Episode 96: “The Station Wagon Show: Country Squires, Roadmasters, Vista Cruisers, and whatever Clark Griswold drove”<br /><br />In this episode, producer Phil Tower plus hosts Al Schwinkendorf and John Puhek talk about the much-maligned but now making a comeback station wagon.<br /><br />We spend the first part of the episode talking about a very rare 1996 Buick Roadmaster that is up for auction on the Hagerty marketplace website.<br /><br />The 1996 Buick Roadmaster Estate Wagon was basically a Cadillac with a Buick nameplate. It was decked out with a plush cabin, and a massive V8 and it amazingly offered seating for eight thanks to a collapsible rear-facing third seat. And speaking of what's under the hood, this wagon has a 5.7-liter ‘LT1’ V8 which was also found in the C4 Corvette. Buick stopped making this beastly wagon in 1996, marking the last full-size, body-on-frame, rear-wheel drive station wagon produced by an American automaker<br /><br />It's interesting to note that station wagons reached their sales peak in <b>1976</b> when U.S. sales stood at 972,212 and accounted for 10% of all vehicles sold in the U.S. That same year, there were 62 station wagon models available to American car buyers. You read that correctly… 62 different station wagon models!<br /><br />We also talk about the amazing Ford Country Squire wagon... Another huge, best seller. And believe it or not, there seems to be a resurgence in wagons so to speak, including the diehards to attend the Radwood Festivals around the country.<br /><br />And this wouldn't be a show about station wagons if we didn't talk about the iconic and lovably ridiculous Griswold Family Truckster wagon. Oh, yes, we went there.<br /><br />And then Al decided to reminisce about the amazing HearseFest. Yes, it's really a thing and we have the link so you can learn more about it below.<br /><br />Michigan's AutoTalk podcast is available on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, iHeartRadio, Google Podcasts, Amazon Audio, Spreaker.com, Deezer, and Podcatcher.<br />Please don't forget to <a href="https://www.facebook.com/MichigansAutoTalkPodcast/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener"><b>LIKE our Facebook page!</b></a> <br /><br />Thank you for listening. If you like our podcast please do share it with a friend!<br /><br /><b>Online links:</b><br /><a href="https://www.hagerty.com/drivers-club/my-garage/marketplace/auction/7pYngMgImB7KrOZQynD10P" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener"><b>1996 Buick Roadmaster Estate Wagon on Hagerty Marketplace </b></a><br /><a href="https://hearsefest.com/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener"><b>HearseFest </b></a><br /><a href="https://www.radwood.com/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener"><b>Radwood</b></a><br /><a href="https://griswoldfamilyvacations.com/maiking-the-griswold-family-truckster/#:~:text=Just%20so%20you%20know%20the,and%20other%20famous%20movie%20cars." target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener"><b>Griswold Family Truckster</b></a>