7 wagons that are worth a lot more than their sedan and coupe siblings

[Hagerty]

There's a difference between station wagons and their sedan/coupe siblings, not only in the literal sense but also when it comes to values. Sometimes the value gap is negligible, and sometimes it's so eye-popping that it requires a double take.
https://www.hagerty.com/media/lists/7-wagons-that-are-worth-a-lot-more-than-their-sedan-and-coupe-si...

[cigarmerchant]

Audi Avant?

[Longroofjunkie]

Garde?

[Gary_Bechtold]

1961–64 Oldsmobile Super 88 sound interesting to me.

The CTS-V Wagon is one of those I loved driving the sedan and I love the wagon form but they have just become to pricey for me to consider. The interior / electronics are just so old and dated.

[nyudds82]

Love wagons! My first vehicle was a 1963 Pontiac Safari station wagon in high school. My garage queen for weekends is a 2006 Dodge Magnum SRT8! Going up in value everyday! Love wagons!

[PeterKarl]

The left lane of the Autobahn is dominated by wagons. Wagons are more aerodynamic than sedans and more functional than sports cars. Cadillac’s was inspired by them. Unfortunately, accepting the product manager job of a made-in-Detroit wagon is professional suicide. I love my black Volvo V60 AWD, and I hate the poor and unenforced lane discipline here.

[Longroofjunkie]

Yeah, I hear you on that.

We moved from the Detroit area to north of Denver.

The lane discipline out here is far better than back in Michigan.

People actually move out of your way. Amazing.

Very few LLBs.

Speed limit on Interstates is 75.

I drive about 85, and stay out of the way of the vehicles doing 90-100. Usually huge Pickups, Suburbans and Navigators, but that’s another subject.

Very few traffic stops.

[930Flachbau]

A friend of mine who owned a Jaguar XJR came across the Cadillac CTS-V wagon, same color as the one pictured, sitting on a used car lot. Curious to find out more, he asked to speak to a Sales Rep. on the specifics. The car was just a few years old and when my friend asked what the deal was on the "wagon", the rep quickly responded by saying; "Oh no, this is a Cadillac CTS-V Crossover."
We couldn't stop laughing how something that looks like a wagon, walks like a wagon and talks like a wagon, was now the trendy "Crossover" label.

[Longroofjunkie]

Yeah, they didn’t want to use the “W” word.

They also never say “minivan.” The kiss of death.

He should have bought it, especially if it was a stick!

[ShamrockRally]

I was expecting to see Volvo on this list, but in the 1800es form.

[Jim_K]

After reading all the comments all I can say is that you forgot to name every station wagon ever made regardless of the comparison in value to it’s coupe or sedan siblings.

[Longroofjunkie]

Absolutely.

All 8567 of them.

Does anyone read the article, or just look at the pictures, like looking at a Playboy?

[Squirlz]

Too bad Hagerty refused to cover my CTS-V Wagon a few years ago. Took my business to Grundy instead.

[pyasher]

They cover mine... 2012 with 15K miles...

[Longroofjunkie]

They refused? Or you didn’t like the price?

Why would they refuse it?

[Squirlz]

No idea what they were thinking.  Never got a price, they simply would not cover a Wagon.  They were fine with any dime-a-dozen coupe however.

[Darold]

Hey there @Squirlz ! I'm sorry to hear that we were not able to accommodate the V at that time. Our guidelines have since changed and the CTS-V wagon is certainly a vehicle we could offer coverage on if everything else checks out. If you would like to shoot me a DM I would be happy to see what we can do now.

[Squirlz]

That's okay.  You had your chance.

[Pauliejr]

The E63 Amg Wagon

[Longroofjunkie]

Oh yeah. Oh baby, oh baby!

Occasionally one of those will pop up on Bring a Trailer. And sell for big money.

I think they just don’t have data for vehicles like that.

[Studenorton]

Sorry, did anybody mention it? It wasn't just "room for kids"; in the great age of the station wagon, they had X-member reinforced frames that would put modern small-truck frames to shame. A local garage door maker had a standing deal with a dealership, to buy any DeSoto wagon that came in on trade, to be fitted with racks and used as a commercial truck. They got off-roaded a lot, and the teensy hemi got good mileage.

[terryjudd]

I would think the 1991-96 Buick Roadmaster Estate wagons are more sought after than their siblings. Also include the 1956-57 Rambler Cross Country hardtop wagons, the 1958 Packard wagons (only 159 were produced), AMC Eagle wagons, Studebaker R2-powered Wagonaires, and the 1958 Edsel Bermuda wagons. I suspect Buick Sport Wagons and Oldsmobile Vista Cruisers are equally popular and are fetching big bucks.

