I often go kayaking, and would love to get a station wagon or minivan.. Instead, I always seem to get a Mazda / Taurus. Surely, there must be some way for us to swap cars?

Seriously, I don't understand in what way a station wagon can be seen as inferior to a similar sedan. If you don't need the extra space, don't use it. It's not as though handling and performance will be much different.