Table of contents for No 196 September 2021 in NZV8

If I were to tell you that old cars are expensive, you would probably reply with something along the lines of “no shit” — vocabulary dependent. It’s nothing new. I’ve seen the prices of everything climb a mountain bigger than Bathurst ever since I was old enough to understand the value of a dollar. And if you’re from a gen or two above me, then you’ll probably have stories of cars that sold for cents on the dollar now commanding six figures. If my fourth-form economics teacher, Mr Wilson, taught me anything, it’s that supply and demand are the two main driving factors of prices in an open market. So, given that currently anyone with land they can call their own is pretty much laughing all the way to the…

Raising a total of $600K, the Shelby GT-H raffled off for the Auckland Westpac Rescue Helicopter Trust has now found a home. Built by Shelby New Zealand in conjunction with Ford New Zealand, the GT-H (Heritage) features all the GT upgrades, as well as Shelby’s performance suspension package, forged 20-inch matte-gold alloys, brake ducting, redesigned front aero, and that black-and-gold paint scheme. The car has been on show all summer long, with all 6000 tickets selling before the live draw was made and the winner Maria O’Flaherty from Wellington found. Maria purchased her ticket during Beach Hop this year and enjoyed the long drive back from Auckland alongside her husband. The funds raised from the raffle will directly fund 100 rescue missions.…

RETRO CLEAN Add a touch of retro to your bay with a ’50s Cadillac/Olds-style air cleaner assembly. Styled off the popular housings found on ’51–’56 models, these remakes are made of steel. They fit all four-barrel 5?-inch carbs and come complete with a brand-new 14x4-inch element plus Rocket-styled acorn nut for mounting them. The housing has been notched in the rear to clear a GM HEI distributor. Offered in stain black, they look great with a touch of pinstriping or colour matched to your engine bay. Available in New Zealand from Kruzin Kustoms Rod & Kustom Shop, 39 Kelvin Grove Road, Palmerston North; call 06 357 5017. STAY COOL Our beloved classics often have cooling systems that would have worked perfectly when ‘heavy traffic’ meant more than one car in…

You can only lie to yourself so much, and even the most diehard Fast & Furious nerd has to admit that, at some point, the franchise has steadily steered away from the car scene as you or I know it and into the realms of fantasy. It’s Hollywood and that’s quite all right — loud noises and fiery explosions put bums on seats, and the hero cars have always been exciting and aspirational. Through it all there’s been a base ensemble of character cars, and for F9 — the series’ latest — lead character Dominic ‘Dom’ Toretto’s iconic B-body Dodge Charger has undergone a transformation befitting the franchise’s boxoffice successes. Dom’s Charger affinity was introduced in 2001 with a supercharged ’69 Charger in The Fast and the Furious, and it’s…

Sure, you can just show up, park up, and piss off — and that’s fine, if that’s your sort of thing. But if you want to be in to win or to simply make a good impression, there’s much more to it than just that. Entering a show is one of those areas of life where the old saying of a little effort goes a long way couldn’t be more accurate. While the info on the following pages is focused more on indoor events, the same advice applies to outdoor shows also. We’ve probably been a bit more opinionated than we would usually be in this type of article, but there’s much that can be learnt, most of which is not all that hard. Display Design Every show around the…

Jason Hansen’s philosophy at his company, Autocolour Matrix, is to think outside the box and build stuff a little differently. When it was announced that the Mustang was to be sold brand new in New Zealand, with the steering wheel on the correct side of the car for our roads, Jason’s mind started wandering. There was no doubt that the marque was popular worldwide, but he likened them to a “packet of jelly beans: there were heaps of them, but they all looked exactly the same, apart from the colour.” His company is a bit lucky when it came to building cars. Its specialty is building one-off full-custom vehicles, therefore his team possessed the necessary skills and equipment to transform the humble pony car into something a bit more ‘yeah’…

During the warm summer months, Mangakino is a bustling little lakeside town with all manner of water sports on offer to keep locals and visitors entertained. However, until three years ago, there was little to look forward to in the winter months. Then some mates got to thinking over a few beers at the Mangakino Citizens Club. After a bit of discussion and a few more beers, it was decided that, as there were about 10 classic cars in the group, they could put on a little car show for the locals. Thinking they might get a few more by creating a Facebook post on the local community page, they got more than they bargained for — within the first couple of hours, they received more than 100 responses. The…

You don’t need to be a genius or an insider to know that the third-generation Chev C10 — commonly referred to as a Square Body due to its distinctly ’80s box shape — has been going nuts over the past six years. Once overlooked and considered an ugly duckling compared to its older siblings, the tides have turned for the model and, despite the fact that more than 10 million were built, spanning a 15-year production cycle that ended in ’87, prices have skyrocketed. Finding one in a good condition is becoming harder and harder, and in many cases, the depth you need to dive in your wallet has doubled and even tripled compared with what you would have spent only five years ago. It wasn’t that long ago that…

