NZ Performance Carの No 290 June - July 2021 の目次

When I took over as the editor of this magazine, I had somewhat been out of the ‘game’, as it had been a few years since I had worked full time in Parkside Media towers. With this appointment, there came a few small problems: who would help me produce this kickass printed New Zealand car scene outlet? On paper, there were a few solid contributors in the works that I scooped up on the way in, but what I was really hunting for was a collective of automotive humans bursting at the seams with a passion for not only the car scene but also its preservation and lifestyle. I envisioned myself at the helm of a magazine produced not by me but by a bunch of cool cats from all…

Tyler West is now the proud holder of a Formula Drift Japan licence, having earned the right to compete offshore by taking out the recent MSC Challenge New Zealand (MSC NZ) held at Meremere Drift Park. MSC NZ is an affiliated series of the Japanese parent, and in non-Covid times we’d have seen Iwata-san and Robbie Nishida down in New Zealand for the event, which is run using a maximum-width 235 radial rear tyre. This year’s series was held over three separate weekends at the Drift Academy International home venue and used three different layouts to test driver skills. There is a focus on driver development, so there was plenty of practice available each day. West was the benchmark across the series, qualifying first in all three rounds and winning…

A well-rounded street car build is not something you see so often these days — it seems that our scene has partially fractured over the last decade, diverging and coagulating into more and more focused subcategories. No-nonsense race cars, battle-hardened drift cars, and period-correct restored vintage tin are now the staple diet in this country — and that’s no bad thing, but there was a time when our roads were crawling with genuine street cars that mixed just the right amounts of looks, power, and usability. That’s absolutely not to say that it’s a lost art, though. Those builds — like Sara Hansen’s daily-driven 2007 Mitsubishi Evo X — are still out there stalking the streets. Sara clearly remembers her very first interaction with an Evo. It was, after all,…

René: Callum, I’ve met you in person in Sydney, and now you’re living in Vancouver; can you tell us your background in little ol’ New Zealand and how you got into cars? Callum: Hey, René. I grew up in Christchurch and had an interest in cars from a young age. My first job was a milk run, and the guy and his son who ran the milk run had an SR20DET-powered AE86 race car that they built and competed in. That showed me how far you can go really, and I was hooked from there! There’s no denying that you’re one incredibly trendy individual both personally and in your automotive styling — what inspires your style? Haha, thanks! Automotive styling–wise, it’s generally late ’90s–early 2000s Japanese style, and individually, it’s…

SERIOUS STYLE The Rotiform SNA is a custom forged, three-piece wheel, handmade in the USA. With a nod towards retro European styling blended with cutting edge profiles and new construction techniques, Rotiform wheels push the limits of modern car modification. With flexible specs and colours, there’s every chance you will find the fit that completes your vehicle. Check them out at dtm.co.nz. STRAP IN FOR THE RIDE! Strap in tight, there’s a new parts store in town! Zoo Performance NZ specialises in a wide range of performance-related products, including fittings, hoses, oil and fuel systems, manifolds, throttle bodies, RTS G-Force gearboxes, and even Winters quick-change differentials. It also has a range of its own Zoo Performance NZ products. Introducing the Zoo Performance NZ six-point Hans (head and neck support) and…

NZPC: Hey, Mehul. Thanks for meeting with us. Tell us your background with cars and how you got into modifying them. Mehul: Hey, guys. I have loved cars since I was a kid, since my first-ever car game Midtown Madness 2, which I got in a cereal box; then the Fast and Furious movies with Paul Walker, and Need for Speed Underground. The Silvia is definitely unique! What’s the story behind it? It was originally built in Japan by Keita Kikuchi of 326power and then imported to New Zealand by Cany Customs. What upgrades have been done to the Silvia that make it so unique? Honestly, so many things; countless hours spent on paint, bodywork, and the extreme suspension set-up. The styling of the car is super unique; the white…

For the past three years, Liam has been building a very unique combo. Altezza builds aren’t uncommon, but when you chuck a four-litre six-cylinder turbo Barra motor into the mix, things start to get interesting. “I decided to do this conversion because I have always loved Fords and the base of an Altezza is perfect. They handle really well for what they are,” he says. This won’t be any normal Barra swap, though. Liam plans on the engine producing around 521kW at the wheels, which will be achieved thanks to a full host of upgrades. Most notably, the Garrett GT4202R turbo will be putting in the hard yards, controlled by a Turbosmart 50mm Pro-Gate. Being that the factory J160 Altezza gearbox is made from glass, Liam will be using a…

