Topic: Solved - NEH 2892: Powell Sport Wagon - 1954/6

[Carnut]

What's this, from when?  1 point for the right answer.

ANYONE FOUND GIVING ANSWERS OBTAINED BY USING GOOGLE SEARCH BY IMAGE MAY BE BANNED FOR AN INDETERMINATE PERIOD!

[Carnut]

Experts?

[Bill Murray]

This is a Powell Sport Wagon.
I cannot find how to ID the exact year, but very few were made 1954-1956 so it has to be in that range.

Bill

[Carnut]

This is a Powell Sport Wagon.
I cannot find how to ID the exact year, but very few were made 1954-1956 so it has to be in that range.

Bill

Yes, 1954 is when the first prototype appeared so that's the date I was looking for.
You could say this vehicle was way ahead of its time, being a precursor to the type of vehicle Americans love so much today and which easily outsell the cars.

Below is a picture of the station wagon showing the unique feature - a concealed tube to carry fishing rods or other long thin objects!

[Bill Murray]

Thanks for the point.

As a point of interest, I lived in Southern California 1954-1974 and I almost bought one of these things in around 1960.  Only thing that put me off is that they were all based on 1941 Plymouth chassis' which Powell's company scrounged up from wrecking yards.  I think when they ran out of suitable chassis donors that just about put paid to the project.

Bill

[Carnut]

Thanks for the point.

As a point of interest, I lived in Southern California 1954-1974 and I almost bought one of these things in around 1960.  Only thing that put me off is that they were all based on 1941 Plymouth chassis' which Powell's company scrounged up from wrecking yards.  I think when they ran out of suitable chassis donors that just about put paid to the project.

Bill

Yes, it said on the site where I sourced the pictures that the concept was 15 years ahead of its time whilst the technology on which it was based was 15 years out of date!
It also said that the reason production finished was not the usual lack of cash or buyers but that they simply ran out of old Plymouth chassis on which to build more!

[Otto Puzzell]

"Built like a Battleship - Drives like a Sports Car"

The station wagon variation was a puzzle (twice) before:

http://www.autopuzzles.com/forum/index.php?topic=6784.5

Powell also offered a variant they called a "sport utility wagon", and a camper. They later tried to make a go at producing an early Winnebago-like one-box RV.

The yellow truck, above, is a '56. The Prototype was built in '54, production models spanned 1955 - 1957. While the production model chassis was from a '41 Plymouth, the engines came from a variety of cars and, in some cases, marine craft.

[Otto Puzzell]

Here's the Chevy-based '54 prototype. Differences include a somewhat longer cab with a window behind the door, and a two-bar 'grille'.

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