Preview: NZ Performance Car Issue No. 238

238 ISSUE

OCT. 2016

$9.99 INCL. GST

H A N G I N G W I T H T H E G T- F O U R C L U B

TORQUE MONSTER

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tas o r e ac r d e ent s e r t-p s e b s nd’ a l a Ze w e N of two

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CHROME

NEW ZEALAND’S BIGGEST POWER PARTY

T H R A S H -T E S T I N G T H E F O C U S R S / D E S I G N YO U R O W N A U D I O

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Brothers Cory and Jeremy Abbott have been racing rotaries together since the ’90s, when N/As and IDAs ruled the roost. Things have come a long way since then — and the brothers now campaign a three-quarter-chassis FD RX-7 that holds the title of Australasia’s fastest and quickest 13B. We get the low down on the build of one of the best-presented drag cars in New Zealand

CONTENTS

018 CHRIS AMON — FARMER, DRIVER, AND KIWI LEGEND

One of New Zealand’s greatest driving exports sadly passed away this month.

We pay tribute to Kiwi motor sport legend Chris Amon with a look back at his long-standing career in Formula 1 and tin-tops. Chris was a very strong talent behind the wheel and an active figure in New Zealand motor sport circles

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A serious new contender will join the SS2000 ranks this season — Graeme Smyth’s freshly completed aero-equipped FD RX-7. Powered by an Xtreme Rotaries 13B and backed by a Modena six-speed sequential, the FD is a beautifully presented race car. Driver and fabricator Graeme not only built it, but will also pedal it with championship aspirations

050 RATTLING CAGES

Have a drool over Rattla Motorsport’s newest build, a GT500 Shelby Mustang built with the sole purpose of drifting. Under the hood, there’s a 596kW/1016Nm naturally aspirated small block V8 and five-speed sequential that will decimate any rubber bolted onto the rear

062 DORT DORT

There are many ways to build a killer Honda. Daniel Smith has always been fascinated by the raw circuit-car stylings of Osaka Kanjo Racers, so he took a paddock-found Honda Civic and transformed it into an award-winning individual throttle–bodied B18CR weapon

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CONTENTS

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042 CHROME EXPRESSION SESSION

Full coverage from the biggest event to ever hit Hampton Downs — two days, two tracks, and 500 entrants pushing their machines to the limit, in what has become the ultimate power party on New Zealand soil.

Check out the insanity that can only be the Mothers Chrome Expression Session

068 TUNING JAPANESE: MEIHAN CIRCUIT

Take a guided tour of one of Japan’s most hallowed tracks, Meihan Circuit, with our man Aaron Mai. From that infamous pit-lane wall forever scarred by countless bumper scrapes to its tight and very technical drift layout, Meihan is a favourite in Japan’s grass-roots scene

072 SPECIAL BUILD: GRAVEL BOUND

From an era when lightweight alloy was used in place of roll-cage tube and death and destruction waited around each corner — 1980’s rally will forever live on in infamy. It’s an era that captured Ross Clarke’s imagination so much that he created a faithful replica of a TA63 Celica in his South Auckland shed, compete with genuine engine and body panels

078 THRASH DRIVE

You’ve heard all the hype about the drift mode on the all-new Ford Focus RS — well, lucky for us, Ford was trusting enough to hand us the keys so that we could try it out ourselves. While we refrained from Little Johnny street-drifting antics, we did have a riot driving the RS — find out our thoughts on what is the most hyped performance car of the year

082 GT-FOUR UP

The GT-Four club has been going strong for many years, so, when it held its annual club meet, we went along to see the biggest gathering in a very long time. The gang over at the GT-Four Owners Club knows how to party, and nearly 40 examples of the GT-Four Celica were on display. Check out a few of our favourites

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076 008 EDITORIAL 010 ED. TEAM CHATTER 012 NEWS 016 THE MOTORHOOD 022 CASTROL EDGE PCOTY 040 SUBSCRIBE AND RECEIVE 074 WEEKEND WARRIOR 076 DEMON BABE HUNT 080 GRAM GODS 088 NEW PRODUCTS 092 CRUISE MODE 094 UNDER CONSTRUCTION 096 GIG GUIDE 098 DRAG TIMES 100 DAILY DRIVEN 101 TRADE DIRECTORY 104 WHAT’S COMING NEXT MONTH

