Several decades ago, the station wagon was the default option for a family that needed a large vehicle to carry everyone and their gear. Those wagons were slowly pushed out of that role by the minivan, and then by the SUV. Crossovers and SUVs have seemingly stomped both the wagon and the minivan largely into the pages of history, but there are still some holdouts. But why must they be so expensive?
Today, Thomas wrote about how BMW is selling far more M5 wagons than expected. That’s great! What’s not great is how these things cost around $180,000 and up after taxes. That’s a darn shame! I’m with Nsane In The MembraNe here. Where did all of the affordable sporty wagons go?
Okay but can we get a fun wagon that doesn’t cost six figures? I don’t understand why this segment needs to be reserved for the 1%. I would go buy an M340i or S4 wagon tomorrow if they sold them in the US. And yes, Subie Gang-I know the turbo Outback exists but I don’t want a godforsaken CVT.
Unfortunately, we all know the answer, and it’s that there aren’t enough sport wagon lovers to buy them new. Sorry for making you sad.
In today’s TMD, Matt noted how Chevy Brightdrop vans are piling up as buyers appear to be going to something like the Ford E-Transit. But hold on a moment, Maymar says:
The Brightdrop is a stepvan. It’s priced competitively with stepvans, a product that exists for a reason. GM might’ve just been a little optimistic that Amazon DSPs would appreciate the better tool for the job when they could just use cheaper Transits and expect the drivers to deal with the downsides.
Username Loading…. chimes in:
I never knew my real van.
Today, Matt also wrote about how the days of terrible EV infrastructure taught him to slow down and enjoy small town America. Great lesson, Matt. Oil Leaks Means There’s Still Oil adds:
Great read, I love seeing people expand how they feel about cars into positive ways it can affect our outlooks on life. I’m glad EVs gave you an opportunity to learn to take the time to enjoy the journey, but regardless of vehicle range, we could all stand to plan to stop at small communities on our trips.
I travel the American Pacific Northwest for work by van, and I have learned I need to book my days less tight. I try to make time, even just 15 minutes a few times a day, to pull off the interstate at a viewpoint or place of interest. I always get a good picture I can show my kids, and sometimes learn something I can share with them about the location. If you have the option to stretch out road trips a bit, I highly recommend it.
If I had a way to bring license plates with me to Baltimore, I’d totally drive my Honda Life home this summer. Either way, I plan on taking a leisurely drive home. Have a great evening, everyone!
I have not and probably never will purchase a car new so I guess I don’t really get to complain about what manufacturers offer new but I will say when my wife and I were shopping to replace our A4 Allroad with an A6 Allroad or V90 CC this winter no good used cars lasted more than a few days from when they were listed.
Our dogs don’t need heated rear seats and I certainly don’t need nightvision, cruise control that thinks it knows the speed limit, dual panoramic sunroofs, etc. but we ended up putting a $2k deposit down and driving the length of Long Island to buy an A6 based on 25 dealer photos with all those options because we had already missed out on 3 other ones.
Affordable and sporty are obviously relative but the car handles well, gets up and goes when I want it to, and is the most comfortable car I have ever had for just blasting down the highway so I really can’t complain.
Based on how fast the inventory disappeared for moderately used cars though, I really don’t understand why there isn’t a market for more affordable true wagons.