[mbr2000]

Our 1980 Volvo 240 was one of the best cars we've ever owned, and quite advanced compared to American cars. It had a 2.1 liter OHC engine with Bosch fuel injection and 4-wheel disc brakes. Also a 4-speed manual trans with electric overdrive.

It handled really well, and not just for a wagon. But whenever I mentioned that to a friend, I got laughed at! And the handling got even better after around 50K miles when I installed KYB shocks and 70-series tires. The only downside was the engine was a little lame on anything more than moderate climbs. You certainly couldn't use OD in the mountains, and sometimes had to keep it in 3rd gear. The turbo engine would have solved that, but it wasn't available in 1980.

[Rebel67]

Long live the long roofs!

[Longroofjunkie]

Amen to that.

[Beanie1970]

We had a 2012 Acura TSX wagon a few years back. It was one of the finest vehicles I've ever driven. Agile, quick, handsome and always seemed to start a conversation. They only made them for 2 years I believe. My wife was hit in an intersection by a coffee drinking, cell phone using thirty-something and it was considered totaled by the insurance company. It was a 4 cylinder but drove much quicker. It was a rare care and even more rare with the 6 cylinder. I miss that car. To me, pretty much all wagons are cooler than sedans and a lot of coupes.

[Longroofjunkie]

Didn’t even know those existed, and I’m a wagon freak. Cool.

[RallyRaid]

Based on the above comments, I think a lot of responders have misread the name of the article as “The only 7 wagons that are worth a lot more than their sedan and coupe siblings”, or “interesting wagon variants that exist”.
The list isn’t meant to be conclusive or exhaustive, and the BMW/Peugeot/Saab you own/like hasn’t been excluded via some Hagerty conspiracy.

[Longroofjunkie]

Yeah, like 90% of commenters…..

But they didn’t include my 1947 Tatra wagon, dammit.

[MattLaube]

I have a rusty-ish Ca emissions (smaller AT, goofy Air cleaner and turbo set up) 85 300TD with 315 K, that has been in most of the 48 states and a great deal of the Canadian provinces. . My son has a 91 MB w124 wagon with under 200k and he just added a 92 BMW 114 k ( non Vanos engine ) wagon to the fleet. I wonder if it will go up in value like the Benzes ? The BMW will be getting a 5 speed swap as the GM junk Auto tranny is going south. I'm sure many will find that POS transmission sacrilege!

[DT]

They said They would tell us The King Of The Hill. That has to be The Ford Woody of any year. Isn't it the most popular Woody ever made ????

[plank]

Guess you'd have to ask Clark Griswold DT

[DUB6]

   Well, he just said "7 wagons", not the "best 7" or the "most valuable 7" - just 7.  And yep, there are 7 there, I counted them.  So all of us who are demanding that a certain other wagon "belongs on the list" are either pleading that he should have titled it with a larger number than 7, or that our choices to go on his list are better for some reason.  Pretty subjective, for sure.

   Having said that, I'm going to just say that if I were making a list of my favorite wagons, I would put the best one I owned - a '64 Chevelle 2-door wagon.  Pretty rare, but no idea how many they produced.  Don't really care anyway.  I liked it.  Also no idea if one today would be more valuable than a 2-door coupe or sedan.  Don't care.  I had one and I liked it.

   Please don't shoot at me because I didn't pick a Ford or a Pontiac or a Vista Cruiser wagon.  I'm not trying to claim that the '64 Chevelle 2-door wagon is the best ever made.  All I'm sayin' is that I decided to make a list of "1 wagon that owned once and that I really liked and would still like to this day if I had it back".  Agree with my list or disagree with it - I don't care about that either!  😆

[Longroofjunkie]

Also, it’s not just “seven wagons.”

It’s the seven wagons that bring the highest premium over their equivalent sedan.

[DUB6]

Actually, @Longroofjunkie, it's not.  The title is "7 wagons that are worth a lot more than their sedan and coupe siblings".  It says that these are 7 that, in "#2 (Excellent) condition values are significantly higher than sedans and coupes of the same model".  Nowhere, in my reading of it, does it make the claim that these 7 "bring the highest" anything.  It not only does NOT say "the highest premium", it doesn't even say these are the only 7 that might bring significantly higher value.  It just says, in essence, that here are 7.  Yes, you may identify more that could bring more.  Yes, you could possibly even find some that bring more than these 7.  But what you can't do is claim that the article says things that it doesn't.

[BrentF]

The Don Magas restored '66 Corvair Lakewood wagon recently sold for some $70,000. Worth every penny!

