SPORTWAGON SAMPLER; When it comes to performance and practicality, maybe the Japanese do know what is best for us.(News)

Byline: DINO DALLE CARBONARE Here in the sport/utility-lovin' United States of America, it's hard to imagine a day will come when the simple station wagon will once again claim a sizeable portion of our nation's highway space. But in Japan, wagons are all the rage, thanks to loads of cargo room and practicality combined with fuel-sipping sensibility in a land where fuel costs reach into the stratosphere.

Toss in a touch of sporty performance, as we found in the latest crop of Japan-market wagons, and you'll be wondering whether it might be time to trade in that behemoth-class ...

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