There goes my baby. There she goes now.
I’m a station wagon guy. I always have been, for better or for worse. I love the utility and versatility a wagon provides. Unfortunately, America’s bullshit love of the SUV (and now the “crossover,” whatever the fuck that is) has made it such that good, solid station wagons are much more of a European option.
That said, several years ago I totaled my 2000 Volvo V70 AWD wagon. At the time I was under-employed, and I was in take-what-I-can-find territory where cars are concerned.
Despite my general distaste for the supposed old-school giant American gas-guzzling land yacht, I always had a certain affinity for the Lincoln Town Car. I’m not sure why this is so, except to say that there’s perhaps something to be said for driving one’s living room down the road.
So I bought the above-pictured car, in 2010, for $2,300. A 1995 Lincoln Town Car. Approximately 110,000 miles at the time.
It was likely the best large purchase I’ve ever made.
The Ford Motor Company built a shit-ton of cars on what they called the Panther platform: the Crown Victoria, the Mercury Marquis, and, of course, the venerable Lincoln Town Car. It was a wonderful design for a large car — a 4.6L V-8 paired with a hardy gearbox providing plenty of power to the rear wheels. (For me, this is important. I have not and will not ascribe to the ludicrous notion that front wheel drive cars are safer or better. Pfft.)
So I bought this car. I live in Alabama, as do my parents. My sister lives in Texas. Not too long after I bought this Townie both of my parents had knee issues, requiring varying degrees of surgery, depending on the parent and the leg. Still, though, I needed to be able to drive them to Texas to visit my sister.
And I had the perfect car in which to do so. Pure comfort for the folks — worry free driving for me. Air-ride suspension converting every seam in the asphalt or bump in the road into a mere hiccup in the otherwise seamless cruise from here to Austin.
And would you believe that the gas mileage was better than that in the Volvo?
The photo at the top of this post is not at all indicative of my experience with the car — it’s just the only photo I have. I had to have it towed on that occasion due to an electrical gremlin I was unable to diagnose and repair myself. Cost almost nothing to repair, and I was driving it the next day.
Because I’m a wagon guy, and a rear-wheel-drive guy, I wound up the next year (2013) buying a 2004 Mercedes C-class wagon. Grrr.
I ultimately sold the Town Car to a guy on disability. He was 6’5” and easily 400 lbs and had a bit of a drug problem but he was working very hard to rectify his situation. He needed a car, but there were very few driver seats into which he could fit. Again, the Town Car came to the rescue. Sold it to him for a song.
But I still cruise the classifieds, and find myself longing at times for another Townie.
Godspeed.
