I am a wagon guy. Two of my last three project cars were Volvo 240 longroofs. PR people know, instinctively, to send me wagons because wagons make me happy. They still make me happy, but I’ve been in the car business for a while and one truth is clear to me: Sedans are now cooler than wagons.
(This is a new, recurring feature we’re trying out called “PROVE ME WRONG” where we take our hottest genuine take and try it out for you, our adoring fans. We want you to prove us wrong, even though we are almost certainly right. While some takes exist to shut down arguments, we want this to be a way of encouraging thoughtful conversation around issues and ideas car enthusiasts are facing.)
This thought has lingered for a while and what better place to air it than here, amidst the wonderful and attractive community of Autopians, none of whom, I’m sure, are sharpening ginsu knives or gassing up chainsaws as they seethe in rage at the very hint that wagons aren’t the coolest thing since Miles Davis or wetting your drawers.
Here’s the problem with loving station wagons: Station wagons won. Station wagons are to car culture what Dookie was to popular music. One day you’re counter-culture and then the next day you are culture and everyone in your suburban Nashville junior high is dressing like they just walked out of 924 Gilman.
It is not special to be pro-wagon when, actually, we get some pretty nice wagons. Subaru Outbacks are outrageously popular cars for parents. Mercedes will give you an E-Class wagon, albeit in all-terrain form. Most impressively, we got the Audi RS6 Avant we’ve always begged for. Not only that, we got a sweet commercial to go with it:
[Editor’s Note: That’s almost seven minutes! That’s not a commercial, it’s a student film. – JT]
This is natural. This is ok. But what’s going to fill the void? Sedans, of course.
Follow my logic here: The family car of the ’60s and ’70s was the station wagon which meant, for a certain generation of person (Gen X, largely) the station wagon was démodé. This is why the minivan was a necessity for ’80s and early ’90s parents who viewed it as a way to be hipper than their own progenitors. But if you were a car geek? Wagons became forbidden fruit. Something you’d read about in car magazines or see pictures of on the nascent automotive internet.
Ford wagons brochure via Ford Heritage
Now those people are old enough, have earned enough, and are frankly bored enough to start buying all the wagons they didn’t get. Don’t believe me? Just look how many Audi RS2 Avants have been imported and sold on Bring-A-Trailer.
SUVs quickly replaced minivans and just never went away, though they’ve slowly started to morph back into station wagons. But sedans? Sedans, we were told, are dying. Hell, Ford is going to outright stop making them in the United States.
And yet, there are two good reasons why sedans are both the future of general consumer cars and enthusiast cars.
Lucid Air via Lucid
On the general consumer front, the simple aerodynamic advantage of a sedan makes it the go-to shape for electric vehicles. For a lot of people the Tesla Model S is the coolest car on the planet and it’s hard to argue with them. [Editor’s Note: For many reasons. – JT] It looks good. It can outperform most sports cars in quantifiable if not qualitative ways. It is luxurious without being ostentatious. Joining the Model S are the Lucid Air, Mercedes EQS, and hilariously named Genesis Electrified G80.
The lack of the engine in an EV also means you can add a frunk, which brings back some of the utility that sedans of yore lacked.
On the enthusiast front, it is the fact that they are not popular that will make them popular in the future. It’s a trend as old as trends itself. Citizen Kane was a commercial flop when it debuted and was largely forgotten before being hailed as one of the greatest movies all time. Vincent Van Gogh died penniless. The mere reality that you think sedans are not cool will make them cool. Just you wait.
Plus, sedans now are exceptionally good. Both the recent Toyota Camry and Honda Accord are excellent vehicles (someone even brought a new Camry to our Autopian reader meetup!). In 15 years a manual 2019 Honda Accord Sport FWD will be something enthusiasts get excited about.
This is what I believe. Do you disagree? In the immortal words of Seymour Skinner: “Prove me wrong, kids, prove me wrong.”
