Maxim Vintage Car Shopper: 1973 Ford LTD Country Squire Wagon
Year: 1973
Model: Ford LTD Country Squire Wagon
Powertrain: A gargantuan but not-that-powerful 7-liter Ford V8 routed through a three-speed automatic transmission to the rear wheels.
Favorite Five Points:
1. This is a legitimate ten passenger automobile: three in the front row, three in the back row, and four in the jump seats in the humungous trunk.
2. This is the largest, heaviest station wagon Ford ever made, and we love it for that. At almost 5,000 pounds with a 180 horsepower V8 and the world’s softest suspension, this wagon was made for one purpose: to take ten people to get ice-cream. High-speed, or high-maneuverability travel… not so much.
3. This mandatory 5-mph impact bumpers added six inches to the car and weigh as much as large child. They, with cockroaches, will survive long after we soft creative have dissipated from the earth.
4. The rear window motors down, so jump-seat occupants can enjoy the scent of unburned hydrocarbons as they waft down the road.
5. As they say, Vinyl is Final. The interior of this car is pristine and unless the new owner takes to carting around medieval weaponry, will remain so forever.
Quirks:
This car will get single-digit miles to the gallon, has almost dangerously weak brakes, and will not be able to make a U-turn in anything smaller than a full, deserted parking lot.
Good Buy?
Yes. For any lover of Americana, station wagons, or faux-wood veneer, this is a prime find. The condition is perfect, and any mechanic in the USA will be able to wrench on this big, simple beast. We’d nab it and loaf along happily for the rest of our days. [Find it here on Ebay.]