wasn't it tax related? If i remember correctly, there was a program of the US government to make farm trucks cheaper in tax. So there was the choice between a small car or a big truck for the same tax burden. That's why Americans stop buying station wagons or bigger cars: If you need more space than a car just buy the cheaper truck. Also there is this weird believing in US that cars cannot haul trailers

A lot of European families still only have one car so a station wagon is a popular choice because it's kind of an all-rounder. Like you mentioned, it's not that huge so you have better fuel mileage and handling while also having ample cargo and passenger space. SUVs and crossovers especially often look big from the outside but when you open the trunk it only has as much space as a Golf.

Audi RS6 is a fun thing. Most people don't expect being at the traffic lights along a wagon that has nearly 600 bph under the hood.

I think the main issue is that US keeps gas prices artificially low and that lets people ignore fuel consumption somewhat when picking car type. It's ironic how hostile people in general is in US to any gas price increases while still picking fuel guzzling cars instead of more fuel efficient ones.

I'm an American. I bought my parent's Volvo 850 wagon, soon after it saved us in a huge crash. With insurance money I got another used Volvo, but upgraded to a V70 T5 wagon. That car ruled and like its predecessor, was indestructible. I drove it almost to 300K miles before I sold it.

In Europe it's about practicality, in the US it's about what other's can see. Bigger cars in Europe are looked down upon, in cities that is, while in the US big cars are praised. There are many American produced SUV's where you can't even see a child walk in front of it, crossing the road, that simply wouldn't be legal in Europe.

It's strange that they are not popular in the USA, where there are very long distances and good roads. These cars provide great comfort for driver and passengers.

I will always be a Volvo girlie. As a child our cars were 1980's Volvo v70's. We even had a Volvo sports, that actually saved my parets lives during a fatal head on colision. Think it was the 480, and seeing that car after the crash, I was in awe that mum and dad were still alive. Car was un recognizable. Front smashed in 1,5meters at least. Yet the design saved them. Some seatbelt and steering wheel bruises, some airbag concussions. But they lived.

I live in Belgium, we had a Volvo V70 station wagon in the years 2000 when our kids were small. You cannot believe how much stuff it's possible to put in this car. In addition to the 2 kids and a rather large dog, we transported outdoors material (with a tent), suitcases and even wine bought in France or Italy. Now that the kids are grown ups, we drive a Volvo V40 which is smaller, but you can still transport a lot of stuff with it. Besides, Volvos are built to last almost forever, and their high performance motors kick a$$!

I had the pleasure to be a passenger in an Audi RS6 Avant. That car is a freaking missile!!! You don't expect a car of that size to go that quick! And it looks sick too!

I've owned 9 cars since my first, 8 out of those have been wagons. As a Swede, I cannot for any reason see myself buy a sedan or SUV when wagons exist. The only car I owned that wasn't a wagon, was my '68 Dodge Dart. But fuel prices and long winters eventually made me sell that car and now I am back with a wagon. Pretty much the same goes for everyone I know. Wagon is just the way of life here.

I stumbled upon one of your videos about 20 months ago, and about 25 times since.... Your friendly character and voice made me watch the first one, your honest and open opinions made me watch the other 24 times.... But i like to compliment you that the quality, story and presenting skills got so much better! Thank you! And keep up the cool videos :)

I remeber when Volvo showed up in the 1993 BTCC season with the 850 Estate as a race car. Everybody was giggling about then. That soon stopped after they proved to be very competitive, also thanks to good drivers like Richard Rydell and Jan Lammers.

Here in Sweden almost all police cars are wagons. My family rented a Chevy suburban when we were on vacation in the US like 8 years back. We were hauling all over Florida in that thing and stayed at different hotels. Im pretty sure it was nice to drive but as a passenger it was probably the least comfortable car I've ever been in honestly. And then you get into a volvo where you sit as good in the back as you do in the front 😁 In the end though, I think people just tend to buy what everyone else is buying.

As far as here in Italy is concerned, I can say that Station Wagons, after the arrival of models, particularly German ones which also have a sporty character, have broadened the range of users. From a classic car for large families, to be used during the week and at the weekend, to a car used by businessmen, home representatives of products that need to be tested in the home, also very useful for those who have a business that deals with home work, therefore maintenance or repairs which involve the use of small tools and the use of materials of limited dimensions!

Most German Police cars are also station waggons because they have to carry a whole lot of equipment. I will always wonder what American officers carry in their sedans as there isn't much space in the trunk.

