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Discovered wrecks along New Zealand’s highways and byways

30 December, 2014

 

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“Trevor Stanley-Joblin has put together a gallery of the roadside relics discovered while travelling throughout New Zealand”

Morris Minor attracting attention to the Open Café — photographed during the running of the Pirelli Mainland Classic Tour, with a tour entrant’s Minor convertible parked alongside

A 1973 Land Rover — an ex–Automobile Association Canterbury service vehicle owned by a neighbour in August 2011

Part of a huge collection spotted in Ranfurly, December 2008

A 1916 White truck, seen on the roadside at Roxburgh — note the solid rubber tyres!

This 1951 Lanchester LD10 was, for many years, parked in a driveway on Avonside Drive, Christchurch. Trevor owned one of these back in the ’80s, and it appears to be completely original having only travelled 41,371 miles (66,580km)

This ‘landcrab’ Wolseley 1800 is still in remarkably original condition, but resides in a field in New Brighton. The 1800 Austin/Morris/Wolseley models have the most spacious interiors of any four-cylinder car of their era — they were, essentially, ahead of their time

This Ford Model A has been at the Te Waimate Station for many years. The station was founded in 1854 by Michael Studholme, while this Model A was purchased in 1953 for £35, and was originally a four-door sedan, but it was converted into a flatbed pickup for use around the farm

At Ashburton’s Botanical Gardens this Lanz Bulldog tractor is now used as a children’s play vehicle. These German tractors were built from 1921 right up to the ’60s, the company being purchased by John Deere in 1956. Can one of our readers tell us when this particular Bulldog might have been built?

“Gotcha!’’ The continuing tale of a Nissan/Datsun tragic – part two

8 May, 2026

In 1996, I was on a mission to buy a suitable pavement scorcher and visited the now-defunct Manukau City Car Fair. Unbelievably, among the sea of four-door utilitarian Japanese compacts was the absolute jewel in the crown, my automobile wet dream — a 1985 two-door R30 RS Nissan Skyline FJ20 Turbo five-speed manual in nice condition. The owner wanted $10,000 — a great deal.
But what did I do? I bailed out, paralysed by indecision. The money would have been a stretch, but it was the worst automotive choice I ever made. Instead, I went for a rusty Toyota Sprinter 8 Valve Twin Cam Coupé, which was pretty terminal from the get-go. I know. We’ve all done it, but there was really no excuse for passing up the Skyline, and I was haunted by that for years.

Last Tango in the Fast Lane

30 April, 2026

In the mid ’80s, I locked into a serious Nissan/Datsun performance obsession. It could have kicked off with my ’82 Datsun Sunny, though this would have been a bit of a stretch of the imagination, given its normally aspirated 1.2-litre motor — not the sort of thing to unleash radical road warrior dreams. But it did plant a seed, and it was a sweet little machine and surprisingly quick, in contrast to all the diabolical English offerings I had endured.
I was living in South Auckland at the time and was an unrepentant petrolhead. Motor racing was my drug of choice, and I followed the scene slavishly. Saloon car racing, with the arrival of the international Group A formula, was having a serious renaissance here and in Australia and Europe. There was suddenly an exotic air in local racing that had been absent for 15 years.
I was transfixed by this new frontier of motor racing that had hit our tracks in 1985–87 and the new array of machinery on display. In 1986, the Nissan Skyline RS DR30 made a blinding impression on me. The Australian Fred Gibson-run, Peter Jackson-sponsored team of George Fury and Glenn Seton were the fastest crew of the 1986 Australian Touring Car Championship. But Kiwi legend Robbie Francevic snuck through to win the Aussie Championship in his Volvo 240T after a strong start and consistent finishes.