Three years in the making, Callaway’s AeroWagen is finally available to order, making the latest ‘Vette a bit more practical and at the same time special.

No matter how it’s named, this one is the very definition of a shooting brake: a custom made, two-door estate that emphasizes sportiness rather than practicality like a station wagon. Initially manufactured by coachbuilders on the chassis of British luxury models, manufacturers later started rolling out their own versions to tap into this niche.

Shooting brake Corvettes are not a novelty, even if one never came out of the factory. See for yourselves…

1954 Nomad Concept


The brainchild of legendary GM head of design Harley Earl, it was displayed as a concept at 1954. He designed it around the Corvette, but while the production car kept most of its styling cues, GM execs decided to make it a part of the Bel Air range and quickly ditched the special front end to bring it in line with the rest.

2004 Nomad Concept


Displayed at the 2004 Detroit Auto Show, strictly speaking it’s not a Corvette. The reason is that it was built on GM’s Kappa rear-wheel drive platform, which was used on the likes of the Pontiac Solstice and Opel Speedster and for the occasion was slightly stretched for a 2+2 (instead of a two-seater) configuration. Yet it was Chevy’s modern take on Earl’s original design that, sadly, never made it into production.

Corvette C3 Sports Wagon


The road to hell is paved with good intentions and that’s a very good example. Custom bodywork can go horribly wrong and turn an otherwise perfectly fine StingRay into… well, this. True, it can stake claim at the shooting brake moniker but, to us at least, it looks ungainly and definitely not worth the trouble, the money or the wasted C3.

Corvette C5 Sport Wagon


Swede ‘Vette enthusiast Robban Aften created what he proudly said was “the world’s first C5 Sport Wagon” on the chassis of a 2000 car. Nice effort, though the outcome was a bit disjointed as the add-on clashed with the fifth-gen Corvette curvy styling. Original, yes, but we think we will pass on that, too.

2016 Callaway AeroWagen


A testament to the US tuner’s experience and quality products – assuming any was needed. Made of carbon fiber, this piece fits seamlessly with the factory car’s design and it’s also a bolt-on that can be purchased separately and fitted to any seventh-gen Corvette and then removed at will. A budget GTC4 Lusso? If only it had rear seats…