1941 Pontiac Woodie Wagon in Saratoga Springs, New York

1941 Pontiac Woodie Stations Wagons are coveted by lovers of this unique style of station wagon and they are uncommon indeed. This example of a rare pre-war woodie comes from the collection of a noted expert on these special vehicles.

Originally woodies were built for use by hotels to pickup guests arriving by train so many were built on truck chassis. While at first practical utility vehicles their unique styling caught the eye of the wealthy for use on their estates and Adirondack camps. They wanted some of the ride comfort of regular cars and companies like GM jumped into the market during the 1930s.

What makes these cars so special is, of course, their handmade wooden bodies built by an outside contractor, the Hercules Company of Evansville, Indiana. Hercules made the bodies for these station wagons of ash-framed mahogany. This makes the Hercules woodies more desirable because the two other firms building woodie bodies for GM used plainer birch panels.

The roof is topped with an Everflex-covered padding. The wooden tailgate is horizontally split with a single window on the top and a built-in folding tray on the bottom. Production of these cars was limited partly because they were time consuming to build by hand and they weren't that profitable. They were often the most expensive car in the Pontiac lineup for their time. In 1942, production ceased altogether because of the war.

This particular woodie is a four door Custom Torpedo Station Wagon. It is believed to be a 10 year old restoration from Florida. The tan paint job is a custom color and the mahogany wood body is beautifully varnished reminding one of the wooden hulled powerboats from the same era.

An L-head 6 cylinder engine develops about 90 horsepower from 234 cubic inches. The transmission is a three-speed manual column mounted shift. The car was built on the standard GM 122 inch chassis of the period.

There are two bench seats covered in Naugahyde vinyl. This was the original material used in what was seen as a utility vehicle. A varnished wood panel interior is accented by a metal dash. The dash features a built-in AM radio and clock. There is also a heater unit in the vehicle.

This is an opportunity to own a rare and unique piece of automotive history.

ESTIMATE: $80,000 - $95,000