I give you a rundown on some of the station wagons in India.
Mercedes E-Class All Terrain – The Mercedes E-Class All Terrain was launched in 2018 in E220d guise and it is BS6 compliant. It gets a 2.0-litre diesel engine making 190 HP and 400 HP. It gets a 9-speed AT, 4MATIC and driving modes like Eco, Comfort, Sport, Individual and All Terrain. The 2.0-litre engine feels a bit underpowered in a car of this size and weight and the All Terrain costs Rs. 90 lakhs (on-road, Mumbai). This car never got as successful as the E-Class LWB sedan.
Volvo V90 Cross Country – This is the second BS6 compliant car in this list and after this all the other cars in the list have been discontinued. The V90 Cross Country was launched in 2017, but it is a direct rival to the E-Class All Terrain. This also gets a 2.0-litre diesel engine dishing out 235 HP and 480 Nm which makes it considerably punchier than the E. You get AWD and driving modes like Eco, Comfort, Dynamic and Off-Road. The V90 costs Rs. 82 lakhs (on-road, Mumbai) and it hasn’t found many takers in India.
Audi RS6 Avant – The Audi RS6 Avant was the most powerful station wagon to be launched in India. It boasted of sexy looks, practical interior and a powerhouse of an engine. The 4.0-litre V8 engine initially churned out 560 HP and 700 Nm and in 2018 Audi launched the Performance variant which produced an extra 45 HP. 0-100 km/hr came up in 3.7 seconds and the RS6 Avant got tech like an air suspension, cylinder-on-demand feature and quattro. Priced at Rs. 1.87 crores (on-road, Mumbai), the Avant found a handful of takers. This vehicle has now been discontinued.
Tata Indigo Marina – This car might not have been a huge success but almost everyone knows about it. The Indigo Marina was an estate based on the Indigo sedan and it got a very spacious interior. Even Ratan Tata used to drive around his pet dogs in this car. The Indigo Marina came with 1.4-litre petrol and diesel engines which were a bit underpowered and not too fuel efficient. The petrol engine made 85 PS while the diesel produced 70 PS. The Marina was on sale from 2006-2010 and it was priced somewhere between Rs. 5-6.5 lakhs.
Opel Corsa Swing – Opel entered India with General Motors in 1996 and the Corsa sedan was launched in 2000. In 2003, they launched the Opel Corsa Swing which was priced near the Rs. 6 lakh mark. It got a 1.6-litre petrol engine making 93 PS and the car was fairly fun to drive. It wasn’t too big in size but the cabin was practical. The design was also quite youthful. Opel left the Indian market in 2006 and all their cars got discontinued.
Fiat Palio Weekend/Adventure – The Fiat Palio Weekend was launched in 2002. It was known for its classy design. The car got its design from an Italian designer and it was made at Fiat’s Ranjangaon plant. Fiat then launched the Palio Adventure which was an enhanced version of the weekend as it came with body cladding, some sporty bits and cosmetic changes. This car was powered by a punchy 1.6-litre petrol engine but sales never really picked up. This station wagon was priced between Rs. 6-6.5 lakhs.
Skoda Octavia Combi – Skoda’s journey in India started with the Octavia and the Czech automaker launched the Combi in 2002. It was available in two variants. The L&K version got a 1.9-litre diesel engine while the vRS version got a 1.8-litre turbo petrol unit producing 157 PS and 210 Nm. The Skoda Octavia Combi was quite a fun estate to have and it was priced between Rs. 14-15 lakhs.
Maruti Baleno Altura – The Baleno was Maruti’s premium offering back than and the automaker decided to launch an estate version of it in 2001. It got a 1.6-litre petrol engine and rivalled the Fiat Palio Weekend and Opel Corsa Sail. Since the Altura had a lot of import content, parts availability wasn’t as easy as it was for the standard Baleno. It was priced somewhere around Rs. 9 lakhs back then and was discontinued in 2007. However, there are some people who are driving this car even today!
Tata Estate – The Estate was Telco’s first attempt at a passenger car and it was launched in 1992. Its design was based on the old Mercedes E-Class station wagon. Underpinned on the Tata X2 platform, the Estate got a Peugeot 1.9-litre diesel engine making 68 PS and 118 Nm. It had a 5-speed manual transmission and even though the car was quite basic, it got features like power windows, power steering and tachometer. The sticker price was approximately Rs. 7.5 lakhs back then and the car had issues like high fuel consumption and electrical niggles. It was discontinued in 2000.
Premier Padmini Safari – The Premier Padmini doesn’t need any introduction but not many people know that it also got an estate version. It wasn’t manufactured officially but a workshop called Starline Motors in Mumbai made it. It got a petrol engine that delivered 40 PS. It came in 1973.
HM Ambassador Estate – In the early 70s, Hindustan Motors launched the Ambassador Estate which was similar to the Oxford Traveller. The company wanted to showcase that the Ambassador platform could spawn cars of different bodystyles.
Bonus – Sipani Rover Montego – Sipani had launched an estate version of the Rover Montego in the early 90s. It got a 2.0-litre diesel engine making 81 HP and 163 Nm. This car didn’t really sell much.