In 1958 the Mercury-Edsel-Lincoln (M-E-L) Division of the Ford Motor Company began selling it's all new line of Edsel
passenger cars and station wagons. Named after Henry Ford's only son, the Edsel showcased radical styling that
was never fully embraced by the public. Built on Ford/Mercury assembly lines, the new Edsel bodies were different from
Fords and Mercurys, leading to assembly confusion and build-quality issues that depressed sales
through-out the 3 years of Edsel production.
For it's inaugural year, the MEL Division offered 5 Edsel station wagon models;
the 4 door "Villager" (in 6 and 9 passenger configurations), 4 door "Bermuda" (also in 6 and 9 passenger configurations)
and the 2 door, 6 passenger "Roundup". All 5 Edsel station wagon models were based on the same 116" wheelbase as Ford's
line-up of station wagons, and also used some of the same inner body panels and support structures as Ford's wagons.
As a "base model", the Edsel Roundup Station Wagon was the least expensive Edsel wagon and although it came standard with a
headliner, dome lights, ash trays and arm rests, it also came with utilitarian black rubber floor mats instead of carpet.
Interestingly, the economy-oriented Roundup wagon's side windows were "sliders" like Chevy's top-of-the-line
1955-1957 Nomad Station Wagons (in addition, the trailing edge of the Roundup's B-pillar slants forward, like the Nomad's).
Like all Edsels, the Roundup long-roof was adorned with the distinctive Edsel "horse collar" front grille, bold fins,
expansive side sculpting and iconic "boomerang" taillights. The Edsel Roundup 2 door wagon came standard with a 361 ci v-8 engine and
could be ordered with a 3-speed manual transmission or 3-speed "Teletouch" automatic. With the Teletouch automatic, gear
selection was accomplished by pushing one of the 5 buttons creatively arranged in the center of the steering wheel!
Although error-prone, the Teletouch automatic was very popular with Edsel buyers and was installed in 95% of the Edsels
delivered in 1958.
Sadly, slow sales (only 963 of the 5507 Edsel wagons sold in 1958 were Roundup wagons) doomed the
uniquely styled Roundup s/w, so production of this cool 2-door wagon was halted at the end of the 1958 model year,
making the 1958 Edsel Roundup Station Wagon one of the rarest of all Edsel body styles.
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