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Team Tander and Quinn win

10 November, 2014

 

Tony Quinn and Garth Tander win the Highlands 101 endurance race

Tony Quinn achieved one of the objectives he’d set himself for last weekend’s Highlands 101 race meeting when he and Garth Tander won the endurance race at Highlands Motorsport Park in dramatic fashion. As Quinn told us prior to the November 7–9 event he had his sights set on both the Highlands 101 race win and the Australian GT Championship title, and while he failed to eclipse Richard Muscat in the race to the Championship, a last-minute turn of luck saw him come up trumps on track.

The pair were coming second right up until the very last lap, following behind Richard Muscat and Craig Baird’s Mercedes-Benz, which had been in the lead for more than 90 laps of the 101-lap race. The Mercedes-Benz ran out of fuel only a few metres from the finish line meaning Quinn and Tander could pass them into first place.

When questioned about the last lap of the race Tander said, “The guys radioed me to say keep an eye out for the Merc, it’s going really slow. Coming out of the hairpin going up to the bridge, it wasn’t going at all, so I was yee-hahing on the radio as I went past and that was it. We were actually battling the Merc quite a bit after the earlier pit stop and we were close to going a lap down, but by staying on the lead lap and keeping the pressure on them, they pitted a lap before we did and that was the difference to buy us enough fuel to the line.”

During the 101 laps, Tander managed to break the Australian GT class lap record three times giving him a new lap record of one minute and 31.716 seconds. The same Aston Martin Vantage GT3 was used that Quinn previously won the inaugural Highlands 101 last year, with Fabian Coulthard, as well as taking out the Phillips Island 101 earlier this year with Tander. The weekend’s win marks a record-making three-peat of 101 race wins in Australian GT racing. 

 

Project Adder – an MGB with bite

21 November, 2025

Bill and Rae Denize have been active MG Car Club members in Wellington for nearly 32 years. They have held a variety of positions on the club committee, and now that they are both retired, they can be even more involved in the club’s activities. Bill is currently the president of the MG Car Club, Wellington Centre.
The list of cars they’ve owned over the years is testament to their passion for the brand. It includes a 1972 Midget — the round rear-wheel arch model with 1275cc motor; a three-door 2004 MG ZR; a 2005 MG ZR (five-door); and Rae’s 2005 MG TF, which they still own. Bill also raced a 1967 Morris Mini Cooper S at Manfeild for many years. That car featured in an article in the January 2013 issue of this magazine.
In April 2013, Bill sold the Cooper S and decided to buy a low mileage, freshly imported MG RV8 from Japan. He liked the idea as there were only 1983 built in the early 1990s, which, hopefully, would translate into these cars holding their value. More importantly, their bodies were galvanised, which meant fewer rust problems, although Bill and Rae didn’t escape encounters with oxidation unscathed.

One lady owner

7 November, 2025

Well, at first glimpse, as soon as the lady opened the garage doors, I knew I was going to buy it. Dark metallic blue with two-tone blue vinyl trim, with a cream American-style steering wheel — I just could not believe my eyes! The Falcon was in as new condition as you could expect from a 30-year-old car. The owner was Mrs Iama Dzenis, aged in her late 60s, at a guess. Mrs Dzenis had bought the car new in September of 1965 from the Ford agents of North Canterbury, Palmer and Doak. Their headquarters were in Rangiora, with branches in Kaiapoi and Amberley.