Rust in Peace

New Zealand is littered with trucks that have long since had their glory day. Some lay hidden in dusty back lots on the outskirts of town. Some stand in the middle of the nation’s paddocks, covered in moss, almost blending into the scenery. But each has a story to tell; each was once a valued partner on the road, someone’s first truck, someone’s million-miler. Rust in Peace gives these forgotten heroes one more moment in the limelight and, when possible, shares their stories.

A COUPLE OF COMMERS

On the lonely MastertonCastlepoint Road is Glentarn Farm, owned by the Groves family. Peter, the 89-yearold patriarch, made a name for himself in the local area supplying fertiliser for airstrips, a job for which he had a handful of Commers, some of which are still on the property today.

Out front, proudly facing the road, is the cab and chassis of a late 1940s model, its Air Contractors (1969) livery still visible on the faded bodywork.

At the back of the property, alongside a babbling brook, is another – only in much worse shape. Most of the windows are missing, and the chassis and bodywork are unsalvageable and overrun by nature. Peter’s daughter, Margie, explains that the decision’s been made to leave this one in situ to make a garden feature. A deck will be built over the chassis as an outdoor seating area.

As for the Air Contractors cab and chassis out front, it’s on its way to being sold. “The man buying it used to drive it. He’s got a good chassis for it,” explains Margie.

It’s unclear whether either was once fitted with the famous TS3 ‘Knocker’ engine, but between the chassis rails of the model at the back of the property clearly sits the 3.75-litre in-line ‘slant six’ petrol engine offered on earlier models.

Story by Gavin Myers

Castlepoint Road, Masterton