LUNCH WITH … A SECON D BITE OF TH E G R AE M E L AWRE NCE STORY
THE FALCON GT 351
HISTORY-MAKER
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ISSUE 342 $10.99 INCL. GST JUNE 2019
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CADILLAC COUPE
A PIECE OF A M E R IC A N LUXU RY
PORSCHE T1
A V E R Y E A R LY PORSCHE
MASERATI BORA
I TA L I A N S U P E R C A R FROM THE ’70s
M OTO R M A N R E CO U N T S T H E T I M E W H E N M G B s W E R E B U I LT H E R E
6 FALCON GT
REMEMBERED FOR ALL THE RIGHT REASONS
CONTENTS
342 JUNE 2019
16 MASERATI BORA
A NOT-SO-WELL-KNOWN ITALIAN THOROUGHBRED
24 LUNCH WITH …
PART TWO OF MICHAEL CLARK’S TALK TO GRAEME LAWRENCE
36 RUDGE
ANOTHER PART OF THE ALMOST-VANISHED UK MOTORCYCLE INDUSTRY
40 A FAMOUS COMMODORE A RARE FIND FROM NZ’S MOTOR-RACING PAST
42 THE PORSCHE TYPE 1
A CAR THAT CHANGED IT ALL FOR PORSCHE
52 TECHNICAL FEATURE
PREPARING YOUR CLASSIC FOR PAINTING
64 PLYMOUTH ROAD RUNNER FAMOUS AMERICAN MUSCLE
72 CADILLAC COUPE FAMOUS AMERICAN LUXURY
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CONTENTS
342 JUNE 2019
42 COLUMNS 58 80 84 86
MOTOR SPORT FLASHBACK KITS AND PIECES PRICE ON MOTORMAN
EVENTS
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101 102 104 105 106 108
AUCKLAND BRIT AND EURO CLASSIC CAR SHOW TRACTION SANS FRONTIERES CITROEN TOUR QUALITAT VW NATIONALS ZEPHYR NATIONALS WHEELS AT WANAKA RALLY OF WHANGAREI
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102
FEATURE
1971 Ford Falcon XY GT
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F O R D A U S T R A L I A’ S FA L C O N G T s
BORN TO WIN BATHURST B AT H U R S T WA S T H E E N T R Y P O I N T FOR THIS LOCAL LEGEND Words: Quinton Taylor Photos: Quinton Taylor / Allan Moffat collection / New Zealand Classic Car archive
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FEATURE 1974 Maserati Bora
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Hurricane Force M A S E R AT I N A M E D A
NUMBER OF ITS CARS AFTER WINDS BECAUSE, I N I T S O P I N I O N , T H AT ’ S W H AT T H E C A R S G O LIKE — THE WIND! Words: Ashley Webb Photos: Adam Croy
T
he dramatic mid-engine Bora, named after the katabatic wind of the same name — a sometimes hurricane-force wind that blows off the Adriatic Sea — was the star of the show when it was officially unveiled to an enthusiastic crowd at the Geneva Motor Show in March 1971. The Bora, Maserati’s first and only mid-engine V8 supercar, known internally as the Tipo 117, was a response to the gorgeous Lamborghini Miura. It first saw daylight in the summer of 1969, as the Italian car manufacturer started testing the first prototype of the car. Maserati commissioned Italdesign, Giorgetto Giugiaro’s burgeoning design company, to develop this new genre of Maserati, resulting in a body design that was indeed striking, with svelte angular lines showcasing its unique engine bay. It was totally covered in a glass canopy, emphasized by a low roofline covered in brushed stainless steel. Giulio Alfieri, the co-designer of the legendary 250F Formula One car, was given the task of
developing all technical aspects of the Bora, and construction of the bodywork was entrusted to Officine Padane SpA of Modena. The Ferrari Daytona introduced in 1968 sported a conventional front-engine V12 layout, so Maserati’s decision to make the Ghibli’s replacement midengined demonstrated its intense eagerness to establish the company’s technical expertise in design and engineering. During the design phase of the Bora, Maserati demanded that the new supercar be stylish, solidly built, fast and reliable and, above all, refined and comfortable.
