What were the dangers and design flaws (if any) of pre 1970 station wagons?

I would like to address your post, Martin, but I forgot what it said....I have brain damage from sniffing carbon monoxide in my wagon.

 

As a kid, I loved riding in the third seat of the family's 59 kingswood wagon. Yes, exhaust comes through the open rear window but worse is all the road dust that comes in with it!
I've never been able to completely seal exhaust smells out of ANY wagon or van I've had, even closed up. Roll one window down and it's even worse! The 91 wagons are the first that haven't had these problems!

 

The video was great but...

Aside from the fumes issue and I don't remember being fumed out of any of my parents GM cars there are many more issues.

1. Prior to 1967 there were no dual circuit brakes.
2. Prior to 1967 no collapsable stearing columns.
3. Prior to 1969 no shoulder harnesses.

An who knows when cars were designed with collapsable front ends making the passenger compartments safer.

Not to mention modern glass, good suspensions and brakes that actually stop a car in less than 200 feet from 60.

OMG! I'm surprised I survived....

 

Yeah....aren't we all lucky we made it!? TB...those issues were true of all cars of that era, I believe...not just wagons. Am I wrong?

Considering this whole topic...Wagons were based on the sedans so I don't see any huge dangerous flaws that could be pinned on the wagons specifically. It's true that cars in general got safer as time went on, but, I believe that year for year, the wagon was not plagued with any more serious flaws than the sedans of the same era.
EDIT:
Also...I'm not sure that the new collapsible designs of today would have saved Meulmani's life like this 'ol body on steel frame wagon did. Head on with a truck.

 

Oh I agree. I lost my head (not from fumes). I was just going on about safety in general. But on a wagon note what about all the loose stuff in the way back that won't stay there in a wreck. That's something I just thought about. The cooler full of drinks the suitcases, lawn chairs and cement blocks from the home center. Car stops, gear doesn't until it passes through the windshield.

 

Those are good points, TB. Seriously. There is documentation of those kinds of accidents with lethal results. I believe I remember one that DID have cement blocks kill someone by flying into the back of his head. I remember another with stacked steel angle iron that I believe may have been lethal. I, PERSONALLY, have had objects hit me during emergecy stops.
Maybe that's the problem the carbon monoxide and all those emergency stops.........

 

my wife usually complains of a surfboard wacking her in the back of the head ...i wouldn't know anything about that though!

 

I guess she hasn't yet correlated how hard you hit the brakes with how hard she gets hit in the back of the head with how much she pissed you off!

 

shhhhhh!

 

"Princess Silverfox" got a nice ring to it...never really imagined you had this much hair, but nice forum with the leap...caused by the fumes perhaps.


No exhaust issues with my Fannie...that doesn't sound quite right What I mean to say is I haven't noticed fumes in the cargo area of my stationwagon as yet!

 

I learned that modifying the exhaust from factory in a wagon can cause fumes to enter all the way up to the dash.
I installed duals with the tips exiting straight back.
Big mistake.
So strong it watered up my eyes and had to pull over and roll up the rear window.
I had to get the tailpipes cut and relocated to the sides.
Now I can drive with the rear window down at any speed and not smell any harsh fumes.
My car also ahs the rear spoiler and it works more with the window up and clears the rain off the glass.
BEFORE

AFTER

 

LMAO....OH sh**...guess I have to also.

I put dual exhaust on my 80 Colony and over nite out old, old German Shep went nuts driving in town trying to get in the front seat with us. First day on the highway with the new exhaust I had the rear window down ond holy crap, the funes were insane. I had moved the origonal exhaust location for the tail pipes. Old school mechanic told me to screw the looks and put them where ther were/should be from the factory. I did that and never a fume inside the wagon again, our old Shep Apollo hung out the back window like before.

 

Carbon monoxide is odorless. You don't smell much 'exhaust smell' on newer cars because they've cleaned up a lot of the other bad stuff out of it to a grear degree. The carbon monoxide it still there though - just maybe not as potent.

Frankly, I am amazed that meulmani made it out of this accident without serious injuries. This was a seriously hard impact. When you shove a cowl back enough to buckle the roof like that, it's bad. When this Colony Park was designed, it was designed to resist crushing - shock-absorbing bumpers, mild steel perimeter frames, etc. These days, the vehicles are designed to sacrifice themselves to save the occupants. High-strength unitized construction, controlled crush zones, multiple air bags, etc. In spite of Meulmani getting out OK from this one, I'll still take a modern vehicle over one of these in a collision.