Cool is in the eye of the beholder. Vehicles and colors loved by many are detested by others. For instance, I think all modern Ferraris look silly compared to early ones. And I’d prefer one in almost any color other than red; I have never really liked any red car. (Well, Christine was pretty cool)
“The things we choose express what we are – our tastes, our personalities – better than any words. The search for gratifying pleasure is a fundamental component of the human being. Man will always seek to grow, to live better and more gratifyingly”
Nuccio Bertone 1914-1997
Yeah, I kinda agree with this. I’ve been thinking how rare the turbo legacy is right now. Anybody know their sales numbers?
There is not a single wagon that is left on the US market you can get with three pedals. There are still plenty of flavors of sedan you can. Your argument is no longer pitting like foes. Idgaf if we get the rs6, it doesn’t have the right transmission and everyone knows it so we import B5 rs4 avants and rs2 avants because they were actually good. Car makers will never chase the enthusiast dollar because we are a vocal minority and we are hard to please. There is also very little chance manual transmissions make the jump from ICE to EV so I am going to call it like I see it: enthusiast cars are going to be gone in 20 years.
Sorry, but I’m on Team Minivan now. I’m just waiting for the Schlörwagen to be cool again. It seats seven with a CX of 0.15!
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I’d like to know who the morons are that up-vote spam comments.
Three thoughts:
1.Maybe the spam accounts up-vote themselves.
2. Charitably: people are trying to draw attention to get them banned.
3. NPoND never had a true 100% vote. Some people just suck.
Minivans are cooler than all the above!
The 1/43 UrQ @ 1:10. “Grocery Store ” find.
https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/296Y43ah8FGgcthSL7qQ5oA8x7-YK05agghF1EZuKMLahn4iMUsJFG2iObI6Hd1PGKiQZWZWuq_6Lht2WzdU8eW0YmXzlw2mvPDN6hLhDjjP9ksyNWOJBkvA4TBosfrLYWioMBDVG5bUA7raO1bD8OxPEhSo37YVGa8EJY1An4HPLx6Z7Al9Xx3tr4q8kPysp2ycPA7vW1WR5CraaNJpJEgiZyHi0Gc1OSGUOZgNI2O4H_dGQ9t5o3DDfZVxsIMoPK16RQ3zoIBBI4lx1gYM-OVtvqY9t04SUHv8Et5jvRJvPI8Rjb9m8RiMdkyYwjSyZ7SXSzs1fyazyOzZvhyOmdR4s9zNBTPEqWSuP8-cIV_w0tcjjNNXoKwEU3yzXUvdQvozHcpwXcaDXgJbyZz5kUBuZNqhXYd3RgyN_AJLKG5KZaQ8bVFmeGdf0JxEhQMQ03ApASRLF-hMjtvW6mu3GprworqaZ57pgs7LIzmM8aS9cFNYZtX2XA6K3QFR_ymZIctkmmUr3pBxOQ6KOb_oSwfA2EkfuUXiMeaY9CLFeOTH3csIKucYIJrzKQuEWOvwYqXn1dnn2XmwRTPxXg0VFSCVIjJePi1zZ1qJw7YPiMU9woPmV4TubJ1ofzwI9MsZxL8HA0vGw4sfA6zl1Rinuc1UXl_S-aZwCEqagoIGv8cYsJ7VHmlS_sZx32fvd1ezEcPFFI43RYpA-Y8h48ifhN424OFqHaUr_8oGvpSERnYwVqhDvEr5fz7OIwg=w1250-h937-no?authuser=0
I just can’t look at a vehicle with a trunk and not think it is a waste. A hatchback or wagon can swallow all sorts of stuff that a sedan with fold down rear seats can’t. Yes, I know not everyone wants their vehicle to be a Swiss Army knife, but I do if the option is there.
If I was rich, the RS6 or E63 Estate would be it. Fast, all weather (maybe with different tires), and haul cargo. I was actually behind a Taycan Cross Turismo yesterday and was surprised at how small the rear hatch looked. I mean the whole thing is moot since I don’t have $120k for a car, so I’ll probably have to settle for a cross over next due to lack of options.
