4 Jun
2023
4 Jun
'23
12:50 a.m.
> Many companies make suitable vehicles, but NONE of
them are willing to call
> them "station wagons". If the Purchase Order explicitly specifies
"Station
> Wagon", then will the bureaucrats in purchasing let you substitute a
> "Variant", instead of a "Station Wagon"?
On Sun, 4 Jun 2023, Alexander Schreiber wrote:
So the Mercedes T model was (at least in Germany, the
manufacturers country)
never called a "station wagon" because that category name doesn't exist
there. The closest analogue to it in German parlance would be the "Kombi"
class of vehicles. Based upon the more numerous sedan models, but shaped
like a station wagon with a large rear door, a level trunk (usually)
and with the option of considerably expanding cargo space by folding
down the rear seats to provide a flat surface.
yes. a Kombi full of tapes hurtling down the highway.
And - since demand for that kind of vehicle never went
away - there are
still quite a few "Kombi" variants of common sedans. As for why "nobody
makes station wagons anymore, but something like it and calls it a
different name" - I get the impression that station wagons in the US got
a bad rap as "big and wasteful" vehicles. Which is hilarious when you
think about the SUV epidemic that happened (and seems to be getting
worse still) many years later and very much redefined "big and wasteful"
(aside from "silly and dangerous to use due to high center of gravity").
Although there EXIST a few [rare] situations where they are truly
appropriate, to me, most SUV's are the perfect example of "big and
wasteful".
Its most common usage around here is as a commuting vehicle for one, or at
most two people.
I will have to admit that the "station wagon" shape incurs a tiny hit on
aerodynamic efficiency vs a sedaan, but other than that, it dramatically
increases the capacity of a sedan. I always prefer a "station wagon" over
a sedan.
I find it comical that the American automotive industry deems the term
"station wagon" to almost be an obscenity, with "nobody would want to
admit to having one". They think that it represents "stodgy" and
"dull".
Consider the 1800ES model of the Volvo 1800.
My original comment was intended to be analogous to Tony (ARD)'s
comment about problem with "sneaker-net" due to "sneakers" being
unobtanium in UK. (yes, they do have some shoes that WE might consider to
be the same as "sneakers")
--
Grumpy Ol' Fred cisin(a)xenosoft.com