By Robert Emslie
Shooting brakes. That’s the fancy-pants way to describe the two-door wagon. People who call them that also refer to cockroaches as water beetles while they slam a palm down on them scuttling across the kitchen counter. Like I said, fancy-pants.
These days most wagons – that is what few there are, thanks Ass-UVs – are almost all four doors and a hatch. Sure, there’s sudo-due porte cars like the VW Golf and Volvo C30, but really, they aren’t real wagons. Two-door wagons used to be as common as cat shit in a kindergarten sandbox, with cars such as the Pinto, Vega, Corolla and Fiat 128 representing for the team. And it wasn’t an invention of the seventies either, two door wagons go back to the dawn of time, the first being based on a family-targeting velociraptor, however perhaps the most famous was the Chevy Nomad. The ’55 edition of that car totally gives me wood, something I can’t say about all those Vegas and Pintos and such.
And maybe that’s because two-door wagons are – dare we say it – lame? Wagons are all about utility, and only having a single door per side is pretty limiting as far as getting to your stuff. But maybe they make up for that by being sporty, you know, the original sport utility? Yeah, not so much for most that have been foisted on the wagon-buying public. The last two-door wagon that I can even remember being introduced was VW’s Brazilian-built Fox, and that thing was about as sporty as government cheese, and about as appealing.
So what do you think, are two-door wagons a pent up market just waiting for the right car to come along? Or, have they always just sucked?
Image source: [gallery.diecast.org]
Jeff Glucker
I think part of the popularity of 2 door wagons in the 1950s and 1960s at least was as family vehicles. The thinking back then was kids were safer in the back of a two door than the back of a four door. You didn't have to worry about them opening a door and falling out, remember this is before anyone used seat belts, let alone car seats. The 2 door wagon offered more space than a coupe so it found a market. Now with the average child seat requiring everything short of a helmet, nomex suit, and HANS device, you need that rear door to strap junior in like he is ready to rocket down the Mulissane (sp?) straight.
I'm sort of surprised that someone hasn't tried a wagon with rearward opening half doors like the old Saturn coupes or an extended cab pickup truck.
Sadly, for the most part,even the 2-door SUV has gone by the wayside.
I daily drove my first Ramcharger until right before my kid was born. I got another one last October, and it shares in the daily driver rotation.
My kid is now too old for a booster seat, but not old enough to sit in a seat "protected" by airbags. Fortunately, the Ramcharger is airbagless, so he usually sits up front, where he uses a three-point belt, instead of using the lap belt in the rear. I usually have the rear seat folded, and if I need to go somewhere with my wife or other additional passengers, we grab the keys to something with more doors.
For the most part, I missed out on the strap-the-kid-into-a-car-seat-in-the-back-of-a-2-door experience, except for the Eldorado (which has huge doors, a drop top, and a big seat) and the Typhoon (which I aquired after he was old enough to handle his own booster seat duties), though in both of those cases, I still had the option of using the airbagless passenger seat.
I do think safety seat regulations killed most 2-doors.
Ramcharger rant rescue.
Two-door wagons for the most part were also the ultimate cheapos in a US maker's lineup – sold alongside the fleet specials and business sedans. However, for some reason, Ford decided to make all of its 1949 to 1951 wagons two-doors.
Right, so I assume that by drool you mean "make me sleepy," and not, "my mouth is wide open and I am drooling with lust," correct?
Personally, I like 2 door wagons. Not as much as I like the full blown 4 door, but I think they are cooler than 3/4 of the crossovers/suvs out there.
I experienced the same confusion over drool. It immediately made me think of Homer Simpson drooling with his mouth hanging down making that funny strangle-y noise over something he covets. And I covet many 2 door wagons. And they're cool too.
Pintos, Vegas, Fiats and their ilk are sorta cool. This is cooler…
<img src="http://fabert.supercarburant.com/public/eventer_3.jpg"width=500>
That's the second time in two days that I've seen one of these. I need to go do something less exciting now…
Two-door family cars are probably a non-starter in the mass market these days, and wagons have been killed in what seems like a decades-long marketing effort to make minivans and then SUV's sound cooler than they are for suburban two-kids-and-a-dog families, but the old two-door longroofs are MOST cool.
Of course they're cool. And I'd expand the category to include panel deliveries. Kind of the original tall wagon…
Looks-wise, two-door wagons are cool, but utility-wise, they're drool.
Very much WANT.
