how 1 wagon changed my taste in cars.

To All, up until i bought my current wagon ( 1987 Crown Vic LTD ) I have my whole life always had to have a current cool coupe or convertible, believing that looks were much more important than either comfort or practicality. Man, did I ever have an eye opening lesson! I spent almost 5 months looking for just the right wagon when I realized that the list of features that I made that the car I was looking for had to have could only be found in a wagon. I lucked out big time, when I stumbled apon quite by accident, my 63,000 mile, near showroom condition 24 year old example that let's just say, basically sat in a garage for most of it's life until the retired couple used it for their winter snow-bird migration. What get's me surprised is just how much I really enjoy actually driving this car! I cant quite put a finger on it, but I find myself making excuses just to go out and drive it! The comfort in my diseased joints cannot be described, when I drove my rag-top, I was in pain every mile! And the overall feel through the "seat of the pants" is fantastic. I even love looking over that long styled hood as I go down the highway, surprised that even at 65 it is really getting 22-24 MPG! You want to know the one thing that really shocks me?
I, on average, every time I go into Billings (Montana's largest city) I get at
least 2 compliments on her from all age brackets of men AND women! Just
last Wednesday, I was in line for a "ride through touch free" carwash (as it
has a underside cleaning option to wash off the built up road salt from our
winter roads) the young cute 20 something cashier said, "Wow, what a cool old car!", my response was, "it's just an old car" then she said, " Yeah, but
it's a NICE COOL old car! and I just love old cars that have been taken great care of" So, even though I still don't quite understand as to just why I get so much enjoyment when driving her, I'm just going to keep enjoying it, and even start to look for another wagon, maybe a GM model next, if I
can ever find one with low miles, and that has had very good maintenance,
and still looks good, for a reasonable price. I anyone in this forum know's what has happened to me to have such a drastic change of taste on cars
just from driving this one wagon, let me know what has happened to my brain! LOL
Glenn Montanaghost Merideth

 

M-Ghost, An nice intro. It'z like this Me Thinkest. Vertz an Rodz iz like belly buttonz, EVERYBODY GOTZ ONEGood Long Roofz iz not so common and theyz way cool Can you still go like H*** on the Big Sky roadz az long as it'z reasonable and prudent or did your legislatorz mess that up? Next time you're in White Hall say Hi to Neal Freman Jer

 

Is 1987 really old?

 

You've got wagonitis!! Yea, bigbarney is right you just don't see very many even tho they are not that old. The nice thing about them is that you can keep them nice but still use them if needed, plus you can still afford one (at least the ones in the 80s). Like today I have to make a Home Depot run and will take the wagon. If it was snowing the trip would be cancelled cause I won't take it with salt on the roads. Is yours an everyday driver? Sounds like a nice wagon.

 

yes, it is a daily driver, in fact, as my post said, I even make excuses for reasons to "need" to go into town, just to get to drive it! I live 8 miles out of town on the same ranch I grew up on, so even just a short trip is 16 miles. And, as another person posted, "is an 87 really old?" Well, that's 24 years, and in my opinion, any vehicle that is over 20 years is an old vehicle in these days when the average person buys a new car every 4.5 years(hence the hundreds of 2010/11 used cars in the paper every day)
I guess the jist of what I was saying, now that I have had a chance to think over what I posted, is that pre-90's cars just seem to have so much more "personality" to them, and were still styled in such a way that apon first sight, you KNEW who made it. Where today's cars all seem to look the exact same! (except for 5% like the new mustang/charger/camaro/300/etc.

 

is an 87 really that old?

yes, in my personal opinion, a 24 year old car has already gone past the average life time of most garden variety cars, and in Montana, any car that reaches 25 years old qualifies for an "historic" license plate! In fact, any car that is 11 model years old can have a "permanent" plate purchased, where
you never need to ever pay another tax or fee and get a permanent plate
for the rest of that cars useful life. I plan on getting one next December when the current plate expires, which gives me about 10 months to come up with a cool personalized plate. Don't forget my friend, the actual condition and very low miles that I found a 24 year old wagon in too!
Montanaghost. PS: If you are ever out here in Montana anywhere near the Billings area, I have given many a guided tour of the Park, and the Beartooth Pass to many a forum made friend. Just send me a post asking for an email.