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CHECK THEMOTORHOOD.COM FOR REGULAR NEWS UPDATES AutoFest is fast growing into the country’s biggest two-day car event for hot rods, classics, V8s, and street machines. All it really needed was a track — and now it’s got one! After skipping last year, AutoFest will be back, stronger than ever, on the weekend of 11–12 September. It’s roaring back with a new format, offering more for drivers, and, most importantly, a new location: Manfeild Circuit Chris Amon. New track-focused events include a cruise with your mates, slow sessions, ladies-only sessions, roll racing, grip sessions, drifting (demo only), power skids (demo only), and much more. Proven highlights from the previous Mystery Creek AutoFests include a V8-only burnout competition, a barbecue competition, Retro-o-rama, live music, Miss AutoFest, and a wheel-changing competition. Burnouts! Competition…

Classic electric vehicle (EV) specialist Everrati has announced a partnership with Superformance to produce EV GT40s. While Everrati will ultimately convert the traditionally fossil-fuel burner to EV, Superformance will provide the chassis. Superformance is a world-leading builder of GT40 replicas, which are traditionally sold as rolling bodies. Packaging the EV componentry is no easy feat, and a prototype is well underway at Everrati’s UK development centre in Upper Heyford, a former US air base. No stranger to building EV-powered heritage classics, you can expect the build to be of the highest calibre, and with attention to detail befitting a car of this calibre. “The sole focus of both Everrati and Superformance is iconic cars, and Lance and his team are ‘the’ guys when it comes to authorised continuation chassis of…

It’s always interesting trying to work out who owns a car by looking at it. Things like sheepskin seat covers and fluffy dice are a sure-fire sign the car is owned by someone who’s had a few trips around the sun, while cut springs and sticker bombs are a sign there’s still some learning to do. Feast your eyes on this 1957 Ford Fairlane Victoria and it’s clear to see that the person behind it has a good sense of style. It’s hard to tell which end of the age scale they’re at though, as there’s a mix of traditional and modern that works so well together it’s hard to pinpoint the owner’s generation. So, chances are you’d be surprised to hear that the owner is 70 years old, unless…

Although the Goodin family’s Nova, as piloted by Kurt Goodin, has been well known for massive skids and winning events, it’s recently gone under the knife. “After the season ended early in February, and with the constant peer pressure from the Wild Bunch family — brought about by smashing one of their kingpins, Michael Franklin, in a full track burnout challenge — the decision was made to go blown,” states Nigel Goodin. Following on from that decision was the realisation that the 561ci naturally aspirated motor needed a lot of money spent on it to be suitable, so it was put up for sale to make way for an all new set-up. While engine components were being priced up, the twin-turbo 515ci package from Pirtek Taranaki Racing (Jeff Dobson) came…

With Covid affecting so many events throughout the country over the past year, we were sure things had returned to normal, or at least, a new normal, heading into the March running of the South Island’s Prowear Chrome Expression Session. That was until Auckland was thrown back into lockdown in March, causing the team to make the decision to postpone Chrome Expression Session Christchurch until July. A lot of people thought that it may not happen due to the winter date, but, after several wet weekends prior to the fast-approaching event, Mother Nature must have taken pity on us, supplying us with a perfect sunny, if cold, weekend for the people to come out of hibernation and party. And what an event it was, with record numbers showing up. The…

CREDIT WHERE IT’S DUE The Napa CMC AGM and prize-giving was held at Taupo at the end of May. While the weather may have put a halt to some of the social activities, the main event was a big success. As well as awards being given to class champions, additional trophies were provided as below: MOST IMPROVED Shane Johnson SPORTSMAN OF THE YEAR Tony Boyden BEST-PRESENTED CAR Craig Boote ROOKIE OF THE YEAR Rodney Heads TOP POINTS FORD Shane Johnson TOP POINTS GM Andrew Sinclair STIRRER OF THE YEAR Angus Fogg HARD-LUCK TROPHY Michael Wallace HIGHEST POINTS NO DAMAGE Rick van Swet OPEN-MINDED TROPHY Clarke Hopkins PIT CREW OF THE YEAR Michael Wallace family and crew ANDERSON GOLD CARD Tony Galbraith CMC LIFE MEMBER Tony Boyden 2021–2022 CALENDAR ANNOUNCED While…

Last month I made the bold statement that things would start to come together quickly from this point and ultimately they have, but not without a few false starts and miscalculations, shall we say. Greenlane Speed Shop have come on board in the form of a few solid days’ labour and, boy, without them we would be floundering as there is more work that goes into a Junior than a full-size car it seems at times. Trevor’s clever brain and ability to work out my vague instructions and directions mean we will have a chassis almost ready for final welding by the time you read this. Seat belt mounts have been done and Dzus brackets added for the tinwork to come, and a seat frame has been constructed with final…

