Ford?
Seeing one curbside, I looked online and they have indeed redesigned the Ford Transit Connect, the floor looks flattish in the pictures and there’s a “window” version. 30MPG highway. Ugly as all get-out, however. No other info.
Volvo V70
fits the bill perfectly. Porsche designed 5 cylinder turbo engine runs like a hose and gets good mileage. The seats are the absolute best for a long trip. There are gobs of room inside and with the roof rails and rail grabbers it’s a breeze to load and haul two or three canoe. I have even carried a cartopper boat on mine.
Aside from the obvious, the thing that makes these V70’s perfect for hauling canoes is that the roof line is nice and low making putting canoes on the roof easy to do even solo. Also, the V70 has a nice long roof line. The spacing between the crossbars is adequate to haul a 20 foot canoe safely.
Mini vans are nice for filling up with gear but a PITA to reach the top and friends do not let friends buy Subaru’s.
a mini van
seems to have the features you want. They all will serve well, and the Japanese labels are nice cars. If you are a home improvement do it yourselfer, The Chrysler products are well suited for very heavy loads.
I second
the Chrysler/Dodge vans for their excellent driving manners, tons of room, pretty easy on gas, decent reliability, some can pull a pop up tent trailer, and have a excellent view of the road. Really nice, smooth ride too with it’s long WB. One of the best kayak haulers too.
" friends do not let friends buy Subaru"
Aah, The Chariot of the Tards. 
However, if they produce the BRZ-based 2-door wagon shown at the Tokyo Auto Show, it might be worth considering. Low enough to get a boat on top, too. Hard to tell from the photos if the back is sleep-friendly.
everyone hates subarus
– Last Updated: Jun-24-14 8:30 AM EST –
until they own one.
I'd ask my mechanic about volvo but I already know what his hysterical laughter sounds like.
mini van squared
Mini vans are the weekend warriors dream.
-Jason
Hey! I resemble that remark! 
I’ve got a 2002 WRX wagon and a 2008 Outback XT Limited. Both stick, both turbo. Yea, the mileage stinks (22 on the OBXT without anything on top) but they are fantastic in our midwest winters.
There’s not the over-abundance like in Colorado, Pac NW, and NE here, so you don’t see yourself coming and going. The new Outbacks (2010 and newer) have a horrible rack system that doesn’t adjust, so the rails are too close together. Mine has a Thule with racks for two kayaks and two bikes at the same time.
Yea, I’d love a new Volvo V70 (or any mid-sized wagon, for that matter), but they aren’t sold in the US any more.
Truck or minivan
A pickup with a hard shell is hard to beat. Did a long trip in a 4 cylinder manual Toyota once and it was great. Full size truck milage sucks-my current option. Wife has a Sienna, so I just need to get a rack on it.
Fwiw some cars have trunk access by folding down the rear seat. My beater does that (and gets 35mpg) but I don’t think it is long enough for me to stretch out.
One paddler I knew put bunks in his excursion. It could sleep 6 while going down the highway. He would do trips with 8 paddlers-towing a gear trailer (not sure how they shuttled).
A mechanic that recommends Subaru
is a rare bird and someone that must enjoy working on nasty hard to find and fix emission leaks, head gaskets and warped heads. There is certainly job security in working on them.
Most mechanics do steer clear of Volvo’s but the ones that work on them report that they NEVER have motor issues and NEVER have electrical issue. Except for normal wear and tear items all of mine have been 200,000 plus mile cars.
As long as you watch out for the few years that had auto transmission issues (99, 2000, 2001) they are all excellent canoe haulers with enough room in the back to stretch out.