1959 Plymouth Suburban
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In the late 50's, Station wagons were growing in popularity, but would never match sedans in volume. So, there were certain compromises made over the years, by all manufacturers. Ford was known to sell Mercury wagons on the shorter Ford wheelbase, particularly in the Comet and Meteor series, and Oldsmobile, Buick and Pontiac Bonneville full size wagons all shared Chevrolet's 119 inch wheelbase for a time (unlike the sedans and coupes on their 123. 5 inch wheelbase). Chrysler reversed this. Preferring to maintain the exclusive nature of the Town & Country, the company based all wagons on the larger bodies and smoother suspensions of the senior divisions. This made it difficult for Plymouth to compete in price with Ford and Chevrolet, but did allow them to claim the roomiest wagon in the low-priced field. It also meant the wagons used many parts shared with Chryslers, DeSotos and Dodges, but not other Plymouths. The unique name meant Plymouth dealers were limited in liability; when a mechanic found his new torsion bar was inches too short to fit, he had no one but himself to blame for requesting a Belvedere part instead of a Sport Suburban part.
Suburbans for 1958 were quite similar...