New Zealand Classic Car 315 — Preview

SOUTHERN HEAVEN – WE VISIT BILL RICHARDSON TRANSPORT WORLD NEW ZEALAND CLASSIC CAR MARCH 2017 ISSUE 315

NZFMR CELEBRATING 1966 JAGUAR E-TYPE FHC • 1961 JAGUAR E-TYPE OTS • RICHARDSON TRANSPORT WORLD • PORSCHE 718 CAYMAN S

KENNY SMITH

DAY AT RACES

A CLASSIC THE

ISSUE 315 $9.99 INCL. GST MARCH 2017

themotorhood.com

NZ’S LARGEST CLASSIC CAR SHOW

BOXING CLEVER

WE DRIVE THE NEW 718 PORSCHE CAYMAN S

GRACE SPACE& PACE CONCOURS D' ELEGANCE TEAM EVENT WINNERS

YO U R C O M P L E T E G U I D E T O 2 0 1 7 TA R G A R O T O R U A

CONTENTS

315

6

MARCH 2017

FEATURE CARS

4 A CLASSIC DAY AT THE RACES

FULL REVIEW OF THE ELLERSLIE CLASSIC CAR SHOW 2017

10 GRACE, SPACE, AND PACE X2

TEAMS EVENT–WINNING E-TYPES

16 BILL RICHARDSON TRANSPORT WORLD

A STROLL THROUGH CLASSIC CAR AND MOTORCYCLE MECCA

26 BOXING CLEVER

THE NEW PORSCHE 718 CAYMAN TESTED

54 GLORIA

10

A PERFECT SURVIVOR

16 26 2

New Zealand Classic Car | themotorhood.com

SPECIAL FEATURE

60 PREP AND PAINT WE CONSULT THE EXPERTS ON HOW

TO ACHIEVE THE PERFECT FINISH

COLUMNS

38 MOTOR SPORT FLASHBACK 44 KITS AND PIECES 48 MOTORMAN 66 LOCAL MARKET REPORT 90 PRICE ON

LIKE US ON FACEBOOK — SEARCH ‘NZ CLASSIC CAR ’

EVENTS

70 TARGA ROTORUA — ROUTES, ITINERARY, AND COMPETITOR LIST 76 NZFMR CELEBRATING KENNY SMITH 80 TAUPO HISTORIC GRAND PRIX 82 HISTORIC MUSCLE CARS 83 ROTORUA VINTAGE AND VETERAN CAR SHOW 84 AMERICAN VEHICLE DAY

48

38

70 76

REGULARS

32 READERS’ WRITES 34 ONLINE THIS MONTH 36 SUBSCRIBE AND WIN 68 NEWS 88 EVENTS DIARY 92 BEHIND THE GARAGE DOOR 94 CLUB CORNER 96 QUICK QUIZ / CROSSWORD 98 AUTOMOBILIA 102 SELL YOUR CLASSIC 103 EDITOR’S PICK 104 CLASSIC CARS FOR SALE 110 LOCAL SPECIALISTS 112 NEXT MONTH

68 themotorhood.com | New Zealand Classic Car

3

REPORT

Ellerslie Classic Car Show 2017

A C L A S S I C DAY AT T H E R AC E S

4

New Zealand Classic Car | themotorhood.com

RECORD NUMBERS AT T H I S Y E A R ’ S ELLERSLIE CLASSIC CAR SHOW IS EVIDENCE T H AT O U R C L A S S I C C A R HOBBY IS ALIVE AND WELL Words: Lachlan Jones Photos: Adam Croy

O

ver 850 cars made their annual pilgrimage to the 44th Ellerslie Classic Car Show in Auckland on Sunday February 12, which, for the second successive year, was hosted by the Porsche Club of New Zealand, These vehicles and their owners represented over 70 car clubs from around the country.

The theme was ‘A Classic Day at the Races’, to celebrate not only the location (the iconic Ellerslie Racecourse, which has been home to the show for over 30 years) but also as a homage to the racing pedigree of many of the vehicles on display.

On any other day, it’s a fight to find a good car park at such an event as this. But when it comes to the premier classic car show in New Zealand, you could afford a few extra moments prowling a car park packed with the likes of an E30 M3 parked next to an E39 M5 — for sale via a note in the window — alongside an immaculate Toyota Starlet and a filthy Alfa Romeo Spider.

Once inside, there was an excellent atmosphere, with our shared passion covering every centimetre of space — from the front lawn right through to the winner’s circle, onto the Champagne Lawn and into the Newmarket Room. With well into the 10s of millions of dollars of vehicles on display at Ellerslie, it was difficult not to get excited. From the characters of the Horseless Carriage Club of New Zealand, who showed off the best motors roaming the streets prior to 1919 to new-car manufacturers showing off their latest and greatest offerings, the show truly had something for all.

