The 10 Best Woody Wagons Of All Time

You don't have to have grown up watching old cartoons of a certifiably insane bird to know that woodies are awesome. While they haven't always been great, and most of them haven't even used real wood since the 1950s, they've dominated huge chunks of American car culture over the decades. We looked back at ten of the very best, and most important, woodies in our history.

10.Dodge Caravan / Plymouth Voyager
By the time the minivan took hold, wood paneling was little more than a decal. But that didn't stop Dodge and Plymouth from selling them to what would later be known as soccer moms. The plus side? The vinyl didn't scratch so easily, so the soccer balls didn't do any harm.

9.Chevrolet Caprice Classic
GM may have been a little arrogant naming the Caprice a "classic" before it truly evolved into one, but still, if you grew up in the 1980s, you know good and well that every single one they produced has rear ashtrays full of foil Wrigley's gum wrappers.

8.Ford LTD Country Squire
For anyone that grew up watching the Griswolds endure the worst journey of all time, this car is the quintessential American road trip machine.

7.Buick Roadmaster Estate
The Roadmaster is the quintessential good American road trip car. It's a slightly later, non-woody version of this that stole the show in Rain Man. A trip up the PCH in a Roadmaster would be just about perfect.

6.Packard Super Eight Station Wagon
The Super Eight is the classic pre-WWII American car, with a fantastic straight eight engine and plenty of luxury. One can only imagine what it must've been like pulling up in the woody version.

BONUS: Ron Jeremy
What? His woody is legendary.

5.Ford Woodie Wagon
It's got wood everywhere, which is great, but let's be honest: the moment you saw this photo you imagined this car on a beach somewhere, with a surfboard on top. And that's why it's so awesome.

4.Ford Model A
There's just something classy about a Model A delivery van with wood panels. The wood was actually a structural element, since mass produced steel structures were still in their infancy, so it manages to pull off the beautiful look without coming across as pretentious.

3.Nash Ambassador Suburban
After WWII, Nash wanted to produce a car that would really pop, and get people into their showrooms. They had a Michigan-based company make the panels out of ash, then used real mahogany for the trim.

2.Jeep Wagoneer
The Wagoneer was possibly the last vehicle to really make the wood look work. It was rugged, like you'd expect from a Jeep, but it was also the first truly luxe SUV that would be great around town, and somehow the wood just looks at home on the sides.

1.Chrysler Town and Country Convertible
There was a time when having a) a Chrysler and b) a Town and Country automatically made you the guy all your neighbors noticed on your street. Make it a woody and a convertible, and you were the guy all your neighbors' wives noticed.


Aaron Miller is the Rides editor for Supercompressor. He could have made a lot more puns during this article, but exercised some self-restraint.