A TRIBUTE TO CHRIS AMON

WORDS: JADEN MARTIN PHOTOS: NZCC ARCHIVES

Chris Amon Farmer, driver, and Kiwi legend

THE BEST FORMULA 1 DRIVER TO NEVER WIN A CHAMPIONSHIP GRAND PRIX

he Kiwi driver who was widely considered to be the best Formula 1 driver to have never won a championship Grand Prix, Christopher Amon passed away on August 3 — aged 73. He leaves behind a legacy as a driver with sublime talent at the wheel but a career plagued by near-wins after constant mechanical failures robbed him of the winner’s laurel wreath in championship races. He also held the record for driving for the highest number of teams in the history of the F1 championship.

Born in 1943, Chris grew up in Bulls, a small town near Palmerston North. The family farmed sheep and cattle on their 485 hectares of land, which may have provided a handy practice ground after a magazine report on the 1956 French GP sparked his interest in motor sport. After all, he’d already learned to drive his father’s 1937 Ford pick-up and the farm tractor, and, when his schooldays were over, he began racing an Austin A40 in local events, later graduating to a 1.5-litre Cooper-Climax. Then came the Maserati 250F, which he tested at the young age of 17, competing against Stirling Moss and other visiting European stars of the era.

Behind the wheel of fellow Kiwi Bruce McLaren’s 1959 US GP– winning Cooper-Climax T51, Chris caught the attention of European

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Chris in the ‘Batmobile’ at Spa, 1973

Right: Chris jokes with Ferrari mechanics on the Brands Hatch grid for the 1968 British GP (photo: Donn Anderson)

teams with his efforts in the 1962–’63 Tasman Series. At the age of only 19, Chris arrived in Europe at the invitation of English team manager, Reg Parnell, who had offered him a seat driving the yearold Lola Climax in his F1 team for 1963. He started eight races that year, with two seventh-place finishes, followed by a fifth at Zandvoort the next year, driving the team’s Lotus BRM car. Staying with the team for 1965, Chris only started two races and did not finish either.

But he delivered the greatest achievement of his career in 1966, when he won the 24 Hours of Le Mans at the wheel of a Ford GT40 MkII alongside fellow Kiwi Bruce McLaren. The controversial finish came after Ford held the top three positions late in the race and wanted the first- and second-placed cars to cross the line at the same time, creating a dead heat, seeing this as an excellent marketing opportunity. However, during the final throes of the race, it was discovered that French racing rules meant that the car which had covered the most distance would be declared the winner.

While both managed a perfect side-by-side finish, technically, the McLaren–Amon car had covered the greater distance after starting further back on the grid the day before — regardless of the controversy, the race added a historic sweep of the top three places for the American team. Evidently, this feat caught the attention of Ferrari. It had not been beaten there since 1959, and that drive hadn’t gone unnoticed in Maranello.

Chris met with Enzo Ferrari following the Le Mans win, and the offer was made to drive with Scuderia Ferrari for the ’67 season.

Chris driving a Masarati 250F at Hampton Downs, January 2011

Chris in the 1972 French GP

1993 MAZDA FD RX-7 Although they have carried out a lot of the build themselves with the help of mates, Terry Bowden of Terry’s Chassis Shoppe has been an integral part of the process.

It was 2004 when Cory picked up the FD as a 70,000km uncompliable import. At the time, Rod Harvey and Terry Bowden had just completed the infamous Rayglass Datsun, so the boys paid a visit to Terry. They formulated a plan and jumped on the waiting list. A year later, the FD was dropped in to Terry as a stripped shell with a pair of 15x15s. The plan was to build a decent

back-halved car, but as plans do, it soon blew out to the threequarter chassis. Essentially, it’s a tube-frame car from the firewall back. The problem was, the goal posts were moving fast. The longer the project continued, the quicker the competition was running: “To be a top car, you had to be running an eight. When we booked it in at Terry’s, it was an 8.9; by the end of that season, it was down to an 8.2; by the time the car was completed, we were looking at a high seven. I thought that running a seven would be unbelievable,” Jeremy said.