Estate cars we call them here in the UK, the Audi RS6 and RS4 have been popular the last 20 years. Definitely look into the performance versions, the 2008-2010 Audi RS6 and the 2007-2010 BMW M5 wagons both had V10 engines

In Sweden, dogs that are to be taken in a car must be transported in a cage, for the dog's safety and then you must have a combi (as we say in Sweden), as the cage must be permanently installed in the car. Since a combi or station wagon as you say, everything is safe in the car, even against rain, snow and wind. Then you can actually sleep in the car by folding down the back seat of the car. Then as I said, a station wagon has better fuel consumption, is more stable on the road, can drive fast with them and yet they are stable. Then these big American pick-ups are not so safe to travel in, worse, stability, take a lot of fuel. the cargo you carry with you in these trucks is not transported safely in itself, not against rain, snow or wind. Then these trucks are not particularly practical and hell to own, the size makes them difficult to park as they are bigger than in a parking pocket, then you can forget about parking these in underground parking garages, as these are too high. These American picj-uppers are big clumbidus..

I'm from Missouri and I'm with the people across the pond in Europe Wagons are AWESOME! I love the wagons that Audi, BMW, Mercedes-Benz, Škoda (I wish you could get their cars here), and Volvo make. I had a friend that had a 1990s model Volvo wagan back in the mid 2000s it was so cool and that is where my love of wagons really took off, I liked wagons before that and had owned a Pontiac station wagon from the early 1980s but it was just a thing to get me to where I needed to be.

German here. Pick ups and station wagons really serve a similar purpose. You get to haul a lot of stuff plus five people. If you look at traffic in Germany and simply replace all station wagons with trucks in your mind, the overall mix isn't that dissimilar.

I used to have a VW Passat 1.9TDi vaggon, that thing ran 50 miles to the gallon, and at 300.000 miles the engine was still purring as a cat.. Had room for 5 people + 2 dogs and groceries. One time I drove from northern Denmark to Amsterdam to pick up a friend and his family, on the way home the car was loaded from floor to roof with their luggage etc., and still did 45 miles to the gallon on the German autobahn doing 75mph..

Had a Volvo station wagon, we were moving and was able to fit one dishwasher and washing machine with place to spare. The room inside a well made station wagon is huge, more than many SUVs...

I'm British and growing up my parents had a 1995 Volvo 850 T5-R. It was a bonkers estate (as station wagons are called in the UK) car; 0-60 in 5.8 seconds and 150+ mph electronically limited top speed. Loved that thing and the reason I love estates to this day.

I'm brazilian and presently living in Portugal. My sister-in-law's husband is German and we use to visit them frequently. The 2 best cars I've rented in Europe were SW. A Renault Talisman in 2016 and a Seat Leon in 2022. My sister-in-law's husband drives an Audi A6 SW and it's fantastic, specially on the Autobahn where there's no speed limit. The Seat SW made around 40,5 mpg on gasoline. Although SUV stands for Sport Utility Vehicle, SW are way more sporty than SUVs.

I'm UK, my ex had a black V60 Polestar from Volvo, an older model to the one they showed in this video, with a blue polestar badge. Boy was that car fast! I remember being sat at a petrol station waiting for him to pay and this guy was eyeing up the car. He saw the alloys and large break discs, walked to the front of the car (which was very angry looking, the car that is), bless him, he looked so confused when he saw it was a Volvo. So much that he went back round to look at the wheels again and returned to the front to make sure he got the make right 😅 I was trying to keep a straight face inside the car 😂 Everyone thought we were the police, the amount of people who slowed down when they saw us coming was amazing.

For many years, until its discontinuation, the Volkswagen Passat in the USA was very different from the Volkswagen Passat in Europe. The American-built Passat was larger on the outside, but there were fewer engine choices and the interior was simpler. In addition, the Passat was only available as a sedan in the USA, while the Passat is still available as a station wagon in Europe. The European sedan was discontinued years ago.

@4:24 hell yeah the Şkoda Octavia wagon. When i still had a company car i drove one of these and it was the greatest cars i ever had!! Great value for money and a ton of space in the back! I now bought a car of my own and again purchased a station wagon. Just small enough to drive and park in small european roads but lots of space in the back.

