Third seat direction

Hey all,

I was wondering, were there any non-clamshell wagons that had a forward facing third seat?

I've been looking at those clams, and realizing that a forward facing third seat would really be great to have for families that have more than 2 kids, just for ease of entry/exiting.

The issue of course, is the weatherstripping/leaking issue that all clamshells seem to have.

So, is there a model that offers the front facing third seat that doesn't have the clam rear door?

 

If you were looking at clams, then your best bet would be the Buick Sportwagon (1964 to 1969) and Olds Vista Cruiser (1964 to 1972). Both had forward facing 3rd seats. If you want to go real old, some cars from the late 1950's have forward seats. Good luck.

 

Yup, as Bad Taten said, some late 50's GM wagons had front-facing third seats - specifically Olds and Buick for the '59/'60 model years. I believe Mercury for '59/'60 also had forward-facing third seats. Fords as well, as far back as '55 or so.

 

So, only clamshell wagons and the older ones had the forward facing third row, nothing newer?

 

Anything newer than a 1976 GM wagon would be, unfortunately, a mini van or a Suburban.

 

You've got the sideways facing seats in the big Fords and Mercurys from '65 through '91. Called "Dual-Facing Rear Seats" (DFRS). But no, no true forward-facing third seats in a (regular) wagon after '76. If you call a Chevy Suburban a station wagon, then you're in luck. They still have forward seats in those.

 

The problem is packaging. The VC and SportWagon positioned the third seat above the rear axle. That's why the roof is raised on those wagons. They also have 5" more wheelbase than their lesser sister wagons of the same years, to provide legroom for the third seat. The clamshell wagons were just gargantuan and thus had room for the forward facing seat.

 

The clams had to have the forward facingbrear seat, as the area normally filled with back seat was the hold for the tailgate when it was lowered. That created other packaging issues, so the clams had a totally different rear frame and suspension than the other body styles.

 

Well, according to the current Hemmings Classic Car, the 1960 Mercury full size wagons also had an optional forward-facing third seat. I'm guessing it was available in the neighboring model years as well.