<img src="http://i35.photobucket.com/albums/d165/jeff0547/2dr_sport_wagon_1965.jpg" width="500">
http://www.themusclecarplace.com/the-buick-club-o…
Yea, I know it's not production, but it's still about the ginchiest 2-door I've ever seen. Gets me a bit squirmy in my belly…
Me, too. Your pic compelled me to find the above link, in the hope that it was production.
I've posted that same pic and was about to google the Sportwagon again, but low and behold!
Pent up market? Um, no. You can't even sell a 2-door sports coupe to most people nowadays; a 2-door wagon? Fugedaboudit.
…Even though I personally think 2-door wagons were tasty right down to the final bite…
<img src="http://static.howstuffworks.com/gif/vehicle-pictures/1993/volkswagen/fox/90606081990002-480.jpg">
Exactly. Diesel-RWD-manual wagons are apparently the finest possible driving machine. Take away two doors worth of access, and suddenly they are even more appealing!
Still, stretch a Volvo C30 out just a little more… That thing has a beautiful shape.
Mmm, agreed. The trick with a two-door wagon is to use longer doors from a coupe – my Volvo 740 wagon would be useless with no rear side doors, but if the front ones were several inches longer and the seats folded forward, it'd be all kinds of perfect. (It's already rear-drive, and it really would be better with a five-speed…)
I have owned 3 a 88 VW Fox, a 77 Corolla Liftback KE50 and a 68 VW Squareback loved them all I say cool.
I saw a shorted 55 Chevy yesterday in SF (license plate 55SHRTY) and took a shot on my iphone. If I was more tech savy I'd post the shots but sadly I am not. Any help so I can show the coolness I saw yesterday?
can't really help you with that phone thing but I can post this 57 I saw up in the Arkansas Ozark Mountains a couple years ago.
<img src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-m2NtwTFuz_Y/TZOWmJJCY8I/AAAAAAAAPD4/bEW2ouz6UlA/s1600/roadtrip11+079.jpg" width = 500 end>
Many people don't even know that you could still get a 2dr wagon in the Chevelle line until 1965. They looked good too!
<img src="http://www.cars-on-line.com/47500/64chev47583-2.jpg" a="">
Some people have turned the slightly curvier 1966 and 1967 Chevelles into two-door wagons. I think GM missed an opportunity here – imagine a Chevelle SS 396 or Pontiac GTO "Sportwagon".
<img src="http://www.cleancutcreations.com/_images//ch25jl.jpg" width=400>
I certainly did not. And now I shall be on the lookout. Looks like you could fit a sheet of plywood in the back of that thing. And haul it to the drag strip for some fun.
Cool. Perhaps not as useful/roomy as a full-size wagon and not as efficient as a little hatchback, but the two-door wagon usually presents a little of both in a very attractive package. My favorite is probably the P1800ES in terms of looks, though I suppose it qualifies more as a shooting brake.
BTW it's spelled pseudo. No one likes the spelling police but I wear my badge with pride.
Mercury made the only true American pillarless hardtop two-door wagon from 1957 to 1959.
<img src="http://assets.hemmings.com/story_image/119257-500-0.jpg?rev=1" width=500>
Not understanding why this would be pillarless. It shares a big ol' swoopy b-pillar with its GM bretheren.
Pillarless as in no frame around/between the door and quarter window glass…
A vehicle where the B-pillar doesn't connect to the roof, i.e. only the A- and C-pillars (and in the case of wagons, D-pillars) support the roof. Quite the misnomer, I know.
There is a retractable rear-side window immediately behind the doors and there are no fixed pillars between this glass and the door glass. The GM two-door wagons had the pillar immediately behind the door.
That's fantastic! I'd never seen a two-door example before. I knew about the period four-door hardtop wagons (Oldsmobile/Buick put one out, too, I believe) but this is just another level of awesome.
After seeing this picture I reached from the old wagon thread, I have decided that giant two door cars should always be fastbacks:
<img src="http://www.countryclassiccars.com/6652_4.jpg">
Wait til Fastback Friday..wink wink…nudge nudge…
I boggle at seeing a '60's car with MN plates that still has fenders… the last time I was in Minneapolis, I saw '90's and even '00's cars that were already succumbing to the tinworm, and it used to be easy to tell an MN used car from an ND or SD one just by checking the corrosion.
True SUVs are noting more then "NTWs" that go offroad. What's that you ask? well it's my way of calling them "Non-Traditional Wagons" so after all these years that the true wagon has been sort of remembered and produced in pretty low numbers, while we have had "SUVs" and "Crossovers" so the wagon's soul has never really died, just that it's original body style has gotten out of popularity. But trust me in the fact that I believe people will want better gas mileage then a SUV or Crossover can give them, and will slowly but surly come back to the car based traditional wagon. It's just only a matter of time.
