For my latest gallery of vintage car ads I’m going to focus on one particular segment, in this case it’s station wagons from the 1979 model year. Having never owned one I can’t speak to the experience of what it’s like, but I always crack a smile whenever I see a classic family truckster still on the road.

So in the spirit of old school station wagons, let’s take a look from what was hot off the assembly line 40 years ago from a sampling of American and foreign automakers.

Chrysler

The seventh-generation Town & Country was in its second year as the mid-sized LeBaron wagon. It had formerly been the company’s full-size station wagon.

Pontiac

The 1979 Safaris were available in several trim packages. This ad highlights the mid-size Grand LeMans Safari and the full-size Bonneville Safari.

Oldsmobile

This Cutlass Cruiser, Oldsmobile’s mid-size wagon, features a diesel engine. 1979 was the company’s second model year with a diesel engine for its wagons.

And here is the full-size Custom Cruiser.

Ford

All four of Ford’s wagon models for 1979 are on this beauty of an ad, including the Club Wagon van. We’ve got the Pinto, LTD, and Fairmont wagons all out for a nice day at the lake.

Chevrolet

1979 was the second model year for the Malibu wagon, then in its fourth generation. It was Chevy’s mid-size wagon entry.

Here’s Chevy’s full-size wagon, the Caprice Classic.

Dodge

Dodge offered three wagon models in 1979 — the Colt, Aspen, and Diplomat. Here is the largest of the trio, the Diplomat.

Volkswagen

We can’t forget our imports now can we? Here is the 1979 Volkswagen Dasher, known back home as the Passat.

Nissan

The subcompact Nissan Sunny (sold in North America as the Datsun 210) was in the second year of its fourth generation in 1979. In 1982 it was replaced by the Sentra.

Subaru

The Subaru Leone went by many names in America in the late ’70s, including the Subaru GL or L Series. Whatever you call it, it clearly stands out from the station wagon crowd of 1979.