Hi all! I’m honoured to be your hero contributor this month — a dream come true for me growing up as an enthusiast, and an extra page to add some more Mazda madness perhaps? Thank you to all who followed along and enjoyed the previous edition with The Great Rotary Roadie — I’ve certainly paid for it since, buying out the last of the parts on shelves prior to the biggest summer rotary event of the year, REunion. I’m so thrilled to see more of these Japanese enthusiast events come along in a time when we can’t travel overseas for our car thrills, and look forward to meeting more of you at the upcoming Mad Mike Rotary Summer Drags or Impulsive Rotary Only Day. I know; my event tastes sure…

Contactless ceramic protection in under five minutes flat. Uh-huh. Seems too good to be true, right? No rubbing, no buffing, and no machines required. OK, so it’s not quite contactless, but it’s pretty damn close. Meguiar’s Hybrid Ceramic Wax is a spray-on application that is the simplest and most foolproof waxing process we’ve ever used. Part of Meguiar’s new ceramic range that has its SiO2 hybrid technology, this wax can be sprayed on as part of your regular weekly car-care regime, giving you ceramic protection in minutes. You need to ensure that your panels are clean from contaminants before applying, so it’s best to do it directly after a wash. Work a panel at a time — wet with a hose, and then spray on a liberal coat of the…

Sometimes, there’s just no going past a well-done, clean Nissan. Even better again, is one with custom paint, wide guards, and a stout engine conversion — all a combination for an incredibly good time, sure. But too often with Silvias we see them butchered beyond belief with conversions done poorly, panel gaps bigger than the Grand Canyon, and WOF stickers that turned up in an envelope. So, when one slides into your inbox impeccably mastered, with an engine conversion tastefully done, it’s a welcome sight — and that, my friends, is exactly what we have here. No doubt, plenty of you will have seen this car around in the scene. It’s an incredibly hard one to miss, and just recently it has changed ownership into another enthusiast’s hands, as a…

One thousand, four hundred and sixty days — one could complete a whole ton of road trips in that time. Being a teacher at a private school in Japan made it easy to take big chunks of time off. Most people in my situation would travel to nearby countries like South Korea and Taiwan, but I spent my time exploring the Land of the Rising Sun. Japan’s public transport is astounding. Planes, bullet trains, regular trains, metros, intercity buses, and cheap taxis — any normal Japanese person would use these quick and largely inexpensive options to travel around the country — but I’m not a normal Japanese person, am I? I decided the best option to get to various destinations in Japan would be a Nissan Silvia S14. Let’s say…

AGE: 33 // LOCATION: HAMILTON // OCCUPATION: ENGINEER NZPC: Hey, Joel. Good to catch up with you again! Tell us, how exactly did you find yourself ending up with this Cefiro and what state was it in? Joel: It all started with an idea to build a practice/fun car, which was a C33 Laurel. That car got a lot of track time over the years, but once the C33 was a bit far gone, I wanted to re-shell everything into a street car. So I was on the lookout for a rolling body, and one day this matte black A31 Cefiro from south Auckland popped up on Facebook Marketplace. It ticked all the boxes, being it had live plates, already had a cert, and had coilovers and the GTR wheels.…

Initially, this build did not start out as you see it. Sure, that’s how most builds go, right? A few different engine combinations, and so forth. However, this time the engine has remained and instead Joshua is onto his second body. “I originally bought an S14 from Whangarei with a 1JZ already installed. The original owner planned to get it registered, but I just used it as a drift car,” Joshua tells us. At that point, he had Geoff from NZ Wiring make a new wiring harness for the Link G4+ ECU and Dinh from Spec2 Developments custom fabricate an exhaust manifold for it. However, the bother of always having to use a trailer and not being able to just take the car for a drive on a nice sunny…

Most of us are probably thinking that 2020 was the worst year ever, and would quite happily push the reset button if we could. There is no doubting the fact that Covid-19 has affected tens of thousands of people, businesses, and events throughout the country, and the car scene here in New Zealand certainly hasn’t escaped the fallout from this pandemic. During the course of 2020, we saw hundreds of our favourite events cancelled or postponed, which came at a heavy cost to many. Down here in the south, the South Island Mini-truckin guys had planned their Southern Slammed Minitruck and Air Bagged Show, following on from their successful 2019 event, but try as they might, it was taken out of their hands. With a new date set for Saturday,…

Yeah, you read that right — the Yokohama World Time Attack Challenge (WTAC) is back for 2021 after being cancelled in 2020 due to Covid-19. An event that sees visitors from all over the world, the Government of New South Wales (NSW) has recognised WTAC as a major event, and through its tourism and major events agency — Destiny NSW — is backing WTAC until 2025 as an event that will help stimulate the economy post pandemic. Just recently, the NSW Government has invested A$33M into Sydney Motorsport Park, and it now features an epic new LED-light upgrade around the entire circuit. Why is this cool? WTAC plans to run Time Attack racing well into the night, adding an entirely new element to the popular event. “As much as we…