Wandering around, it seemed that each club had brought an even higher level of enthusiasm and excitement for their chosen gang than they had to last year’s event. It was also excellent to see new clubs popping up with younger members at the helm, such as the VW Audi Sportklub of NZ, which had an excellent mix of old and new vehicles on show.

Above: Attention to detail was evident in the Auckland Mustang Owners Club Team’s entries Above: The very collectable and highly sought after Porsche 911 R on display Right: The Horseless Carriage Club took the crowd back to another world. Members had their vehicles running throughout the day, to the glee of the crowd (especially the young ones) Below: Mark Patterson’s Coventry Classics–built Jaguar C-Type on display in the Newmarket Room

themotorhood.com | New Zealand Classic Car

5

FEATURE

1961 Jaguar E-Type Series 1 OTS and 1966 Jaguar E-Type Series 1 FHC

10 New Zealand Classic Car | themotorhood.com

GRACE …

SPACE …

PACE x 2

WITH THE HIGHEST

TEAMS EVENT SCORE EVER ACHIEVED IN THE 44 YEARS OF THE ELLERSLIE CLASSIC C AR SHOW, TH ESE T WO M A G N I F I C E N T E -T Y P E S H AV E S E T A N E W PRECEDENT Words: Ashley Webb Photos: Adam Croy

T

he Teams Event competition at the Ellerslie Classic Car Show is hotly contested every year. Any car club can enter two of its finest cars to compete against other clubs, and, for those keen enough, there’s provision to enter more than one team at the organizing committee’s discretion. This has been evident in the last few years, with the Auckland Mustang Owners Club going to great lengths to enter two teams and having great success.

The Ellerslie Classic Car Show 2017 saw three magnificently presented teams from two car clubs enter: one from the Auckland Jaguar Drivers Club and two from the Auckland Mustang Owners Club. The stakes are high — the right to host the following year’s event, the right to have two club members present on the organizing committee, and a larger percentage of the gate takings. But this competition is more than that, it’s about club pride, and the satisfaction of presenting two cars against the rest is what keeps car clubs presenting teams every year.

With two teams entered again in this year’s event, the Auckland Mustang Owners Club was no doubt keen for victory after last year’s loss to the Porsche Club of New Zealand, represented by David Mackrell’s magnificent Porsche 356 and Dean Huston’s awardwinning Porsche 911, which gained a total combined score of 1056 points out of a possible 1180.

However, one club put paid to that notion by winning with the highest total combined score of themotorhood.com | New Zealand Classic Car

11

ART DECO ON

TAY S T R E E T

BILL RICHARDSON TRANSPORT WORLD HAS ADDED TO ITS COLLECTION WITH THE PURCHASE OF STURGESS’ NEW ZEALAND CLASSIC M OTO RCYCLES COLLECTION AND THE C R E AT I O N O F C L A S S I C M OTO RCYCLE M ECC A Words and photos: Quinton Taylor

themotorhood.com | New Zealand Classic Car

17

Below and right: Mixed bag — real variety and part of the old display now incorporated

Y

ou feel an immediate sense of pride when you talk to Southlanders about the efforts a dedicated team has put in, achieving the completion of Bill Richardson Transport World, on Tay Street in Invercargill. Opened in December 2015, this stunning piece of art-deco design has been complemented by the recent opening of one of the biggest collections of classic motorcycles in the southern hemisphere.

Now named ‘Classic Motorcycle Mecca’, and located further along Tay Street in the central city, it was officially opened during the Burt Munro Rally on November 23, 2016, by UK motorcycle racer and television personality Guy Martin.

The separate motorcycle exhibition evolved after it was realized that the collection of more than 300 machines and associated artefacts would have been far too big to house at Bill Richardson Transport World, so an alternative site was located to do it justice.

Southland trucking identity Bill Richardson died in 2005, but the transport legacy he created lives on in this landmark building. It was a huge project, largely driven by his daughter, Jocelyn O’Donnell, who, with husband Scott O’Donnell, is a director of the collection. Together with the Richardson family and enthusiasts, they turned her father’s passion into reality, creating one of the largest collections of its kind in the world and a must-see on any holiday itinerary, with something to entertain all the family.

Both complexes are also brilliant time capsules of

18 New Zealand Classic Car | themotorhood.com

many facets of the growth of the Southland region, with the motorcycle exhibition capturing notable historic moments in its own right.

