Station wagons once ruled the roads in North America.
They were beasts of burden that transported kids to team practices, hauled groceries for family meals, and transported people to distant locations on summer vacations.
Wagons were an important part of the daily routine for large herds of kids from the Baby Boomer era, but did not exactly capture the hearts and minds of their then- young passengers during their heyday.
Jim Sutherland
The day of the station wagon ended when the dawn of the minivan took place in the 1980s. The minivans and the station wagon shared the market for a short period of time, but eventually wagons disappeared like a politician’s promises after the election is over.
Kids who rode in station wagons became adults who had a change of heart and developed fond memories of their family station wagons, so long roofs (station wagons) became nostalgically cool.
For this reason, classic station wagons are now rare and popular in the car hobby, so an opportunity to interview the owner of a well-preserved 1967 Ford Country Sedan wagon was irresistible for us here at MyStarCollectorCar.
Paul Nardella is the current owner of the ’67 Ford Country Sedan that he found “sitting in a bush” in his words. The neglected long roof faced an uncertain future exposed to the harsh outdoors in Manitoba Canada, but Paul decided to save it from further deterioration and bought it.
Paul’s first vehicle was a Ford–plus his father owned a station wagon when he was a kid, so Paul had already developed his brand loyalty, along with his childhood experiences riding in a wagon. As a result, a 1967 Ford Country Sedan was a good fit for him. Bear in mind, Paul is not a typical owner of a vintage station wagon that is much older than him but, like every car guy, he was heavily influenced by factors from his past. His game plan was simple: resurrect the ’67 Ford wagon and return it to the road.
The Ford was in reasonably good shape, given its former location in the bush, so Paul was able to get it ready for the road in no time. The station wagon had undergone a repaint at some point in its past and required little cosmetic upgrades in that department, other than a set of mags on the Country Sedan because the original rims were severely rusted during its outdoor storage.
Consequently, Paul was able to concentrate on the mechanical side of the equation for his Ford’s revival. He added some tweaks to the factory 390 4-barrel big block in his wagon, including an electronic ignition to deliver a stronger spark to the 390’s combustion chambers.
Paul also swapped out the Ford’s factory radiator for a new aftermarket 4-core radiator that has vastly superior cooling abilities, according to him.
However, Paul’s main goal is to maintain as much of the classic wagon’s as possible and chooses not to pursue any major changes that would drastically alter its originality.
His 1967 Ford station wagon is “not meant to spin tires”, in Paul’s words, instead he prefers to hit the open road in his long roof and enjoy its ultra-comfortable ride along the way.
“It’s like driving a couch”, according to Paul, and is very stable in windy highway conditions, so his road trips are “amazing” (Paul’s words) every time he gets behind the wheel of his 1967 Ford Country Sedan wagon.
Jim Sutherland
BY: Jim Sutherland
Jim Sutherland is a veteran automotive writer whose work has been published by many major print and online publications. The list includes Calgary Herald, The Truth About Cars, Red Deer Advocate, RPM Magazine, Edmonton Journal, Montreal Gazette, Windsor Star, Vancouver Province, and Post Media Wheels Section.
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