The Liberty five-speed has been in the car since day one, but a recent addition has been a RAM slider clutch, which is a tunable clutch that allows complete control of how the FD leaves the line

The top two tubes of the wheelie bar are carbon fibre, replacing the chromoly and saving 4kg in the process

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SUPPORT STRUTS: (F) Strange uprights, Hyper Co springs; (R) Koni coilovers, Eibach springs BRAKES: (F) Strange Engineering calipers, Strange slotted rotors; (R) Wilwood four-pot calipers, Wilwood rotors EXTRA: Terry’s Chassis Shoppe SFI 25.1 chromoly threequarter chassis, carbon/chromoly wheelie bars, chromoly suspension arms, chromoly rose joints

INTERIOR SEATS: Custom carbonfibre seat STEERING WHEEL: Grant INSTRUMENTATION: Powertrain Control Solutions Dash Logger

EXTERIOR PAINT: Mazda red by Gavin at Sulphur Point Car Painters ENHANCEMENTS: Big doorslammer wing by Terry’s Chassis Shoppe, one-piece carbon-fibre front clip, carbon-fibre doors, carbon-fibre rear bumper

The large rear doorslammer wing serves two purposes: first, for Downforce and stability, and, second, as the top of the rear tubs, to house those 32x14-inch Mickey Thompson slicks, with room for a bigger 32x16s in the near future

DRIVELINE GEARBOX: Liberty five-speed clutchless, custom clutch-can CLUTCH: RAM adjustable slider FLYWHEEL: Custom DIFF: Terry’s Chassis Shoppe sheet-metal housing, Strange nine-inch diff head (5.19 ratio), Strange chromoly driveshaft

But just because the boys wanted to run at the pointy end of the field, didn’t mean they wanted to be doing so in a spaceship, compromising the look and feel of the car, even if that meant making things harder for themselves in the long run. From the outset, it was to remain on its stock 95-inch wheelbase, and it was also very important to both brothers that the car remain right-hand drive, even when all the chassis literature available (we are talking thousands of bits of information) are focused on setting up a left-hand-heavy car. Setting up a car with the driver and turbo on the right meant a learning curve for the boys. It is something that has taken a very long time to get correct, and they feel as if they are only now getting on top of it. Having someone like Terry in their corner has helped immensely, teaching them as much as possible, but he has also been open to trying some seemingly out-there stuff — it’s the only way you learn and move forward.

The engine side of things has always been Jeremy’s department, this has been the first methanol engine. Another learning curve, for sure, but one that thankfully hasn’t seen too many destroyed parts — touch wood. “Obviously, it’s been apart a few times. We had a rock go in the motor and stuff a rotor and a housing (good ol’ Meremere gravel) and, obviously, the odd set of apex seals. I put a billet crank in it a few seasons back. But we have been really lucky, and I have managed to not have too many accidents with the tune-up — because it cost me, so I’m really careful. Any little harmonics from any little misfire — you have to have a good tune in it, otherwise you are going to cost yourself bits.”

At the moment, boost is at 48psi, and Jeremy is keen to push it into the 50s, although they will do it slowly and at a pace that ensures they are learning what the chassis and tune need to make that kind of psi work. Part of this tuning involves coming to grips with the addition of a RAM slider clutch, which, in itself, is a huge tuning tool. But, as far as upgrades and changes to the set-up go, the clutch has been one of the few made since first building the car.

Although they ran into the sevens right out of the gate, it hasn’t all been smooth sailing, and many will remember the 2013 V 4&Rotary Nationals at which Cory put the car into the left-hand wall, damaging it pretty badly. He recalled, “It was a huge kick in the guts for everyone involved. We had done really well, then we struggled through the middle of that season tune-up–wise, and then we got on top of that and the car went 7.40s ending the season.

But then we crashed [during] the second meeting into the following [one].” The entire right-hand side of the RX-7 was damaged, and it would be three seasons before anyone saw the FD return to the track.