 

I remember driving my dad's '69 Galaxie 500 (2-door) back then. I was amazed with how 'disconnected' it felt. It seemed when you turned the wheel, it took a second or two for the front end to literally keel over and start to turn - a real boat. Then, years later when I drove one of the 'modern' big Fords for the first time (a '83 Grand Marquis that I had rented..) I was pleasantly surprised with how solid and stable it felt - way different from that old boat I remembered.

 

Now you gotta post pics!!

 

your drive in that 83 grand marque is pretty much the same as driving my 87 crown vic
as they are the same car, just a different grill, so you know quite well what I have been saying.

 

I do have some pics posted, but here is a better look, in my photobucket site, in the sub album titled "pics of Montana and other stuff" on that albums front page.
http://s481.photobucket.com/albums/rr176/montanaghost/pics of Montana and other stuff/

 

M-Ghost, I could not agree with you more! Post-90's cars seem so disposable nowadays. With all the computers on board too ~ and considering how fast computer technology "ages"~ I often wonder if there will be new generations of collectable cars. Pre-90's cars truly have style and personality... and that is underscored by the STATIONWAGON.

Thanks for joining us! I think you'll find just about everyone here can appreciate what you described in your intro. Good luck in your search. While I am less familiar with Fords (I grew up with Chevrolets), I would of course with bias recommend trying a GM wagon as well.

 

I have already decided to acquire, over the next 24-36 months, a couple more late 60's through late 80's wagons, as long as I am able to come across them in about the same condition and care that this one had and was in. One of them, I am hoping, will be a 70's model GM wagon, which of course could be either a Chevy or Buick, or Oldsmobile. the third one, I am thinking whether or not Chrysler made any wagons even worth consideration. The other option for the third one would be my dream cars, which is either a 69 big block Chevy Kingswood Estate, or a 69 big block Country Squire. AND, although these next one's are not wagons, they are never the less cars that I would LOVE to have! 1) 73 Grand Prix type J 2) 73-75 Monte Carlo, and a mid 70's Chrysler Cordoba, Fully Optioned out with the "Corinthian Leather" and 400 engine!

 

Thats a nice wagon!



Nice tip on the LT tire size, I run LT's on my Buick

 

Fat Teddy, words cannot begin to describe my thanks for you posting that pic of my wagon! I only wish that it could have been taken (the picture) when the ground wasn't covered in snow, so that the rear wheels and sides of the car could have looked as good as they do when just washed! Since you had to have taken it from my photobucket link, you had to also have seen the interior, it's condition, and the gauge package mounted just above the switch for the tailgate window. The only thing I would warn every one considering the switch to the LT265/75R15 tires is that after you do, your speedometer, being driven off the top of the transmission, will be 12MPH off (a 53 MPH reading on the speedo equals 65MPH road speed) at ANY speed. Another item that should also be considered has a good and a bad side. The LT tires are over 2 inches taller than the stock 2 options, which actually gives your wagon a fairly taller final drive ratio, which causes it to loose quite a bit of pulling power in the hills, but on the other side of the coin, in flat land driving, it will increase your fuel economy by 3-4
MPG! The LT tires were on my car when I bought it, and there is still 50% of the tread left, but when it does come that time, I will be switching back to 215/70R15 tires, quite possibly Bridgestone Touring all season tires, as around this country, one spends more time in the hills than on flat roads, and I do have to shift in and out of OD many times a trip! OK, now for a question, what would any of you with the needed knowledge give for a tip for getting a little more power out of it's EFI 302? Is there a chip? better intake manifold ?, exhaust system tips?, ETC...? I can also be reached @
glenn.merideth@gmail.com, and would love to exchange ph #'s for a good older car discussion. (I also restore older motorcycles as well!)

 

I see in your sig pic, your old early 60's Chevy (or was it a GMC?) WELL, since you were already in my photobucket site once before, here is another link with pics of my 66 Chevy deluxe long box fleet side with a rebuilt 283 that only has a couple thousand miles on it, and I will be posting it on craigs list for selling it to someone that will restore it back to it's full glory. If you do look, you might notice how pretty much the whole front grill is chrome!
http://s481.photobucket.com/albums/...s of Montana and other stuff/#!cpZZ4QQtppZZ20