P.S. My favortie classic wagon would have to be the Buick Caballero, and modern would be the 1990s Buick Roadmaster. Plus I like pretty much all wagons today as well.
[youtube cvuw6YyVyPE http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cvuw6YyVyPE youtube]
While very cool in a nostalgic sense, they would be a huge flop in today's market, IMHO. As you said, wagons are all about utility. Being able to carry Junior, Rover, the Misses and all the crap a family needs to survive for a day without the house is what the wagon draws. Even fat wagons…er, crossovers…realize this. By taking away two doors you reduce that utility.
I think a two door wagon in this market would be likened to the Aztek. Great in concept, but awful in reality.
It's getting hard to buy any two-door vehicle now a days.
I'll use a Ford in the mid 80's vs now to make the point:
1980's (7 cars):
Festiva (2-dr), Escort (2-dr and 4-dr), Tempo (2-dr and 4-dr), Mustang (2-dr), Probe (2-dr), Thunderbird (2-dr), and Crown Victoria (2-dr and 4-dr).
Current (1 car):
Mustang (2-dr)
Ah, but with all the variants, the Mustang could be considered at least 5 cars!
I can understand having fewer 2 doors. In general, Ford has fewer models. What I don't understand is why they only have 1. If I was Ford, I would be looking at a new Thunderbird and/or a luxury sport coupe in the Lincoln brand.
Y'know, in the mid-sixties, Ford showed a two-door shooting brake version of the Mustang. I imagine many of the commentators here would be all over that.
My favorite show-wagon was an unusual Dodge Charger pop-up wagon — it was a fastback hardtop whose roof could be lifted up, with D-pillars that then dropped down to support it. I imagine Allpar probably has pictures of it somewhere.
Or maybe it was a Ford. I'll have to dig up the old magazine article.
do the homework, you've peeked my interest!
You're thinking of the 1966-1967 Ford Magic Cruiser. The entire rear section folded down to make a full fastback. Ford seriously considered it for production but decided it would be too expensive.
<img src="http://i22.photobucket.com/albums/b314/emt471/CONCEPT%20CARS/1966FORDMAGICCRUISER-1.jpg" width=500> <a href="http://www.modelcarscience.com/magiccruiser.html” target=”_blank”>http://www.modelcarscience.com/magiccruiser.html
AWESOME! thank you!
I'm not sure that they do have fewer models. I'll do the math here…. using 1989.
1989 Cars (8): Festiva, Escort, Tempo,Probe, Mustang, Thunderbird, Taurus, Crown Victoria
1989 Trucks (6): Aerostar, Ranger, Bronco II, F-Series, Bronco, Econoline/Club Wagon
TOTAL: 14
2011 Cars (6): Fiesta, Focus, Fusion, Mustang, Taurus, Crown Vic (?)
2011 Crossovers (5): Transit Connect, Escape, Edge, Explorer, Flex
2011 Trucks (4): Ranger, F-Series, Econoline, Expedition
TOTAL: 15
I probably forgot some here and there, but at the least, it's very close.
I'd love a 2 door Focus….. still crossing my fingers that it might appear.
I agree, that a new Thunderbird would be cool, or at least one for Lincoln. What happened to the luxury sport coupe market???
Cool, cool and cool. My favorite configuration. The good looks of a coupe with the utility of a wagon. Nomads, Volvo P1800ES’s and the 1960 Rambler American 2-door wagon are among my top 10 favorite cars. A 3-door hatchback is sorta close, but no cigar. Let’s not even put ess-yu-vees into the equation… we’re talking car, not truck here.
Right now, from where I'm sitting, the two-door wagon I really want is this:
<img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4048/4704305420_9468199a0d.jpg" width=450>
It's a shame Ford never officially sold one, those RS2000 Estates that exsist are conversions of exsisting Escort saloons.
But oh my god do I ever want one.
Now, is the Mini Cooper Clubman a two-door wagon? (Well, let's pretend that suicide door isn't considered one…) Forget about the hip 'n trendy urban lifestyle branding of MINI; I think it's a nifty little car. Especially with those barn doors. Hell, I'll admit it; I really like the thing.
<img src="http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2193/2110522231_46059e0793.jpg" width="400">
Grr, robble robble third door on the wrong side for England, (where it's built) robble robble rhubarb etc.