The silver lining was the chance to redo a ton of work, and ending up with a much better car for it. Taking what they had learned since their debut, a lot of weight was shifted around

1996 MAZDA FD RX-7

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WORDS: MARCUS GIBSON PHOTOS: ADAM CROY

IT’S PRETTY EASY TO MAKE A TON OF POWER THESE DAYS, BUT BUILDING A SUCCESSFUL CIRCUIT CAR REQUIRES MORE THAN JUST DYNO FIGURES; IT’S A BALANCING ACT BETWEEN POWER, GRIP, AND DRIVER TALENT — THREE DEPARTMENTS THE SMYTHS’ NEW RX-7 SEEMS TO HAVE COVERED

MOTHERS CHROME EXPRESSION SESSION

WORDS: JADEN MARTIN PHOTOS: ADAM CROY

MOTHERS CHROME

EXPRESSION SESSION 2016

IF YOU’VE NEVER HEARD THE NAME, PREPARE TO LEARN ABOUT ONE OF THE BEST CAR EVENTS EVER UNDERTAKEN ON KIWI SOIL

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here are few events on a car enthusiast’s calendar that can light a fire under people’s arses and pump out a record number of entrants like the Mothers Chrome Expression Session can.

The past three years have seen the event explode in popularity, and, for all things car related, it’s become the ultimate party of power, petrol, and good times.

This year, the event spanned two massive days and made use of the newly constructed twin-track format over the weekend of August 6–7 at Hampton Downs Motorsport Park. Unquestionably, this was the largest session to date, and that should come as no surprise, as it’s hosted by the same crew that puts on the huge annual V 4&Rotary Nationals. Chrome, as it is more commonly known, is run by Azhar Bhamji and the team at Premier Events, and, rather than catering solely for the younger demographic of performance-import enthusiasts, it is home to anything and everything car related — encouraging unity and a sense of community within New Zealand’s car scene.

To make sure everyone is able to taste a bit of their own poison among a range of interests they otherwise would not experience, the event is broken up into a series of different categories that almost run in unison. First up this year, the relaxed on-track cruising sessions meant you could pile your mates four-up (where applicable

— I see you MX-5 bros), chuck on your best Notorious BIG CD, and cruise around the 2.6-kilometre-long circuit. There was a show and shine for those who didn’t want to hit the track, as well as non-stop all-day drifting sessions run independently from the main circuit on the new Hampton Downs extension. Punters were treated to smoky displays of methanol-burning power skids; some of the quickest street cars in the country battling it out in the drop-flag drag racing; and, of course, lots, and lots, and lots of burnouts — what kind of car event would be complete without them?

With over 500 registered vehicles this year, there was no shortage of cars to tickle your fancy, and, with such a diverse display, it was awesome to see even the old boys enjoying a bit of imported goodness alongside the young guns appreciating what a fine blown V8 looks like. But by far the largest demographic was the Mazda owners. You couldn’t look in any direction without being slapped in the face by the sight of RX-7s, having your ears abused by the sound of 12A-powered RX-3s, or experiencing the vibrations generated by a particular 20B-powered Mazda 929. In fact, there were so many rotary-hearted examples in attendance that management agreed to an all-rotary session, which saw over 60 examples pack out the track for a session of absolute noisecontrol mayhem.

Now that you’ve seen all the radness from over the weekend that was Mothers Chrome Expression Session 2016, will we see you there next year?

Get some meth in ya mate!

Rob Macraee shows us what a ‘real’ Aussie-style burnout car looks like with his blown and injected 383, running methanol

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Awarded Show Champion, Adam Browne’s murdered-out ‘PROGMH’ Holden Commodore VH was something that even diehard Japaneseimport fans could appreciate

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Podge Reid’s SA22 RX-7 cover car from Issue No. 235 received the recognition it deserves as Grand Show Runner Up and made its first ontrack appearance

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All the talk is put to bed during the drop-flag drag racing. This year, Justin Weir, in his new ‘NITRO’ 465kW 2JZ-powered Supra, proved supreme. This car is New Zealand–new, and one of only six built

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One of the quickest street cars in the country, the Green Brothers’ 323 wagon smoked anything it lined up against, even when it carried four people in the cruising sessions

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The crowd was treated to a RAUH-Welt Begriff (RWB) overload, with the New Zealand– built ‘Waikato’ and ‘Hekigyoku’, alongside Jin’s silver example imported from Japan

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That’s a pretty sweet Porsche.

