The use of wood in motor cars dates back to the beginning of the motor age. From earliest times, on up into the 1930’s, manufacturers used a combination of wood and metal in their vehicles’ bodies, sometimes forming the metal skins around hardwood frames. Wood-bodied station wagons (nicknamed “woodies”) trace their history from the 18th and 19th centuries. The technology that went into making the wood bodies for these motorized vehicles came from the wagon, coach, and carriage industry. Early woodies were used as depot hacks and delivery vehicles. (These vehicles were originally horse-drawn.) Ironically, the wealthy also had “estate wagons” custom-built for traveling around their sizable properties. Automobile manufacturers would provide the chassis, engines, and drivetrains, and wagon-makers would supply the wooden bodies.

For those who think Ford made all its wood bodies in-house, you’re only partially correct. Up through the 1920s, Ford, like all the other manufacturers, used firms such as Martin-Parry, and Mifflinburg and Wildanger (both previously wagon makers), to supply their wood bodies. But—partly because of Henry’s frugal nature, and because Ford made more woodies than any other manufacturer—in the 1930s, Ford opened its own factory at Iron Mountain, on Michigan’s Upper Peninsula. It was no coincidence that this factory was located next to Ford-owned hardwood forests. From then on, Ford made its own wood station wagon bodies in-house. This practice continued into the late ‘40s, when wood was beginning to be used as an overlay over an all-steel body. You can get woodies today, but “woody” is an evocative term, since the “wood” usually consists of adhesive plastic sheets that simulate a wood-grain pattern.

The 1940 Ford Deluxe Station Wagon is the fifth woody in DM’s woody collection (along with the 1931 Ford Model A, 1942 Chrysler Town & Country, 1948 Chrysler Town & Country, and the 1949 Mercury Station Wagon). Need I mention the meticulous attention to detail that is DM’s hallmark? Oh, o-kay—I will, since you insist. How about real wood panels (even though the frames are plastic)? Or, sliding windows on the rear doors and bed sides? Not enough? There are removable middle and rear seats and a swiveling antenna at the top of the windshield. Oh, and pivoting sun visors. The under-hood, undercarriage, and interior detailing is DM precise (You were expecting any less? Honestly, I don’t know how Tony manages to come up with something new to say about all the DM images he reviews!). A minor disappointment is the absence of working suspensions. I suspect it’s because the image is based on DM’s older 1940 Ford coupe dies. The Lyon Blue color is flawlessly applied and appropriately glossy. All chrome parts are correct to scale and separate items—no molded-in stuff here. I’m not sure, but the “Ford Deluxe” script on each side of the hood appears to be more than just tampoed-on (stamped-on foil perhaps?). Included in the packaging is a specialized tweezers to remove and replace the removable seats. There—happy now? Seriously, if you’re into woodies, this beauty’s a must. DM’s gone and done it again—made an image second to none, with all the whistles and bells we’ve come to expect. It ranks high on my collectable scale. Say four-and-a-half out of five stars?

Today, woodies are among the most desired and expensive of collector cars. They evoke an age of craftsmanship and are viewed as rolling works of art. They were even immortalized in surfer songs, for woodies became a symbol of surfer transportation in the 1960s. Hail to the woody! The issue price is $115.

-Tom Pine