The world has changed a lot in the 50 some years since this Bel Air wagon sagged down on its springs and undersized tires and hauled the family on vacation trips, to Little League games, and the weekly supermarket trip, which filled a good portion of the back with sacks of groceries. We’re not going to attempt to document all those changes here, but one of the biggest ones was the one-earner family with a passel of kids. And when it came time for long-suffering dad to figure out how to make his modest paycheck stretch far enough to buy a new family hauler, this is what was all-too often the answer.
When he pulled up in the driveway in the new Chevy Bel Air wagon, one modest step up from the poverty/skinflint-mobile Biscayne, a modest sigh of relief was to be heard from his kids. No, no Impala wagon with full wheel covers and at least a 327. But thanks god it wasn’t a Biscayne with the 230 six and a three-on-the-tree. A Bel Air; the modest middle, with a 283 and the inevitable Powerglide. A modest sigh of relief, maybe mixed in with a bit of excitement if the tired old car had been a Biscayne.
This great old original wagon was found and posted by nifticus392 at the Cohort, and hails from British Columbia. And given how much the Canadians back then tended to be thriftier (by necessity) than comparable-job Americans, perhaps there was some genuine enthusiasm from the kids after all.
Given the “Canada 1976” bumper sticker it probably served the original owners for…who knows how long. It all depends on just how thrifty good old dad was.
Note: a rerun of an older post.
I think the bumper sticker is celebrating the Montreal Olympic Games (of 1976).
Chevy wagons of that era had awkward taillight treatments compared to their sedan and hardtop counterparts, although ’66 was a bit of a wash. The rectangular lights were a bit heretical.
Nice to see a survivor, most wagons were driven right into the ground .
Sad it’s all rusty but that’s the Canadian way, snow & salt does it’s thing .
-Nate
Thanks to this site I remembered that cars used to be able to tow. These days a pickup or large SUV is needed.
Went with Dad to check out a mint condition 65 BelAir wagon around 1970. It was Turquoise 6 cylinder 3 speed manual with “Armstrong ” steering. Non PS was a deal breaker for Mom.She liked to be thrifty,but had her limits!
Dad had a 1965 Plymouth Fury II wagon with a 318 Torqueflite and power steering. Towed a 17 foot travel trailer with no problem.
For every vintage Corvette, SS-396 and Z28 you see at today’s car shows, tens of thousands of cars like this wagon were sold. Modestly equipped 6 cylinder Bel Airs and 283 Impalas with Powerglide filled neighborhood driveways all across America. It might be hard for us CC car enthusiasts to believe, but millions view motor vehicles merely as transportation appliances. They weren’t going to drive total penalty boxes, but frills were kept to a minimum.