Your SUV Habit Is Killing Off My Favorite Car — the Station Wagon

For motoring enthusiasts like me, station wagons are a near perfect package, combining spaciousness with sleek looks, exciting driving dynamics and decent fuel efficiency. Unfortunately my love of no-nonsense wagons (or estates as they’re called in the UK, Kombis in Germany and “breaks” in France) is no longer widely shared.

A top Mercedes-Benz Group AG designer bemoaned this week that “nobody is buying them” anymore. Although the German automaker still offers several estates, it’s hesitant about developing a wagon version of its mainstay electric C-Class. The average consumer has long since voted with their wallet: SUVs and crossovers rule the roads today. Yet I think the proliferation of boring “Chelsea tractors” could rekindle demand for something more unique.