In the UK, estate cars have largely been discontinued by most makers as have larger cars in favour of SUVs. Honda discontinued the Accord in the UK after the 8th generation in favour of the CR-V and HR-V. I've had a Volvo 940 Classic estate which was one of the last of the largest estates sold in the UK, then I got a V70 which was a much smaller estate by comparison as it's built on the Ford Mondeo floorpan. I only realised how small that car was in comparison to the older RWD Volvos (145/165, 245/265, 745/765 and 940/960/RWD V90 estates) as I had a full size concert harp (Salvi Arianna) which wouldn't fit in the V70 unless I removed the rear seats when it went into the 940 estate no problem and with plenty of room to spare. I know someone that had an XC90 and my bari sax wouldn't fit in the back of it as it did with my 940 and V70 estates. Gone are the days of long estate cars in favour of shorter, fatter and taller SUVs. I currently have a 2006 (European 7th generation) Honda Accord Tourer which would be the equivalent of an Acura TSX Tourer if such a car ever existed in the US and my bari sax case fits in the back of it sideways as there's room behind the rear wheel arches. I can't do that on a Merc or even a Jaguar estate even though both are larger cars, they don't have the width. A couple of estates which you ought to have a look at are Citroen DS Safari which was a 7 seater, the CX Safari and the 8 seater Familiale which were both huge estates (Duran Duran used to use two CX Safaris to lug their gear around). The XM estate is a big car which was made for Citroen by Heuliez as was the BX estate and was clearly a saloon car with an estate conversion done to it. Although Citroen may have started the estate car thing back in the late 1930s with their 5 door, 9 seater Traction Avant Familiale which (along with the Commerciale) was one of the earliest hatchbacks.

Here in Germany, SUVs are very popular, too. Not so much the super-big ones - but mid-size and small ones. Today, resistance starts to form amongst city residents. As SUVs are bigger, heavier and offer worse view to the driver they are hazardous to pedestrians - children in particular. Same goes for bicyclists - especially as bike riding is seen as ideal kind of individual transportation in many European countries. No pollution, no noise - and very little neccessary parking space. I'm quite sure anual car taxes will rise here soon significantly above a certain weight limit. As soon as that happens SUVs will go as fast as they came.

There's a small company in the UK that offers Tesla Model S conversion into estate (station wagon). And during development of their project they worked with Tesla close enough that you wouldn't even loose warranty (at least the drivetrain part of it) if you bring your Model S for conversion

They sold Chrysler 300 Hemi-powered "estate wagons" in Europe but not in he US! They had Dodge Magnum bodies but a 300 grill and tons of power.

I'm from the UK and own a 5 year old V90 cross country polestar, fully equipped the price was £66,000. For an estate\wagon it goes like stink, high enough clearance for off road and excellent storage space. I am over 6ft tall and I can comfortably lie in the back with one of the rear seats down.For me the perfect compromise vehicle.

SUV = Senioren Und Versehrte (seniors and invalids)

Hi, first of all, Happy New Year from Hungary. My late father had a 1987 Wartburg 353 Tourist station wagon. It had a 993 ccm, 3-cylinder, two-stroke engine, I have good memories of that car. :)

You drive a truck or SUV when you want to look like you carry stuff around, you drive a van or a station wagon when actually have to carry stuff around.

the rs6 is a 175mph 0-60 in about 3 seconds and a prive tag of about 110k, best thing, its SO refined, comfy, quiet, floats over bumps

Hi Ian !! Happy New Year !!! I guess I'm a typical Scandinavian then, as I have 2 wagons. Both Audis. Oldest one is an 1993 S4/S6 with a 4.2 liter V8 petrol ( They were called S4 up to -95 and S6 from -95 till today. The 2nd one is my daily driver, an 2011 A4 Allroad 2.0 liter Diesel. Both Quattro 4WD. I love wagons. 😁

Greetings from Germany and a Happy New Year. You see so many station wagons (or what we call "Kombi") on our streets. They are just so versatile. Im looking at buying one in the next few months. If you haven't already take a look at Seat Leon or better the Cupra Leon Sportstourer. Starts at around 35.000 Euros for an affordable alternative. Would love your opinion on it.

My wife and I are the proud owners of two Volvo V70 Mk.Is from the late 90s,- that means we are driving cars that are more than 25 years old. One automatic, one manual,- both with turbos. Best highway and freeway tractors in existence. In Sweden these cars traditionally are called Estate cars,- to go with the " Esquire living in the rural countryside" image thought they originally were built around. They´re wide, low, sleek, 4wd, the interior is comfortable enough to make you feel like you´re sitting in the cabin of your own bombardier 350 jet, the folding rear seats gives you double the cargo space of that of even a Chevy Tahoe and thanks to the insane Swedes ( I´m Danish,- I´m supposed to think like that) ( the same Swedes who, when getting the idea of tuning Volvos, prove themselves to have have impeccable taste) you can order ANY aftermarket part you´d desire to tune, recomp, customize and style your car to your hearts desire including mechanical tuning with tower struts, sports shocks and springs, widebody front-, rear- and side skirts, sports interior styling and stage one to three ECU chipping that´ll lift the power from the usual 200-250 bhp to somewhere around the 315-320 bhp mark complete with Simons sports exhaust (outside of Polestar the only officially approved brand by Volvo themselves for aftermarket exhausts,- any other brand is simply incorrect and would be considered an offense to any proper Volvo aficinado in the know,- and in very poor taste added to that!) to give you proper sports performance characteristics in what is essentially a familiy wagon. For a 25 years old car! We´ve been talking about by now upgrading them to something more modern,- but why? For an infotainment system that informs you that you´re turning whenever you are....? If and when we do it will undoubtably be to something similar to what we already have,- only in a newer package. An AWD Volvo V90 2.0 ltr. with supercharger and turbo giving it some 320 bhp,- in a fully modern hybrid electric/ gasoline package,- looking like a sleek machine from a science fiction film perhaps? A Volvo it´s gonna be. Volvo FTW.

