What do we want? WAGONS! When do we want them? NOW!
We should really add this to the list of things being protested these days. All we have to do is pick a major city, and walk down the street shouting what we want! That should work, right? Or we can write a strongly worded letter, pleading the Government to give everyone the right to choose whether we want our cars car in a boring, 4 door configuration or a sensible, sleek, sporty wagon! I demand to talk my local representative!
Thankfully it hasn't come to that point yet... or else there would be even more people standing on the road, where cars are supposed to be! But automakers have finally begun to listen and realize that Canada (Despite what some Americans may think) is a separate country from our-our Southern neighbours and has very different preferences when it comes to our cars.
A few carmakers have begun to take note and expand the number of wagons in their offering. Mercedes announced plans back in February 2016 that they would introduce the new C-Class wagon, would be available in Canada and not the US. The only trim available would be the C300d 4MATIC, powered by a turbo diesel four-cylinder that generates 200 hp and 369 lb-ft of torque, powering all 4 wheels. However since the initial release, they have been relatively silent, some skeptic’s even saying that the Canadian-bound Benz will no longer be making it to our market. Which would be disappointing as the C-Class offers a more affordable luxury wagon, especially when compared to its older brother, the newly redesigned E-Class wagon, which starts at around $70K.
Thankfully other automakers continue to bring new wagons to North America. VW has announced their new Golf Alltrack which starts priced from $35,295 almost $12K more than their currently Golf Sportwagon with its $23,000 starting price. Audi for many years has offered the A4 All Road, which starts at $47,600 (almost $10K more than the regular A4 sedan) and we can only pray that one day Audi will bring over the RS6 Avant. If you are looking for a sleeker German wagon necessary built to go off-road BMW has for some time offered its 3 Series with the “touring” configuration, and though it has gotten better looking over the years (this year is one of the best), it would be much appreciated to have another sleek German competitor in the luxury market.
All is not lost though as the Swedes have seeming taken the note to our demand for wagons the most by bringing a total offering of 4 different options across 2 models. The brand new V90 gets the full Volvo makeover and offers a top line interior starting at $60,000 pay an extra $2,000 and you can get the more rugged V90 Cross Country, with the similarly raised body, and matte plastic wheel arches as the Audi All Road, and VW Alltrack. Their second offering is the V60 which has had a mild facelift, as well as interior upgrades. It starts at $40,000 and the cross country version puts and additional $5K into those plastic wheel arches and raised ride height.
We have more or less given up on the Americans making a wagon, as their past attempts with the Dodge Magnum were abysmal at best. Even writing this article I could not find a true American made station wagon unless you consider the Lincoln MKT (aka a modern day hearse), Ford Transit connect wagon or Fiat 500L a true wagon. (Yes fiat is Italian but part of Fiat Chrysler so we are lumping them in the same pile for this one).
In the end, it's quite sad that we don't have as many options as our across the pond siblings, who have in recent years enjoyed the benefit of the new “Shooting break” style of wagons. But with a large portion of their market being wagon sales, it makes sense for them to keep only the best for themselves.
Even with Canada a key market for car manufacturers, perspective is everything. And so is location, being nudged up against one of the biggest markets in the world, the United States, it can be both a blessing and a curse. If it doesn’t seem likely that a model will sell in America, it probably won’t be offered in Canada, either. So until the next continental shift moves us closer to Europe, or we start buying lots more wagons, we will most likely, and sadly, remain wagonless.