to use.

Plus I don't like the fact that wagons make your cargo easier to see than say a Van. But I can see the attraction in some applications.

I remember seeing the 90s Accord Wagon for the first time. Just brutal to look at and I couldn't believe anyone would buy it.

Most all wagons include a rear cargo cover for stuff that isn't taller than 4/5ths of the rear seat. "Problem" solved!

And I beg to differ on the aesthetics. I had a '94 Accord wagon which I thought was damn elegant and prettier than the sedans, as well.

Finally, this thread heartens me. For years and years, I have (sporadically, I know) professed my love of small wagons, most often to no positive response unto outright derision.

 

[NutBucket]

Man, the 5th gen wagons are even more rare than the 4th gen wagons. Too bad they're all beat to shit now. I loved my 4th gen sedan. Japanese engineering at its finest IMHO.

 

[Torn Mind]

Pickup truck FTW. Utility does scale with size if the size is big enough to get 8' long lumber, 4x8 plywood/drywall/etc in, though I expect some station wagons and SUVs can fit 8' lumber if 2nd row seats fold down.

Compact hatchbacks can fit 8' lumber.

Full-size wagons like the Roadmaster/Caprice wagon were plywood friendly.

Unless you are a pro, the minivan is the best between both worlds of being able to haul stuff without being a unwieldy giant on the road.

 

[JulesMaximus]

This looks pretty good. It's a concept car though so Cadillac will probably never build it.

 

[Dr. Detroit]

Ford really should have brought over the Focus Wagon. The Focus has historically been sold in wagon form, so why not? Would have been an alternative to the A3 & Jetta/Golf wagon.

 

[agent00f]

Ford really should have brought over the Focus Wagon. The Focus has historically been sold in wagon form, so why not? Would have been an alternative to the A3 & Jetta/Golf wagon.

It's the same problem with all cars that only "enthusiasts" like, like shooting brakes etc. That crowd always looks to buy a 3 yr old sample for half the price so the manufacturer will move all of 7 before learning the lesson to never sell to enthusiasts.

 

[Dr. Detroit]

It's the same problem with all cars that only "enthusiasts" like, like shooting brakes etc. That crowd always looks to buy a 3 yr old sample for half the price so the manufacturer will move all of 7 before learning the lesson to never sell to enthusiasts.

I think a regular ol Focus Wagon - non ST trim - would have sold at maybe 20% of the volume of the sedan/hatch. And as the Focus sold 200K units in 2012 - 2015 - 40,000 sold per year would have been stellar.

 

[agent00f]

I think a regular ol Focus Wagon - non ST trim - would have sold at maybe 20% of the volume of the sedan/hatch. And as the Focus sold 200K units in 2012 - 2015 - 40,000 sold per year would have been stellar.

Basically all the manufacturers have removed wagons from their NA lineup, I think the Golf one might be the only one left. This would imply volume really sucked.

 

[Dr. Detroit]

Basically all the manufacturers have removed wagons from their NA lineup, I think the Golf one might be the only one left. This would imply volume really sucked.

Subaru sells the Outback - 183,000 sold in 2016 within the USA.
Audi sold 2,300 A4 AllRoads in 2016.
VW is on pace to sell 18,000 Golf Alltrack wagons for 2017.
Volvo sold 3,400 V60 Wagons in 2016 and 14,200 S60 Sedans. Pretty solid take rate on the wagon!

 

[Perknose]

Subaru sells the Outback - 183,000 sold in 2016 within the USA.
Audi sold 2,300 A4 AllRoads in 2016.
VW is on pace to sell 18,000 Golf Alltrack wagons for 2017.
Volvo sold 3,400 V60 Wagons in 2016 and 14,200 S60 Sedans. Pretty solid take rate on the wagon!

Except the first three are all wagons lightly lifted and be-effing-cladded so they can pass as SUVs to the lemmings and their neurasthenic trophy wives who buy them.

 

[Demo24]

Does the Mazda 3 not count? It sells well in hatchback/wagon form.

 

[Perknose]

Does the Mazda 3 not count? It sells well in hatchback/wagon form.

Yeah, except they market their "wagon" as a hatchback. F*ck the brain dead American consumer.

 

[nathanddrews]

I love wagons, I just have no place for one in my life at the moment. I think a suped up Ford Fusion Wagon (Mondeo Estate) would be a very practical and fun car. I also love the late 90s/early 00s BMW 5-series wagons. The new Volvo wagons are sexy as all get-out, but so very expensive.

1st vehicle: 1977 Honda Accord CVCC hatchback with 2-speed "Hondamatic" transmission (head gasket broke 3 times)
2nd vehicle: 1984 Volvo 240 Turbo Wagon (turbo exploded)
3rd vehicle: 1982 Volvo 240 GT 2-door (crushed by snowplow)
4th vehicle: 1978 Volvo 244 sedan (I kept this for many years and restored it before gremlins ate the electronics. Never got around to the Chevy small block V8 conversion)
5th vehicle: 1996 Chevy Impala SS (wish I had bought the Buick Roadmaster wagon LT1 instead).
6th vehicle: 2005 Dodge Magnum SRT8 wagon (smiles per gallon - sold it after replacing the suspension components for the 5th time)
Current vehicle: 2004 F150 Supercrew Lariat (best vehicle I've ever owned, I'm a truck man for life now)
Wife's vehicle: 2013 Hyundai VT hatchback (zippy little thing, decent utility)

 

[Torn Mind]

Basically all the manufacturers have rePriusmoved wagons from their NA lineup, I think the Golf one might be the only one left. This would imply volume really sucked.

Prius v is a wagon.

 

[Dr. Detroit]

Does the Mazda 3 not count? It sells well in hatchback/wagon form.

Definitely not a wagon. A wagon implies the rear end of the sedan has not been lopped off to make a hatchback. A wagon would extend the roofline all the way to the edge of the trunk of the sedan.

Focus hatch
Kia Forte hatch
Hyundai Elantra GT hatch
Golf Hatch
Cruze Hatch
Mazda 3 hatch
Impreza hatch
Civic hatch
Corolla iM hatch

Why no Sentra hatch?

Not a wagon in the bunch!

 

[agent00f]

Subaru sells the Outback - 183,000 sold in 2016 within the USA.
Audi sold 2,300 A4 AllRoads in 2016.
VW is on pace to sell 18,000 Golf Alltrack wagons for 2017.
Volvo sold 3,400 V60 Wagons in 2016 and 14,200 S60 Sedans. Pretty solid take rate on the wagon!

Prius v is a wagon.

If you only look at cars sold as wagons, and not manufacturers' best effort to make kinda wagon-shaped cars anything but wagons, the body-style is a completely negligible slice of sales. Jacking a car up some inches already kind of messes with handling. Even subaru which made it selling wagons is dropping wagons.

Even if we include anything that looks like wagons if you squint, it's a pretty small slice, compared to mini-ute/crossover hotcakes flying off lots.

 

[Yuriman]

The Civic "hatch" is only 4 inches shorter than the sedan, though the roofline is teardrop-shaped for highway fuel economy reasons. Where do we draw the line?

 

[Perknose]

The Civic "hatch" is only 4 inches shorter than the sedan, though the roofline is teardrop-shaped for highway fuel economy reasons. Where do we draw the line?

That's a hatch, baby. Line drawn.

 

[A///]

MBZ sells wagons here in the US on a regular basis. They don't sell a ton of them, but they have a strong customer core here.