Brit here! I love my Estates (Wagons)! Currently got a 2023 Volvo V60 T6, 360hp, 0-60 in a smidge over 5 seconds, comfy, loads of room, big boot and great mpg!! Volvo has now withdrawn from selling 'cars' in the UK and you can now only buy SUVs!

For 60 years, Australians were in love with station wagons. Back in the day, they accounted for nearly half of all Holden Commodore sales, continuing a trend that really exploded with the FE Station Sedan of 1956.

My preference is always an estate car, and about half of the cars I've owned have been estates. I'm on my second Citroën C5 estate, but will struggle to replace it - the C5X is part estate. I've moved house a considerable distance with a C5 and trailer. The car is a Tardis.

I bought the v90 wagon about a year ago i love it! Find myself looking over the shoulder to peek at it every time i park

I’ve had two station wagons. Volvo V40 T4 and the 850 T5. Both where crazy quick, and wonderful to own.

I have a station, and i love it. It is powerful (240hp/400nm on 98 octane), and it can drive also around 5L/100km on 100km/h. (47mpg) And it made in 2010. It has enough space for my family, and can tow a caravan (max 1600kg tow weight) And it looks nice, but that is an opinion.

Sadly companies offer less and less station wagons, especially with electrification. Probably the marketshare is also that low, cause almost no one offers them in the US. Something like BMW M3 Touring or the Audi RS6 are very nice station wagons. In Germany wagons have major advantage over SUVs, they have higher VMAX :D

you really need to check out the history of the audi allroad line of vehicles they were essentially the first wagons that featured off road capabilities with the push of a button it was basically an air ride from the factory that gave you the best of both worlds way WAY ahead of its time . nowadays you get the air suspension with similar capabilities in a lot of audi models

Many people have probably mentioned this already but our "standard" Swedish driver license don't allow you to haul a lot of weight so a light strong car is ideal for pulling caravans and horse transports.

It is difficult to compare. In Europe, the roads are much narrower. With a wide truck, you may attract attention, but it's not practical. The roads are not designed for it. We make use of the phenomenon of trailers when we want to transport larger items. In Europe, we tend to think more modularly due to practical considerations, like using a trailer. On one hand, I find the vastness and size of America appealing. On the other hand, I also appreciate the coziness of our European environment.

I own the Škoda Superb 3 wagon with 2L disel engine with 190hp and 4x4 and I'm have like 36MPG and I absolutely live this car. Also my company car is Škoda Octavia wagon with 1.6L diesel engine and I belive like 110hp and the consumption is around 47MPG. And 8 of 10 sold Škoda Octavia in eu is wagon :-)

I worked for myself as a handyman in Canada and my vehicle of choice was a Subaru Station Wagon. With the seats down you can load almost as much as a pick up. And its inside! No worries of getting bags of cement wet, or anything else. I used to carry 3 tool boxes. All locked up safe at night. You can even get an 8ft 4x3 inside! try that with a truck.

Re Subaru, we had an old Subaru Legacy (here in the UK). It was pretty ordinary, but with full time 4wd and a high/low ratio, it could drive on almost any surface (ice/snow/mud) with ease and a bit of care. The only limitation was ground clearance, but nobody was ever going to be taking it rock climbing!

One reason you don't find as many US sized cars in Europe is because there are old narrow city streets that the average american car would get stuck in. And for the record, I'm the happy owner of a white 2016 Skoda Octavia Combi with tinted windows, because it's great to have practicality look this damn sleek!

Wagons are awesome. So practical and just as comfy as the sedan versions (sometime more due to more space). Fun Fact: Station Wagon is literally what they are called in Norway too (Stasjons vogn). Was about to say it was strange Norway only had 13% SW, but SUV's are really popular here. The AWD / 4x4 and higher clearance makes them (almost) perfect for winter roads. SUV's have really taken over for a lot of the wagons. (Most Crossovers are called SUV and some are still called Station Wagons, like the Subaru Outback)

I owned a V50 D5 for two years, been my first and only wagon. I liked it a lot, very smooth and quiet car. I now own one of my dreamcars, the Mazdaspeed6.