Mercedes, Audi, and Volvo won’t sell a wagon that isn’t “Outbacked” with plastic wheel trim and more ground clearance anymore, so what is the point. Maybe when used cars come back down to Earth I’ll look for a regular E450 wagon or V60.
“Mercedes, Audi, and Volvo won’t sell a wagon that isn’t “Outbacked” with plastic wheel trim and more ground clearance anymore, so what is the point.”
The RS6 and V60 aren’t “Outbacked” and you can still buy the MINI Cooper Clubman at the lower end of things.
I can see this up to a point, but I still stand by wagons as an anti-SUV. Crossovers are still taking over everything and sedan-based wagons are still better for anyone who doesn’t need three rows of seats.
Speaking of three rows, I want minivans to get cool again. That would also take crossovers down a peg whilst giving people a much more practical vehicle of similar footprint. Think of VIP-spec Alphards and celebrities emerging from V-Class Mercs. It could happen…
Well, there are only two kinds of cars: cars and tools. The difference? (Proper) Cars don’t have a wiper on the rear window. You have one then it’s a tool not a car.
Obviously I drove a sedan for more than 14y now, but I drove the other kinds for 5y or so.
I started driving at the end of my 20’s.
Locking trunks that are inaccessible from the passenger compartment are required for legal firearms transport in most states, so sedans beat out just about every other type of four wheeled conveyance in this regard. The recent growth in the number of registered firearms might influence the return of the sedan to some degree in the coming years.
That’s not true. If you don’t have a locking trunk, the federal requirement is that an “unloaded firearm must be in a locked container other than the glove compartment or console.”
This is a maximum requirement. Individual states can have more lenient requirements.
A sedan is, and always will be, the “default” state of car-ness. The default of anything is never cool.
Except for classics, in which case the default is somehow a loaded pillarless 2 door hardtop, even if it rolled off the line a 6cyl pillar car.
Peak coolness is the 5-door liftback. Sleek good looks hiding massive practicality? To wit, the Rover SD1 was a flawed, poorly built car that in many ways was a regression from the P6 that came before it. But in spite of that, it’s still very cool.
As a life-long lover of proacticcal vehicles, wagons are the best in any form. I have owned one sedan and it was because I couldn’t find the wagon I wanted in time for college. When I did find the ’67 VW squareback in ’78, I ditched the sedan quickly and I still have the squareback. Well, I did own a VW bug, but it was cheap and left behind a gas station, so I bought it for a winter ruunner. Never a practical vehicle. Sedans are just difficult to haul stuff in compared to any form of wag, and I include VW busses, cans, hatchbacks, and SUVs. Hatchbacks at least have some practicality compared to sedans.
I don’t think Outbacks are wagons any more. They’ve grown about 10 inches in all dimensions, and wagons should be almost 6 feet tall.
Shouldn’t. EDIT BUTTON.
Vans, both mini and maxi, are cooler than wagons or sedans. Let them grapple for second place.
As to the other hot take that stuck out to me the Tesla Model S does not look good. It looks awkward, dated and, considering the expense, cheap. It was clearly the work of a designer who was either holding back their best work or turned in the most generic work that fit the requirements because that’s what the customer wanted. Those cars are ugly and while some of the new electric vehicles are better the desire to optimize aero to squeeze out a few more miles of range will compromise their appearance. All for the good of a marketing data point that will make little to no difference about how the driver uses their vehicle. I don’t think the way to sustainably sell luxury EVs is to make them look as bland and boring as possible.
Sedans are now cooler than wagons because the way wagons have been designed is just sad.
You used to be able to get a tailgate with a wagon. Good luck with that nowadays.
You used to be able to fold the rear seats flat or at least remove them. Good luck with that nowadays.
You used to be able to get a boat like ride from a wagon. Good luck with that nowadays.
Also with all these car break-ins happening you almost always have to get that privacy divider which basically gives your hatchback and or wagon a trunk, but without the durability or security of an actual trunk, just the illusion of having a secure trunk with all the impracticality of a trunk.
