Who’s out there looking to restore one of the earliest SUVs?  Don’t have a lot of experience bending metal? Not looking to break any land-speed records? Consider doing up a Willys `Jeep’ 4×4 station wagon. While the topic of “early Sport Utility Vehicles” is a whole debate unto itself, the 1946-65 Jeep station wagons did plenty of hauling families to the beach, trekking into the woods and doing daily duty around town.

This Willys wagon looks as though it sees daily use, judging by the current sticker and fresh rubber at all corners. All photos by Mike Mello.

These are just a few photos of a solid old wagon I saw the other day and as far as I know, it looks like the owner drives it on a regular basis.  It’s not all shiny but it does look like the kind of condition one might want to start with when attempting a restoration. If that’s not in your plans, it also looks like a survivor that could be lots of fun to tool around in as-is.

If considering restoration or repair, you gotta love the overall slab-sidedness and flat floors when it comes to making patch panels. One can still find other Willys trucks lying around when you’re looking for that last bit o’ trim to top off the job.

Touching on that original SUV discussion mentioned above, everyone knows the Chevy Suburban came to market in the 1930s and although it wasn’t as plush as today’s units, the truck had 3 rows of seats, as today’s Suburbans do.

Then again, you’ve got to define “Sport Utility Vehicle” if you’re going to make a case for which vehicle was the first in that colossal market segment. Are you an International Scout fan, an early Ford Bronco dude, a Land Rover campaigner or more of a fullsize Jeep Wagoneer nut? It all depends on the desired SUV equipment, I’d say. I mean, are we talking shift-on-the-fly 4-wheel-drive with an automatic transmission or just a wagon body style with a live front axle?

Another topic for another time.

For the record, my vote actually goes to the 1963 Kaiser Jeep Wagoneer because it’s the first with so many of the amenities that came to define the SUV segment.

What is the most popular car in Boston? A while ago, I might have said the Jeep Grand Cherokee, including all trim levels. More recently, one could argue that the Subaru Legacy Outback wagon ruled the city and all surrounding suburbs. These days, judged purely on what you see in your travels around the city, what do you think is the most popular car in Boston?

Here’s my top three guesses. Each model includes all trim levels with #1 being the most popular car:

1. The latest Toyota Corolla

There’s just so many Corollas sold as lease vehicles that you can usually see two of the same color on your way home from work. What can you say? People in Boston love their reliable Point A to Point B transportation.

2. The 2003-08 Subaru Forester

This is New England. The SUV craze is long gone and people don’t like getting stuck in the snow. Magazines sometimes test these all-wheel-drive machines against small SUVs but now that the crossover segment has fully matured, you’re more likely to shop it against…

3. The latest Honda CR-V

The third generation CR-V is something plenty of people around here use for getting around town, going on trips and handling the potholes.  Just what is it about the long, arcing side window that draws people to this 20/26 mpg crossover? Well, we can start with that very respectable fuel economy, SUV-like visibility from the driver’s seat and Honda’s reputation for superb reliability.

Notice a trend here? Boston, like many cities, is a place where people value reliability and economy over style. And who can blame us?

Aftermarket lighting can add a certain flair to your car if you’re trying to up the “look-at-me” factor at night.  In the late 1980s/early 90s, colored neon lights were almost more common on Camaro IROC-Zs than T-tops, and many, many IROCs had T-tops.

In motorsports, trends overlap. When I saw these center-console powerboats docked in Oak Bluffs recently, I was instantly reminded of sports cars cruising the strip with their undercarriages aglow.

This style of illuminating a vessel’s cockpit has probably been around for a while but it was new to me, not having been around too many boats at night lately. On the other hand, once in a while, you still see cars at shows with neon lights that pulse along with the tune on a stereo or speakers that show off bright neon hues.

I’m actually starting to feel a little nostalgic over thinking about, say, a white IROC-Z with orange chassis lighting. Got any pics of cars you’ve owned that had neon lights? I’d love see them and could post them here. Send ‘em to me at wheelblog_at_hotmail_dot_com!

The automotive hobby is vast. It’s got people out there fixing, restoring, modifying, buying, selling, driving, detailing and writing about cars. One of the things I like best about this hobby though is meeting people who help make up the gear head population.

I met photographer Jason Lee one night as he was shooting pictures of this Audi S4 at a car wash. Wanting to know if he specialized in making images of cars, I asked him about his work.  He’s got a portfolio on SmugMug which features the three photos I’ve posted below plus many more, and it was great to meet someone interested in talking about their contribution to the world of cars.

How many times a year do you get to eat fried dough? Maybe tonight’s the night to do so while taking in the first night of demolition derby action at the Marshfield Fair? (schedule here)

If you haven’t been this kind of event, see the video in this previous post from the Cheshire Fair in Swanzey, NH.

At the Marshfield fairgrounds, if you get there at least half an hour before the 7 p.m. start time, you can probably find a seat under the covered grandstand. However, as with all things related to Route 3 on a Friday, plan on encountering Cape traffic. The derby is a crowd favorite, so if you need time to stand in line for a fried dough, get their even earlier! You will not be disappointed.