Happy New Year Team IWrocker. Station wagons have been my go to vehicle for years. Mainly the ability to fit 2 dogs and my tools and still feel like I'm driving a car is the reason. Had lots of Toyotas and Mazda wagons but my last 3 have been 2 Outbacks and currently just downsized slightly to an Audi S3 sportback for the fuel economy around the hills down south here in NZ.

Best wagons were Aussie Holden Commodores. I own a VF SV6, one of the last ones made. Practical, good fuel economy, powerful enough as a daily, but also fun and pretty to look at. Skoda do make cool ones.

Wait wait wait wait wait. "In some Scandinavian countries like Finland and Sweden" Finland is NOT a part of Scandinavia. Scandinavia is Norway, Sweden and Denmark only. The Nordic countries consist of Norway, Sweden, Denmark, Finland and Iceland.

In Austria and Germany we call station wagons "Kombis". I had to google, but i couldnt stop thinking about the car from "that 70ies show" - Oldsmobile Vista Cruiser - awesome thing too. Greetings from Austria! :)

Finnish wagon lover here. I've owned three wagons, two Citroën C5 and a Citroën Xantia. They load a ton and with the hydropneumatic suspension they keep level at all times. Wouldn't get caught dead behind the wheel of a truck, SUV or crossover (yecccch!)

the RS6 series is sick. These things have 600 hp

In germany a lot of those Wagon or as we call them here “Kombi“ are sold to Companies fun fact, a lot of Offices and Companies give them out to their employees as their work car so if you are on the Autobahn and see an A4/A6, C/E Class Wagon or a 3/5 Series Wagon its highly likely its a Company Car

Wagons or " Long Roofs", are awesome. I own a SAAB 9-3 Aero wagon and love it. Drive it every day. Also went to Ireland in October and wagons were everywhere.

The history of the station wagon in Germany is closely linked to summer vacation trips, traditionally Italy, later Croatia, France and Spain, and also lakes in the Alps. The North Sea and Baltic Sea are also popular destinations for summer vacations. The station wagon is ideal for vacation trips. It is big enough for 14 days' luggage for a family of four and small enough to be economical and humane in finding a parking space. (American families are often larger than 4 people (2 kids), in Europe this is rather the exception.) The same applies to winter vacations to ski resorts. Skis, bicycles and luggage boxes can be mounted on the outside, typically on the roof of the vehicle. There are also bike racks for the back, which sit on the trailer hitch. The station wagon can also tow camping trailers. So vacations at campsites are also possible with the station wagon. The station wagon is a workhorse, or perhaps more of a mule. Small but powerful and undemanding.

Just as an example: As a German family we have two of those station wagons (in German called “Kombi“). I have a Mercedes-Benz E-Class T-Model (T-Model is the Mercedes term for “Kombi”) from 2016 and my wife a Skoda Octavia from 2019. Both have a Diesel engine and are used for many km in a year. At the Autobahn with a normal traveling speed the fuel consumption is about 4.5 liter/100 km for the Skoda and about 5.3 liter/100 km for the Mercedes. But at the same time these cars have a high loading volume: The Mercedes has about 540 liter and the Skoda 520 liter in the trunk, plus massive space for five passengers. Both cars are designed for comfortable an efficient driving. These cars are not supposed to be sports cars, but quick enough. My Mercedes gets to the 240 km/h (150 mph), but I rarely using it. The fuel consumption would increase to 10.8 liter/100 km and more. And the Mercedes is driving like a tank on snow, what is important in our region. It is no problem to go by 80 km/h (50 mph) and more on snow without any sliding or noticeable breaking deceleration. Before the Mercedes I had a VW Passat Variant (Variant is the VW term for “Kombi”). This car was in our family for 21 years without any serious problems. And also after selling it, the women who bought it had an heavy accident two weeks after with two trucks at the Autobahn, but survived it relatively unharmed, because of so many steel around her. And we are not alone with our two station wagons in our neighborhood. The family to our left side has two station wagons (Ford Mondeo and Ford Focus) and the woman to our right has a Mercedes-Benz C-Class T-Model. The older couple across the street has a VW Touran - something between a station wagon and a van. In Germany it is very common in rural communities to own a station wagon. You just don’t want it in a city, where you’re going to get problems with finding parking spaces. And also my colleagues driving station wagons, too. If you’re standing next to our parking area at work, you will see more than a third of the cars are station wagons: Mercedes, BMW, Audi, VW and Volvo. The price of a station wagon is comparable to the price of a sedan (in Europe called “Limousine”) plus a bit. Often it is about 2000-5000 € more than the basic model, but about often also 10000 € less than a comparable SUV. The station wagons are incredible cars in many ways. They are like high efficiency family trucks for an everyday use - but a bit smaller. Some of these might look a little unspectacular or boring, but never say this to an Audi A6, BMW 5 Series or my Mercedes-Benz E-Class in their “Kombi”-Model. These are really great looking cars.