The only “cool” “wagon” I could think of coming out is Ford’s attempt at turning the Maverick pickup into a “Wagon”, and if I were them I’d have Vinyl floors, keep the tailgate in the rear, and have the 3rd row seats be easily removed.
I like the look of both wagons and sedans but when it comes to preference, it depends on the car. Case in point:
– I love the look of the current Volvo S60 but not the V60 (V60 looks off)
– I love the look of the current Volvo V90 but not the S90 (S90 looks too boatlike)
While that doesn’t tackle the practicality aspect, I doubt the extra space available in the wagon would really come in handy unless I had a specific usecase (in general if it doesn’t fit in the trunk or backseat of the sedan, it’ll probably be too bulky for the wagon anyway).
The problem you’ve got here is that if you put a sedan and a wagon next to each other it is obvious which one is cooler. It’s not the sedan, and I say that as a sedan owner/operator.
A lucky, clever and or responsible owner can do a shit ton with a wagon to mitigate risk of a smash and grab theft. To me the wagon wins every time, all things being equal. You can haul so much more shit easier in a wagon vs sedan everyday. That alone makes it the automatic winner here. What will it haul should be the primary question when making this choice.
As the owner of a 2018 Buick TourX, I think I qualify as a full scale station wagon dude. However I find myself taking my BMW 330CIC more places because of the trunk. San Francisco 2022 is the land of shattered rear windows.
You are wrong, both statistically and conceptually.
Statistically: The only wagons currently sold in the USA, near as I can tell, are the Audi A4 and RS6, the Mercedes E class, and the Porsche Taycan and Panamera (note: I am not counting SUV-ified wagons that are no longer wagons). That makes the average new wagon in the USA very cool indeed. Looking at sedans, you need to average in cars like the Nissan Sentra and Chevy Malibu. That pulls your average coolness rating way down.
Conceptually: At the core of coolness is a lack of concern whether other people perceive you as cool. A station wagon is utilitarian and unprepossessing. It’s not pretending to be anything other than what it is. A wagon is by definition cool.
Good counter argument.
Volvo still sells a real wagon that doesn’t require the “Cross Country” or “All Road” or whatever Mercedes calls their lift and plastic fender package. Unfortunately the V60 Recharge is pretty expensive ($72k) since it is a PHEV and basically their Polestar model. Otherwise the V60 and V90 Cross Country are still around, but they are bordering on cross-over if you ask me. Wonder how many they sell when the XC60 and XC90 are arguably better looking in my opinion since they don’t have the plastic crap on them.
Oh, this is just BS hipster logic. If it’s cool, it can’t be cool anymore.
I like what I like, and I don’t care how many others like it. I love wagons, because they’re awesome. I also love scooters, and I don’t care how many people laugh at me for that. I have nothing to prove to anybody.
That said, I dig a good sedan too. But this what is and what isn’t cool stuff? I genuinely do not care one bit.
For many years I lived in the exurbs and I had mercedes wagons and it was good. I carried bikes without taking off the front wheel, band gear, all the thing. Then I moved to the a big city and had to street park them and it was less good. Every time I parked I had to remove anything visible which gets really annoying after a while. So for that reason and others now I mostly drive sedans, trunks are nice. Especially those on 80-90’s german sedans, they don’t have trunk releases from the cabin so the trunk is pretty much a vault. Plus a w124 sedan has a very low coefficient of drag.
You have it all wrong, 4 door coupes are what are cool, not sedans; just as 4 door shooting brakes are cool, not wagons… /s?
As a 6’2″ guy who has a kid I have tried to either sit in modern sedans which all have heavily sloping rears or get my kid into one in a car seat. Result is the same, cut yourself in half and try to roll in or bash your skull open. I love old coupe sedans because they are silly but now every sedan tries it which makes the back seat unusable for anything bigger than your groceries.
Matt – I could get into the “Prove Me Wrong” concept for a column… but starting one based on coolness of a body style? Seems almost “UnAutopian.” And by that I mean that this site seems to be refreshingly “transportation positive” – emphasizing the common threads that tie the community together. Why go all divisive?
And any dog owner can tell you wagons are _way_ cooler than sedans.