The success of Bill Richardson Transport World at heralding a direction for future projects in the region has been immediate. Shortly after the opening of the Classic Motorcycle Mecca, the significantly underdeveloped tourism industry in the south received a positive $2.4M boost from government, announced by ministers Steven Joyce and Nathan Guy, as part of an overall Southern Regional Development Plan. Held appropriately at a function at Bill Richardson Transport World on November 30, 2016, Mr Joyce said it was part of a continuing investment in southern development in a number of areas to encourage private investment.

Bill Richardson’s legacy The growth of the motor industry and, in particular, the transport industry and related services from the early days of the province was crucial to the development of Southland and its vast area. It was only natural that it produced a wide variety of innovative individuals and families, who were not only involved in establishing the industry but have also sought to preserve its legacy through their continuing involvement today.

Jim Cooper, for example, followed a similar business development at Tuatapere, with similar interests to Bill in trucking, and he expanded into Australia. He also had a passion for trucks, and many of Jim’s collection of cars and trucks are now on display at Bill Richardson Transport World.

Below: Great food — The Grille Café, a great place to eat after a tour of the complex

FEATURE

2017 Porsche 718 Cayman S

BOXING CLEVER 7 1 8 C AY M A N S

L

et’s imagine your big brother is a gifted allrounder. He’s fun and popular; he seems to get smarter and better looking as he ages. And your little sister — well, she’s a fair bit younger; not traditionally beautiful, but cute. Surprisingly agile and quick on her feet. A well-balanced young lady able to keep up with the boys. She hangs out with all the hip kids, always has perfect hair. And you? You were an afterthought, really. It feels like you were just a stop gap between your brother and sister. The middle child; not the oldest and first, not the cute young one. Your parents gave you a name similar to that of your brother, as he was so popular, and they wanted some of that to rub off on you. Initially, people didn’t take you all that seriously. You were a strangelooking chap, trying so hard to be like your brother, but somehow you ended up looking far more like your sister.

But, as time went by, your personality and charm began to shine through. And then you went into hiding before reappearing, having had a makeover. All of a sudden, you might just be the cool one.

718 And there, perfectly clunkily, we arrive at the refreshed 718 Porsche Cayman, an extensive facelift of the previous 981 body shape. The last new Porsche we reviewed in this 26 New Zealand Classic Car | themotorhood.com

magazine was the 991.2 911. With that still-current model came the unsurprising news that Porsche had added a couple of turbos onto a smaller displacement engine for the sake of Mother Nature — and more-stringent emissionstesting equipment. The results were excellent, and, from what we understand, the legion of German rear-engine fans have supported Porsche’s move to forced induction. So, with this latest Cayman comes another change of direction for Porsche. Gone is the Cayman’s six-pot naturally aspirated engine; instead, we have with a four-cylinder (you guessed it) turbo motor. And the result? Not bad, Porsche.

Not bad at all.

Shape of things to come The Cayman shares not an insignificant number of parts with the current Boxster (also the 718). In fact, you wouldn’t be miles away if you suggested the Boxster was simply a Cayman without a roof. This allows the Cayman and Boxster to be marketed differently, with the Boxster still pursuing a more feminine clientele and the Cayman targeting a blokier demographic. His and hers, if you will.

To look at, the new Cayman has lines far more reminiscent of the 911 than the previous version, which is a good thing. The detail in the styling will be appreciated, from the multi-bulb headlights to the stick-like rear LEDs

L A C H L A N S P E N D S A D AY W I T H T H E L AT E S T OFFERING FROM PORSCHE Words: Lachlan Jones Photos: Adam Croy

themotorhood.com | New Zealand Classic Car

27

NEXT MONTH 316th issue and past issues

HOT HATCHES — we go back to where it all began for hot hatches with the originals — the Peugeot 205 GTI and the original Volkswagen Golf GTI — and see how these little creatures spawned a performance-car renaissance that continues today.

MOTORMAN — Sunbeam Alpine and Tiger, forgotten ’60s gems: the Rootes Group sports car turned heads with its lovely styling but, as Donn Anderson relates, today they are few and far between …

20 YEARS AGO

10 YEARS AGO

FIVE YEARS AGO

Triumph 2500 S — New Zealand’s number-one classic car?

Split decision — 1963 Corvette Sting Ray

Terrific Tiger — 1965 Sunbeam Tiger

March 1997

March 2007

TO PURCHASE BACK ISSUES ONLINE, GO TO: Photo ID: Jaguar — 1. C-Type 2. E-Type 2+2 3. XJ-S 4. XJ6 Series I 5. XJ220 6. XK140 7. XK150 8. XKSS

March 2012