Volvo the goat of wagons

I can totally recommened learning more about Opel, it's a brand with a rich history (started with producing sewing machines) and since it was owned by GM you can see the influence of Detroit in the Designs but with a german touch. My last car was an Opel Omega A (from 1991) with a 2.6 litre inline 6 which was really fun to drive but also very comfortable. My current car is the Opel Insignia B Wagon as it was shown in the Video and can say with confidence that it's spacious enough. When i sit behind the driver seat that’s adjusted to me (i'm 5'7 , i hope it's correct) i can put both of my hands infront of my knees and can almost touch it. And the 2l diesel engine is powerful enough to get me from A to B with ease.

I have the V60 Polestar wagon and love it! not only is it practical with cargo, but can drive it in pure electric mode while dropping kids off at school but can also drive with gas/electric mode (455hp) if you want to rip it up a bit

Fun fact, most Volvos are made in USA right now, even ones for EU market. I recently bought S60 here in Poland and yup its made in USA. Volvo is going all out in NA, hope they succeed.

Volvo has said that they will stop selling Wagon/ Estate/ Touring (what you call this segment) in the UK and they will only be selling to Emergency Services (Police/ Ambulance (Paramedic) from then on. Funnily enough Volvo have now taken over where BMW left with their removing themselves from the Emergency Service (mainly Police vehicles) due to them having major issue with their Diesel engines failing catastrophically when on high speed runs. Private owner cars aren't affected with the issue but BMW moving out of the Emergency sector has reopened the door for Volvo, Skoda to throw their hats into the ring with their wagon models.

I have a 2012 Holden Commodore wagon. Runs lovely. Not as much cargo soace as they used to have since the switch from the longer chassis to the sedan base. Still plenty.

Much of my childhood was dominated by estate cars - Tercel, Corolla, Passat: good for hauling people and stuff inside while having plenty of power for towing and being narrow enough for British country roads.

I loved my 1977 Ford XC GS 302 V8 shwagon (shaggin' wagon). Metallic midnight blue with the bonnet scoops, rear spoiler, dual 3.5" exhausts, and chrome 12-slotter wheels. It went like a rocket in a straight line and handled like a boat. The stereo sound of the dual pipes going "blob blob blob" on idle was awesome. And when I floored it it screamed like a jet turbine. Pedestrians would flee for hundreds of metres. :) I kitted it out with tinted windows and black blockout blinds all 'round, folding mattress and sleeping bag so I could sleep in it. Plenty of room for a 6'1" guy to stretch out. Go to pubs and parties, park somewhere inconspicuous in a quiet suburban street, and crawl in at the end of the night to have a shag &/or just sleep it off. Water and a piss bottle are essential. ;) And go camping. A few other mates had wagons and panelvans. We'd go for a long drive in convoy, with our girlfriends of the time, chatting on our CB radios (before mobile phones). Don't even need tents or chairs. Just chuck an esky of food and grog in the back, and a guitar. Back them up around the fire and sit on the tailgate. Sing, drink, eat charred flesh, and have sex. Even if it rained, we'd hook-up some tarps between our cars. Man, good times. You don't know what you're missing as a young lad if you've never owned a shwagon! :)

I think it's all down to fuel prices and road size. Fuel has always been very expensive in Europe, normally double or more what it costs in the US . I would have a 5.0 v8 truck as a daily if i could, if fuel was cheaper here in the UK , but its rip off prices as standard here. I think road tax here for a v8 truck would be around £600 per year too, plus insurance plus fuel lol. The US has more land to play with compared to europe so has bigger roads too . And didn't trucks used to be low tax or something in the US ? That's why Americans bought a lot of them back in the day ?

We live in Switzerland. MY daughter is an MD with 2 kids. She has a Skoda Octavia wagon that is like an extended luxury car with her trim package. With a 2.o turbo diesel, it's got plenty of power for mountains and emergency situations plus with two small kids, pletny of carog space for suitcases, bikes etc. We had the Skoda Yeti, a small SUV, but in 2021 traded it in for a dealer's demo 2020 Kia E-Niro (EV). Have no idea what that is. A Crossover, small station wagon? Large trunk, large enough for our large dog, a Galgo Español.

Proud owner of two Volvo 940, one of which is a Turbo. Both are station wagons and the advantage is that you can load almost everything and still have passengers if you don't fold down the back seat.