[BrentF]

Typo:. Meant to say '61 Corvair Lakewood.

https://rmsothebys.com/en/auctions/mo21/monterey/lots/r0119-1961-chevrolet-corvair-lakewood-700-cust...

[Rider79]

All of these are cool wagons, and almost all really ARE cooler than the sedan and coupe counterparts (if not the convertible versions).

I always wondered why they Corvair wagon was dropped so soon. Poor sales? Competition from the Nova wagon? It is much cooler-looking than the rather plain two-door sedan, or the dowdy-looking four-door sedan.

[DUB6]

Ever watch Matt's Off-Road Recovery videos on YouTube, @Rider79?  They have something they call the MORRvaire, which is bodied with a Corvair Wagon.  Quite a vehicle!  I tend to agree with you that the wagon was the best-looking Corvair, but it kinda ties with the drop-side van/pick-up thingy, whatever they called it.  Those were neat also.  There's a guy here locally with one that has a 421 Pontiac mounted in the bed...

[Longroofjunkie]

Isn’t that a pickup, though?

Super-cool, but not a wagon.

[DUB6]

Yep, it is.  But unlike several others who've posted here, I wasn't recommending that it be added to the list of wagons.  I was merely talking to Rider79 and comparing how much I liked the Corvair wagons and the pickup.  Pretty simple, if you read it right.

[HDC01751825]

I'd like to add another nice bunch of longroofs: BMW 3 Series E30, 1980s-90s; E46 1990s-2000s; E91 2006-2011, F31 2012–?. All lovely; I have a 2011 E91 328iT wagon. BMW has offered wagons in the 5 Series too. #Superduty mentions the E91, plus the next-gen F31 2012–?. In other markets, BMW calls these wagons Touring. Wish I could add a photo of my lovely 2011 E91 Touring; it's heaven on wheels.

[Snailish]

The article has a very clear filter applied to it that many of the comments are missing:

These are wagons (shooting brake/estate/etc.) that the auction data Hagerty has shows a significant discrepancy in the values to whatever they are directly comparing it to in the lineup.

North American wagons were often the top of the line of a brand's entire lineup... in a logical world they should be worth more if other factors were not at play.

Nostalgia and hitting the age of being able to buy it (i.e., the wagon the parents had in 78) has fueled the 70s-90s SUV, truck and wagon boom.

Nomad should have been obvious as those have always had high value. How about the not rare in the day 210-Del Ray-Bel Air wagons?

Volvo has a cross generational and different demographic following built on years of a cult following. This has only snowballed as hot rodders have gained interest. Helps that they were built like tanks.

The Oldsmobile era in the article is odd... Vista Cruiser era would have been the guess.

The Dodge Magnum and GM B-Body siblings probably deserve a better unpacking of the variables. I would think Magnums retain their value very well compared to average spec Chargers and 300s --is the data removing the halo Hellcats, scat packs, mopar editions and such from the math as they surely skew the auction data (more of them would be listed than the % of the total model production they actually are)?

[JSD13]

What about those cool GT versions of many brands. Thinking BMW 2002 GT, MGBGT?

[BULLITT65]

The 64-65 Chevelle 2 door wagons might also fit this trend.

[DUB6]

As mentioned in my post below.  Had a '64 and loved it.

[jelliott]

Why are we limiting the Volvo to ‘81+? Do the older wagons not bring any more money than their sedan/coupe counterparts? Seems hard to believe that the trend cited here wouldn’t apply across the whole production run.

And, like several other commenters, I'm surprised not to see any BMWs here; I can think of several rare 5-series variants (e.g. E34 530 V8) of which so few wagons were built that they almost certainly go for more than equivalent sedans.

[DUB6]

Sounds to me like all you need to do is plow through the research to prove your thesis and write your own article!  You know, like Jeff did...

[DUB6]

Hey Jeff, why don't you write a follow-up article of "The 16,327 wagons that were worth at least a dime more than their sedan or coupe counterparts throughout history", and include every darned example of every wagon that has EVER sold for more money than ANY sedan?  That ought to satisfy everybody!  Go ahead, get started - we'll wait...

[IneffableIndsty]

Was it only the 1961-64 Oldsmobile wagons that fall into this category? Buick and Pontiac wagons are basically the same. Maybe there isn’t a large enough value gap between Buick and Pontiac wagons and their stablemates since they include the GTO and the Riviera. I’ll bet Ford Country Squires and Mercury Colony Parks are rising fast too.

[IneffableIndsty]

Also Chrysler Town & Country wagons. Especially the four-door hardtop versions from 1960-64 and even the fuselage versions from 1969-73.