The eighth season of Repco Muscle Garage is due back on screen on Three’s CRC Motorsport from 1pm on Sunday, 16 May. The show takes an in-depth look at the finest hot rods, street machines, and muscle cars from around the country, while also profiling the talented Kiwis behind the builds. As in previous seasons, there are also visits to some of the best sheds and workshops in the country, as well as reports on events like Beach Hop, Morrinsville Motorama, and Americana. Episode one kicks off in fine fashion with action from the return of the Classic Cover Jalopy Dust Up, as well as a look at Glen Eggleton’s blown ’71 Chevelle, and New Zealand’s master of all-things Studebaker, Trev Halstead, throws open the doors of his Waikato workshop…

It’s crazy to think these days that the affordable Japanese performance machines we grew up with have skyrocketed into the collector’s realm. What were once affordable platforms able to be modified to take on the much more expensive European cars are now more expensive than their Euro counterparts. However, it’s what we know and love, and Ashnil Kumar has been building and modifying Nissans for as long as he has been into cars. His last T88-powered R33 GT-R was imported from Japan and made over 500kW at the wheels — a true street monster. This time, Ashnil had a goal in mind: to send a GT-R into the ninesecond range down the quarter-mile — enter ‘KLAZLA’. “It has always been a goal of mine to own a fully road-going, nine-second…

Last issue, in our Scrapyard Gains segment, we delved into what it would take to build a Volkswagen Golf GTI capable of similar performance to that of a Golf R Mk6. There’s nothing cooler than performance on a budget, and the Golf GTI is an incredibly capable hot-hatch platform straight from the factory. However, what’s next? Have you clocked the Golf GTI game and you’re after a heap more performance? When it comes to tuning and modifying Euro performance cars in New Zealand, there aren’t too many people doing it extensively. Sure, there are maps and reflashes getting loaded onto German whips up and down the country, but how do you go further? To answer this question, we dove into the minds of the mad scientists at EuroSurgeon, who have…

There is something special about this event that the lower North Island claims and adopts as its own showcase of the import automotive community. It’s hard to explain exactly what it is, but anyone attending can see and feel the relaxed, happy vibe and recognise that things are just a little different down in this part of the island. Perhaps it is the way entrants are greeted by the smiling Downtime Entertainment crew, or the fact there is a little something for everyone, from show cars, to cruising, to burnouts, and then you top it off with the drift and Time Attack show. Jamboree is simply a huge melting pot of styles and tastes. If you looked at the weather early Saturday morning, you would have been forgiven for thinking…

WITH A SPUD CANNON THAT BLOWS FLAMES ON YOUR LEFT AND THE SCREAMING ENGINE IN FRONT, YOU CAN’T HELP BUT FEEL ALIVE Thinking outside the box’ for some is too passive; it’s the ‘doing outside the box’ that really counts. Truly taming the clay requires a special recipe of inch-perfect development and mechanical harmony that has been finely tuned to a tee. Modern speedway midgets have a very similar mechanical likeness; however, there is one car that has a set-up, sound, and presence unlike any other, and that car belongs to Brent Curran. Now, Brent needs no introduction to the readers of NZPC. A Kiwi rotary drag racing stalwart and driver of the records-mashing Castrol RX-2 quad-rotor, Brent has long harboured a love for speedway, and fond childhood memories of…

NZPC: Hey, Brook. Thanks for catching up with us. How did you get into modifying cars and how long ago was that? Brook: Hey! It started at a young age. I was surrounded by the car scene as a kid. My old man was and is still into his cars — slightly different taste, but the passion is definitely the same. Why the JZX100 platform? I’ve owned a few S-chassis cars and wanted a change and brought my first JZX chassis. I didn’t have it for very long and went back to a 180SX, but I had already caught the 1JZ bug and bought another and haven’t looked back. What have you done to the engine set-up and why? Got a tad bored with the factory power and took the…

Paul Wiggy is no rookie with a Toyota GT-Four–based platform. Having owned and modified several in the past — one to the extent of near-on 400kW — he wasn’t about to shy away from another hefty project. Paul has owned this particular ST165 for a number of years and, instead of selling it on, decided he’d make a go of building what he describes as a showpiece. “This 165 is harks back to the Japanese ’80s racers — wild kits, wide and low, and it will have classic-looking Rota D154 wheels in black,” Paul tells us. To widen the track by 50mm each side, a custom steel widebody is currently being handmade by Mike at M-Spec. Power-wise, the ST165 will have around 200kW at the wheels, which should move it…