Technically advanced Underneath the handsome Italdesign body design, the Bora was technically advanced for the time. Alfieri turned to Maserati’s fabulous 4.7-litre quad-cam alloy V8 engine descended from the 450S race car to ensure the sleek mid-engined cruiser performed as well as it looked good. Mounted longitudinally ahead of the rear axle,
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FEATURE 1957 Porsche 356A
DER WINDHUND IT’S GERMAN FOR ‘THE GREYHOUND’ AND WAS A N E A R LY N I C K N A M E G I V E N T O A L I T T L E G E R M A N S P O R T S C A R , M O R E F O R I T S F A C TO R Y S TA N D A R D GRE Y COLOUR THAN ITS SPEED Words and photos: Patrick Harlow
42 New Zealand Classic Car | themotorhood.com
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FEATURE Cadillac Series 61
SHE’S A
HONEY
CADILLAC PROVIDES A G R E AT E N G I N E A N D TR ANSMISSION FOR WAR Words and photos: Kevin Casey and Quinton Taylor
72 New Zealand Classic Car | themotorhood.com
W
e speak flippantly, fondly, or derisively of ‘Yank tanks’, but there was a car — a Cadillac, no less — linked closely to that expression for a reason other than its accepted meaning. It wasn’t all bad in 1941. Although much of the world was suffering the tumult of war, the US still prospered. Many of her citizens suspected that they would eventually be drawn into this tragic conflict and probably guessed that it would not be over any time soon. This would result in car production being severely reduced, but, in the meantime, car sales boomed. Cadillac, along with most other marques, enjoyed record sales: up more than 19,000 over 1940. More than 29,000 of these sales came from the new Series 61 Cadillac, which replaced the La Salle, terminated after a 14-year reign. The La Salle had become too good a car for the money and had eroded sales of the higher profit-margin Cadillac. The Series 61, with its widely copied fastback styling (Bentley, for one) proved to be the best-selling model in the 1941 Cadillac range.
New face, new engine, new transmission For the first time since 1927, all Cadillac models were powered by the same engine, and what an engine it was: first choice for bootleggers, hot rodders, race drivers, and the army. Three-hundred-and-forty-six cubic inches (5.7 litres) of swept volume gets compressed at a ratio of 7.25:1 in the monobloc, L-head engine, resulting in 150hp (112kW) at 3400rpm. This legendarily smooth-running V8 was introduced in 1936. Its exceptional quietness was due in no small way to General Motors’ (GM) invention of the hydraulic valve-lifter. Oldsmobile had trialled GM’s new Hydra-Matic transmission as an option in 1940 and now offered it as a US$125 Cadillac option. Oldsmobile had also market tested this option. This was an important test at a much higher volume. If the transmission were a dud, the Cadillac reputation would not be compromised. Development of the transmission started in 1934, and it was introduced in October 1939. The Hydra-Matic is the granddaddy of all modern automatics. A glance inside the transmission reveals all the bands, clutches,
and valve bodies recognizable in today’s transmissions. Other car manufacturers such as Lincoln, Hudson, Nash, and Rolls-Royce used the Hydra-Matic, which was only finally superseded in about 1956. It was used in some applications until 1964.
Helping the war effort With war on the horizon, the US Army still had no ready supply of dedicated tank engines. It knew how good the Cadillac engine was and commissioned the M5 Stuart light tank in November 1941. Two Cadillac engines could handle the 15-tonne weight and powered these tanks to an impressive (official) 36mph (58kph), although their drivers claimed 45mph (72kph) was attainable. The engines were mounted backwards on either side towards the rear, and power was delivered through two Hydra-Matics and drive shafts to a two-speed transfer case. This gave eight forward speeds and two reverse. Speed, manoeuvrability, quietness, reliability, and a 60-degree hill-climbing ability were offset by light armour, lack of firepower, and a high profile.
‘She’s a honey!’ They were so smooth and quiet that tank crews regarded them as stealthy. British soldiers called them ‘Honey’, as in, ‘She’s a honey’. However, despite uprating the rather puny 37mm main gun, too many crews died in them, so their role eventually became mainly reconnaissance and escort duty. Thousands were sent to the Pacific theatre in 1944, where they could beat up the even lighter armoured Japanese tanks. More than 25,000 Cadillac-powered vehicles were produced for the war effort, and another 10,000 engines went to other armoured-vehicle manufacturers. It is a tribute to the extraordinary might of US industry that the first M5 rolled off the assembly line only 55 days after the last Cadillac. Development of the Hydra-Matic continued throughout the war with many improvements, so many that very few post-war parts interchange with the pre-war version, although they appear identical. Post-war advertising lauded the HydraMatic as “battle-tested”, and so it was; this rugged, reliable transmission was also a favourite of drag racers well into the ’60s.
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LUNCH WITH … A SECOND BITE OF TH E G R AE M E L AWRE NCE STORY NEW ZEALAND CLASSIC CAR JUNE 2019 ISSUE 342
FALCON GT • CADILLAC COUPE • PLYMOUTH ROAD RUNNER • GRAEME LAWRENCE • MASERATI BORA • HTC COMMODORE
THE FALCON GT 351
HISTORY-MAKER
MUSCLE GARAGE SUNDAYS ON
ISSUE 342 $10.99 INCL. GST JUNE 2019
themotorhood.com
CADILLAC COUPE
A PIECE OF A M E R IC A N LUXU RY
PORSCHE T1
A V E R Y E A R LY PORSCHE
MASERATI BORA
I TA L I A N S U P E R C A R FROM THE ’70s
M OTO R M A N R E CO U N T S T H E T I M E W H E N M G B s W E R E B U I LT H E R E
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