Yahoo Autos Junkyard Gem: 1979 Chevrolet Caprice Classic Wagon
The late 1970s represent the pinnacle of wagon life in the United States, with just about every manufacturer offering at least one station wagon model. Nissan alone sold four different Datsun wagon models here in 1979 (the F-10, 210, 510, and 810), while Toyota dealers had three that year (the Corolla, Corona, and Cressida). As for The General, every single GM car division except Cadillac offered at least two sizes of station wagon for the final year of the 1970s, and the Impala/Caprice was the lowest-priced full-size wagon in the entire corporate stable. Here's a heavily-optioned Caprice Classic wagon, faded but intact in a self-service yard in northeastern Colorado.
In the world of 1979 Chevrolet station wagons, the entry-level model was the Monza Wagon. If you think it looks like a Chevy Vega, you're right… but keep in mind that the Vega and Monza were based on the same platform (and the Vega name was eliminated after 1977). The next size up was the Malibu wagon (the Chevelle name got the axe after 1978 and the Chevelle's Malibu trim level designation became the model name after that). At the top was the king of 1979 Chevy wagons: the Impala and its more luxurious Caprice Classic sibling. The price tag on the cheapest possible '79 Impala wagon started at $6,109, while the three-row/10-passenger Caprice Classic listed at $6,544 (that's about $24,860 and $26,630 in 2021 dollars).
That's a lot of wagon per dollar! The Buick-badged sibling of this wagon, the Estate, cost $6,714.
All 1979 Impala and Caprice wagons had Chevrolet small-block V8 engines as standard equipment (the sedans and coupes got a 250-cubic-inch/4.1-liter V6 as the base engine), either a 305/5.0-liter or a 350/5.7-liter plant. This car has the 350, rated at 170 horsepower. With a curb weight just over 4,000 pounds, this wagon needed every one of that engine's 270 pound-feet to get moving (the Buick 350 in the Estate Wagon had 280 pound-feet but just 155 horses).
We take features such as power windows and air conditioning for granted in new cars today, but that stuff cost plenty during the Malaise Era. The power window setup in this wagon cost 205 bucks (about $835 today), the power tailgate lock was $40 ($160 now), and the air conditioning set back this car's original buyer by 605 bones (2,460 clams in 2021).
You want an AM/FM stereo radio for your favorite 1979 hits? That'll be an additional 236 simoleans for your friendly Chevrolet dealer, which comes to about 960 United States smackers nowadays… and car audio equipment in the late 1970s mostly sounded like crap despite being so pricey.