It depends what you want to do with it. When Chevy started putting the half-doors on their extended cab pickups they initially had it on just one side, but it was on the driver's side on an S10 and the passenger side on a Silverado. They reasoned the S10 customer would be using it to toss stuff in the back, and the Silverado's door would be used for curbside passenger entry.
Me? I pretty much like every longroof ever made, 2 or 4 door. But for my personal longroof, I would prefer the four door version, preferably pillarless, although all of the 2 door models featured here are highly desirable. As I was reading down this comment section, a longroof similar to the Clubman mentioned came to mind. Maybe two doors on the passenger side and a 2 door sized driver's side door? Just don't call it a Pacer.
Sounds like the first-generation WIndstar's 'King Door' to me.
I would!
Let's not forget one of the best-looking, worst handeling, accelerating, stoping, and driving two-door wagons:
<img src="http://www.autofiends.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/03/square.jpg">
There are controversies about best looking.
<img src="http://www.oldbug.com/0br1.jpg">
I also would argue about "best looking", but my nominee is this…
<img src="http://www.cruisenewsonline.com/57PontiacSafariFeature-Top.jpg" width="500"/>
The 412 wagon was the best-looking of the ill-fated Type 4.
<img src="http://imagehost.vendio.com/preview/da/danschmitt/405071-5.jpg" width=400>
Two…Two…Two trunks in one![youtube 8Sb5I7MuoiM&feature=related http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8Sb5I7MuoiM&feature=related youtube]
I'm actually more of a sedan delivery guy. I have a strange fetish for cars that are really good at one thing. So I love commercial vehicles like panel vans(chevy G10 panel anybody?) and it kind of crosses over to wagons.
<img src="http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2432/3759934414_0c0af01699.jpg">
The small 2dr wagons like Escort Courier or the similar Opel Kadett made sense to me. The cargo area isn't so deep that you can still reach everything through the hatch. Those Chevy Nomads and Chevelles though… unless you're going to use it as a hearse, I just don't see why you'd make a car like that.
Way sweet Volvo! Reminds me of a PV544 on steroids. Oh and thanks for wishing me a happy birthday!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
I've never really figured out what this thing is. It's named a Coupe, but it really works more like a wagon…. a really small wagon.
<img src="http://i422.photobucket.com/albums/pp308/rexjenney/P3212417.jpg" border="0" alt="Photobucket">
And absolutely killer in the snow, if you don't get creamed by some dip-shit in a SUV. And then it really is a killer, it kills YOU!
It's a Honda AZ600, as you know, and since the backseat is useless, it makes a fairly usable "wagon" for its size.
You missed out on an AN600-based wagon/van in a Wisconsn-based collection on Bring a Trailer a couple years ago.
The Brazilians, God bless 'em, got to enjoy 2-door wagons a lot longer than we did, with the Chevy Opala Caravan being produced well into the 80's: <img src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_QYNlAfmyGs8/TEutKkyfkDI/AAAAAAAAA9w/mY4VMvWmblw/s1600/caravan_opala.jpg" width=500>
I think they are very cool, but except for Rambler two-door wagons, it's gotta be an import for me. Saab 95, natch. Subaru 360 wagon (not Sambar) and Fiat 500 (Topolino Belvedere and Nuova Giardinera), BMC 1100/1300 Countryman and Traveller, BMC Mini Traveller/Countryman, VW Squareback, Type 4 Wagon and Brasilia, Reliant Scimitar, Volvo 1800ES and Duett, early 70s Toyota Corolla Wagon, and many others. Let's not forget the VW Fox wagon either, I love those for some reason.
Two door wagons? Very cool. But I disagree for the most part that "shooting brake" is another name for a two door wagon, at least in the post war sense. A two door wagon is just that, a wagon with two doors. American models can still fit six people, there may have even been an option for a rear facing seat like the Saab 95 had. A shooting brake for post war cars is based off of a sports or sporty car and is a 2+2 at best, some were true 2 seaters. If you decommissioned the Jag-hearse from Harold and Maude you would have a shooting brake. And don't forget about sedan deliveries as opposed to panel trucks. Basically an even more basic 2 door wagon without side windows or a rear seat.
Very cool. I've had my '72 VW Squareback for 6+ years now & couldn't love it more for road trips, hauling stuff, etc. Admittedly I don't have kids & never have more than 1 passenger, so my back seat stays folded down & I have no problem getting to my stuff. I love it, although I do sometimes wish for a modern equivalent that was more mechanically reliable.
<img src=http://farm1.static.flickr.com/97/227221059_77e6034ae3.jpg>