TRICK ’37 When your son runs his own fabrication shop, you can rest assured that your personal projects will feature some really trick engineering, and that is most certainly the case with Dave Peterson’s ’37 Ford pickup truck. The work began with the body, which started life as a ’37 sedan before being cut down into a pickup using a barrel-nose rear firewall. To get proportions correct, the roof has been sectioned, stretched, and chopped two inches. The work doesn’t stop there. The chassis has been boxed and extensively strengthened with a custom tubular centre section. Up front, it runs a Heidts Superide II with Viking coilovers and Wilwoods. From the cab back, the chassis has been fabricated and houses a four-link with Watt’s linkage, Strange coilovers, and a 31-spline…

There is no denying that us Kiwis have had a very strong standing in the Supercars ranks in recent history, and over the past few years barely a weekend passes without at least one of us featuring on the podium. For many young Kiwi racers, the Supercars championship is the pinnacle of local motorsport and a realistic goal. It’s a goal that will feel one step closer for the 2021/’22 Best Bars Toyota 86 champion following the announcement by Tony Quinn recently that the winner will be offered a test drive with Triple Eight Racing. “They will see how a top team works from the engineering and technical side to the driving side of things. And of course they will have a golden opportunity to catch the eye of those…

A head of the inclusion of an electric vehicle (EV) class into the NHRA line-up, the bar has been raised by Ford Performance and its Mustang Cobra Jet 1400. With NHRA funny car racer pilot Bob Tasca III behind the wheel, the Mustang ran a new EV record of 8.128s at 171.97mph during the NHRA Summit Racing Nationals in Norwalk, Ohio. “It’s very special whenever you can be a part of something so new,” states Tasca III, the current points leader in funny cars seeming quite taken by the experience. “It’s really amazing. It’s like a slingshot, it does a nice wheel-stand, and you don’t feel a twist in the chassis, there’s no vibration, and it’s smooth. Everyone involved has worked so hard and continues to improve this technology. I…

There have been a number of mid-engined Corvette concepts trotted out by GM over the years, but none has come closer to production than the coolest (controversial, we know) of them all, the 1990 CERV III. The story of this car really begins decades earlier, when engineers at GM, headed by famous racer and engineer Zora Arkus-Duntov, created the CERV project. Originally standing for ‘Chevrolet Experimental Race Vehicle’, it was a skunkworks-style programme that was carried out mostly under the radar, due to GM banning factory-backed racing of any kind at the time. By the time the first CERV car was shown to the public in 1960 — the cigar-like, mid-engined open-wheeler CERV I — the name was instead changed to ‘Chevrolet Experimental Research Vehicle’ in what seems like a…

At the risk of coming across as name dropping, I first met Andy Brizio back in 1997 when he was guest of honor at Oceanside Street Rods who hosted the first Pre 49 Street Rod Nationals in Papamoa. Andy, his wife Sue, pals Chet and Shirley Thomas, and the late Gary Meadors (Goodguys), and his wife Marilyn, all enjoyed the laid-back atmosphere of your typical New Zealand event. Prior to meeting Andy and hitting it off, I had only read about his long and rich hot rod history in the pages of Rod & Custom Magazine. Andy was born in 1932 (very appropriate), and he was the starter at Half Moon Bay Dragstrip, founded Andy’s Instant T (a T-bucket kit set company), owned Champion Speed Shop, and founded Andy’s T’s…

WHAT’S YOUR IDEA? Have you got a wild concept idea? If so, we need you to transfer that information to an email to editor@v8.co.nz. All we need in the first instance is a simple outline of the idea. Then, if you’re chosen to have Callum bring your concept to life for you, we’ll get in contact and extract all the added info to make sure your concept is totally badass. We’re not looking for some run-of-the-mill car here; we want forward thinking, out of the box, and unique. Maybe it’s a modern-day street freak, a radical ’60s custom, or a five-second street car — whatever it is, don’t let logic or budget stand in your way. So, get your thinking caps on and fire us an email. Hitting the race…

Welcome to Llama Engineering! After a recent workshop move, Llama, based in Petone in the Wellington region, decided to host an open day for the first time, to showcase what the company is all about. After hearing the name being thrown around, we decided it was time to check it out. From first glance, it’s clear to see that Llama specialises in all makes and models — the equipment it has on board is geared to cater for all performance needs, from dyno tuning and auto electrical to engine building, fabrication, and machining — with the goal of being a one-stop shop! The day promises to be action packed and kicks off with a health and safety briefing by co-owner Marc, followed by a serious wake-up call: the team fires…

NZV8: Hi, Lisa. That’s a fairly big truck you’re driving; what’s the model? Lisa: Hey, it’s a ’94 Chevrolet C1500. How long have you had it? I‘ve owned it for about 18 months now. Was it a local truck, or did you have to go outside of Canterbury to get it? No, it wasn’t local. I had to buy it from the North Island. I found it on Trade Me, so I went up for a look and bought it. Were you looking for a Chev, or would you have bought a Ford or Dodge? No, I’m definitely a Chevrolet girl, that’s all I own. I also have a blue ’65 Caprice sitting at home. So, we’re guessing you get asked this a fair bit, but why the truck? Well,…