Wait, what? This RE Amemiya–kitted FD RX-7 caused a fair amount of confusion

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Keeping it in the family, Sam Brown’s recently completed 12A bridgeport-powered Mazda MX-5 caused quite the stir thanks to its raucous exhaust note

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Who doesn’t love blasphemy in the morning? This Mazda pick-up is home to an SR20DET and an R33 Skyline rear-end

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SOCIALITES

GRAM GODS!

INSTAGRAM ACCOUNTS YOU SHOULD BE FOLLOWING he world of Instagram is a great one for those of us looking for a little build inspiration or simply a never-ending dose of car culture from all corners of the world. Through the use of hashtag searches, you can locate and pinpoint any damn thing you want — from something as wide reaching as #drift to as targeted as #K20swappedcivic. If you’re not on Instagram, get on there and get yourself started! Here are six accounts we follow that we think you should, too.

@Naritadogfight

@3d_magic_mike

As lead engineer for The Roadster Shop (if you don’t know it, google it right now), Mike O’Brien’s ’gram is loosely based around his personal project, a Datsun 620 pick-up powered by a Toyota 1UZFE. Sounds simple enough, but it truly is the kind of project that makes anything you’re working on, no matter how involved, look like a basic slap-up with mags and lowering springs. His work with CAD, and the fact that he has some serious machinery at his disposal, has resulted in some amazing components, like 3D-printed wiring connectors and a 3D-printed dash cluster. Even the sheet metal is finished to such a standard that it will make you sick. Seriously, this is probably one of the best builds in the world right now, so go check it out.

Nowhere in the world is grass-roots time-attack racing as big as it is in its spiritual homeland — Japan. And we are yet to find a better insight into that world than the one you’ll get from the two-man team behind the blog Narita Dog Fight (NDF). If you like traditional-style time-attack machines, this account will have your feed filled with carbon canards, big wings, super-wide semi-slicks, and proper-fast street cars. A great source of inspiration for those wanting to build a time-attack car, this should be reference-point number one to ensure you don’t end up with something looking like the ‘Nemo’ Evo.

@Buildthreads Like NDF, Build Threads is a blog that regularly posts on ’gram to let you know what its site has cooking.

The one-man team behind the site must spend an inhuman amount of time trolling the depths of the internet with the sole purpose of unearthing build threads for our enjoyment. The best thing is the wide scope of styles covered — from bagged Euros to vintage drag cars, this ’gram really does cover anything as long as it’s badass. Stop wasting your time on Google, as Build Threads has already found any build worth following.

@Driftfamily.jp

@formuladerp If you rate yourself any kind of drift fan, you surely will have heard or seen the 24-7 controversial and shitstirring antics of Formula Derp. As the name suggests, it’s based on the world of FD, and, seemingly, no one is safe from this ’gram, as, from time to time, it calls out everyone, from the judges to our own ‘Mad Mike’ Whiddett. While no one is really sure who is behind it, and with it often having an air of schoolyard bully about it, for the most part, the posts hit the nail on the head and call out those who need to be. Think of it like an alternative commentary. If we were FD, we would hate to have such an account calling out any move we made, that’s for sure. But, hey, we aren’t them, and we do get a fair few laughs from Derp’s posts.

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Delivering a constant and steady stream of driftcar badassery, driftfamily.jp posts nothing but the world’s coolest-looking drift cars. Its very grassroots vibe means that you will find no Formula Drift (FD) spaceships here, just stupid low — properly fitted — super-angle cars. Even the odd Kiwi machine pops up from time to time. It’s accounts like this that show us why Japan’s grass-roots scene is still king!

@hpa101 While it’s fun to scroll through thousands of photos of rad cars, adding a little knowledge will make us all better people, right? There are a select few out there who can, and do, deliver trusted info, like the Kiwis from High Performance Academy (HPA). Behind the account are ex-NZPC contributors Andre Simon and Ben Silcock, so you can be sure that the info is trustworthy and worth knowing. From boost control to injector sizing, this is one account that has some depth to the pretty pictures it posts. Go on, fill your head with knowledge so that your mates will stand there in amazement as you dish it out to them.