Car designer here, made a short list of generic general classifications for road vehicle segmentation: Wagon/Estate: A sedan platform with a rearwards extended cabin and hatchback opening. Hatchback: A small segment car (A or B segment typically) with rearwards extended cabin and a hatchback opening. SUV: Large platform vehicle with certain dimensions of scale (wheel to body and greenhouse height ratio for example) without a bed (typically 4WD or on occasion AWD) Pick-up: Comparable platform to an SUV, but with a truck bed Crossover: A cross between an SUV and a standard road-use car (commonly 2WD or AWD, very rarely 4WD). Typically based on an existing sedan or hatchback platform, but slightly lifted and with taller body proportion overall. (It's somewhat seen as the "anything slightly undefined can often go in here" classification) A truck is used for what Americans cassually refer to as a "semi" A car is used for any vehicle that fulfills a typical non-commercial use (such as city cars, sedans, suvs, etc. Yes, suvs are classified as cars too) A minivan is classified as an MPV (multi purpose vehicle) A van is a cargo / commercial related vehicle that is not big enough to support the truck segmentation (generally defined by having a fixed in-body cargo room. A sportscar is a street car platform that has been modified to support higher-than-standard performance A supercar is a street car that is inspired by (circuit) race cars and emulates their approaches, but designed nd engineered for street homologation first, racing principles second. A hypercar is a (circuit) race car that has been compromised to meet necessary street regulations, but is originally designed and engineered from racing principles first, street homologation second. A megacar is a relatively new term that is still technically unofficial, first coined by Koenigsegg to describe performance cars with 1 Megawatt of power or more (~1340hp). Local markets may use local terms in casual speech internally, but these are the globally regarded common segmentations. Then there are sub-segmentations and niche specifications but that's for another time :)

I bought one some years ago powerful enough and it was the best choice for 1000 more than an hatchback... versatility, sportiness, efficiency... works for the family, sportive for solo driving, practical in cities, for sportwear...

Hi Ian, Czechia here. I still use my old Skoda Forman (Favorit station wagon) as a daily drive and I'm happy with it, but also have a Renault Scenic (compact MPV) at my hand and I tend to believe it is even more practical as the wagons do have some down points: - the overall length of wagons doesnt help with parking, also the low driver seat makes it harder to guess the distances outside the car - the cargo area in compact MPV offers similar volume but easier access compared to station wagon - older (or US-sized) people often find it hard to squat into low-seated cars in general (and the average age of populaction is rising) Otherwise, here in CZ we used to love our rear-engined Skodas, which obviously just came as sedan or coupe, while other brands were practically unavailable, but it all changed with Skoda Forman, Felicia Combi and Octavia Combi. Also I'd suggest you to check out the Wartburg W353 Tourist from the DDR, these were not easily available in east-bloc countries but it was a hell of practicality in one package! Myself I was drawn towards wagons by Fiat Marea SW (I had two, 1.6 and 1.8 petrol), then for some time I tried the US-based Opel SIntra (rebadged Chevrolet Venture SWB) but the ride was awful, so I'm back to European cars since then. 😀

Visited my aunt in NC last year. And yeah, I have to say that the pure size difference in cars made my jaw drop. Back here in Germany we thought we had a "rather big" car (Renault Grand Scenic) but damn, that car is dwarfed by the RAM 2500 the husband of my aunt owns.

RS6 is king

In every single country that doesn’t speak English we call these wagon vehicles Kombi/Combi so if you want to say the proper European way Škoda Superb or Octavia its superb Combi etc.

For me, as a single male, the staiton wagon is the perfect car. Buying stuff for the house (planks, rebarb, amenities), going on long trips with a lot of luggage, working out of it and even camping in it is all SUPER convenient! You get a huge space with the backseats down and the rear bench cushions removed. I had times where I almost drove 20 hours in it with a few stops here and there at 6-9 liters of Diesels per 100km if the highway is not with a lot of hills and some good flowing traffic. I would never live without at least 1 station wagon, even now or in the future when having a family.

Never really was a fan of station wagons, but the Chrysler 300c Station looks like a beast. Fell in love with it the moment I saw it.

We bought our BMW 520d touring 136kw/177hp with manual transmission when it alrady ran 200,000km. Now the engine was running almost 400,000km and it's still running. I love it!

One of the best cars I've ever owned was a 1972 HQ Holden Wagon. Did around 150 000 miles from memory and the only costs were petrol and oil. Pity the video only showed one Station Wagon (the Volvo at the end). Plenty of people in Australia own 4X4 vehicles and I'd surprised if most of them have any idea how to engage 4 wheel. But they are VERY clean!

