Minneapolis Street Sighting: Ford Country Squire

I have a thing for station wagons, and I am a Ford nut as well; unfortunately, in the rust-belt, this combination doesn't last much beyond the "cheap used car" phase.In all my seasons living in Minneapolis, I don't think I have ever seen one of these. It looks like a LTD or a Crown Vic, but the wood paneling tells a different tale. Let me explain.

When the series started, it was known as the most posh station wagon the Blue Oval had to offer, and was easily recognized by its wood trim; you know, because, wood equals luxury right?  The model stayed in production from 1950, until 1991, when the idea of a luxury station wagon was done away with entirely when Ford introduced its newest family truckster, the Explorer.

This version is the last generation Country Squire which was made from 1979 to 1991, and I don't know what's under the hood of this example, so I can only narrow it down to 1979 to 1987. In 1988, these cars got a slightly more aerodynamic front end with a flush grille with recessed headlights. However, the rest of the vehicle stayed much the same minus the exception for the mandatory driver airbag in 1990.

Like every Minnesota car, this one has a few spots of underbody rust starting to develop--but what twenty-five-plus year old vehicle in a salt-ridden state doesn't? Aside from those few rusting areas, this is a very nice example. I am impressed not only with the level of maintenance kept up on this thing (the wood paneling veneer is usually about done for at this point), but about how carefully it was parked. It's neatly positioned so no one can park behind it, and so it can quickly leave the parking area and put along down the street.

I've always liked this bodystyle Crown Vic/LTD, and this one is no exception; when I was little, I used to see the wagons fairly often, but I'm afraid the local demolition derbies and rednecks has taken their toll. Wagons are thinning out, and examples this nice are fairly rare now. I envy how clean those turbine wheels are, even though the center caps don't appear to be the original ones.

I am happy I shot this, because while I certainly wasn't intending to shoot one of these, much less find one, I am glad this one is clean enough to post. I remember these cars from my childhood, and I'm glad that at least one is still around in pretty nice shape. I hope it remains in this shape for years to come. It deserves to be saved.