Back in the '80s and '90s, a lot of Millennials' parents had station wagons or minivans. They were boring and unattractive (but practical). Then in the late '90s/early 2000s, those same parents started buying SUVs, which looked cooler than the wagons/minivans, but they guzzled gas (cheap at the time) and didn't handle/ride as well. At the same time, the government's CAFE fuel economy standards continued to increase, but thanks to corporate lobbying "light trucks" (basically any regular pickup or SUV) had less-strict standards to meet. As the Millennials grew to adulthood and started having families of their own during and after the '08-'09 recession, they remembered wagons and minivans being "not cool," but they also remembered their parents' gas-guzzling, poor-riding SUVs. There was market demand for something that looked like an SUV but got better gas mileage and handled more like a car. The car companies sold a ton of SUVs, but needed to improve their CAFE ratings. Thus, the crossover was born.

A station wagon might give you a bit more carrying capacity, but I found that a VW-GOLF hatch-back is a wonder machine of utility. I could carry 10 ft. lumber inside with the hatch closed; sheets of plywood, or my dinghy, on a roof rack. The 1/3 / 2/3 back seat backrests allowed you to carry 3passengers while still having lots of space for luggage. I owned VW-GOLFs for almost 4 years.

I've had my E46 330i Touring for nearly 10 years and traveled as far as Nurburgring and Le Mans in it, been camping with it. The car's undergone a rolling overhaul, and now sporting a suspension , brake and engine setup that pushes 261bhp / 333Nm , capable of a 9.42 BTG time at Nords, and still remained practical as i haul stuff around in it and yet I can roll up at a track day, and surprise cars like Lotus Elises and Porsche Boxsters with this wagon. It makes for interesting conversations when people don't expect a touring to rock up and go out on track.

This was really interesting to watch as a European from Finland rocking a Subaru Outback. As the statistic shows, we have tons of wagons here, also SUVs are really popular. It was really surprising to see that the Outback really dominates the wagon market in the US. For workers the car of choice has for long been a van. But now there is a trend that workers buy American style trucks instead, like Ford Rangers and so! Then they have to equip them with all kinds of boxes or bed covers so that all the rain and snow is kept out.

6:25 you put it very well there, and it is the same with semi trucks..long snout usa ones or cab over european ones, other purpose, roads and use..

Brit here... Love station wagons. Always been a fan of 'hot estates' and I've owned a few from my old 850 T5 all the way through to my current RS Avant, speaking of which I've always coveted the RS 2 Avant from the 90's. I'd love one of those in Nogaro blue but they are very rare and fetch quite the price to match.

Im in Australia and have a 2012 207 peugeot 1.6ltr turbo diesel 6 speed manual wagon.... It's an awesome car..... 5ltr to the 100klms.....

RS6 Audi are the kings of the wagen available around the world! I drove one when I was in Belgium... And they are incredible! And yes I am a car lover but this specific car is a monster that u can use for any kind of usage u want... Day to day work drive, family trip, making Chrono on some track, putting your new furniture into the trunk 😅 This car is amazing!!!! Cheers from Cambodia PS: the market here is similar than US... PS 2 my brother is now drive a v60 Volvo polestar in Germany ... This car is the most secured cars known today with that much horsepower

I live in Sweden and it really is true that wagons are all over the place here. We bought one when we were expecting our child. They are great for families - decent fuel economy and massive loading space, but still with good handling and a sporty look. In most "sports wagons" (as they are often called here nowadays) you can easily fit a large stroller and still have room for shopping bags or some luggage as well, without having to fold any seats. We've moved from the Opel Astra wagon to a Hyundai i30 wagon to a Kia C'eed wagon to now a Seat Leon wagon (very happy with the latter and the Kia, not so much the Opel :)). But tbh, we've also got a small SUV now that there's no more need for strollers... I would however still buy another wagon just for the loading capability - it's great when you're a home owner as well. Furniture, shopping, whatever... it normally fits inside the wagon.

I’m in Ireland, and about 6 weeks ago, I spotted an unusual 2012 Octavia Estate/Wagon. It was a 4x4. There are plenty of Octavias and Octavia Estates here, it’s the only 4x4 Octavia I’ve ever seen

Hell yeah. I remember being a kid in the 80s and going on road trips and having the back compartment of a station wagon to myself and maybe a cousin or two. It was fun. We had room to move around (seat belts? phhttt!), lay down, hang out, watch the world go by, and so on. Good times.

9:31 As far as I remember, the Subaru Legacy Outback was originally All-Wheel-Drive when it was launched in Europe in the 90s

Interesting fact: VW Passat's mid-range car is only available in the station wagon version in Europe.

My parents used to drive a 940 Polar and I vividly remember having bad-weather picknicks with the 4 of us sitting in the trunk.