SUBSCRIBE TO THE
MAGAZINE NOW
Facebook-f Instagram

Got room for a 1936 Ford Sedan in your garage?

8 December, 2014

If you’ve ever wanted to own a hot rod, but never had the cash, then this may be your chance. The New Zealand Hot Rod Association (NZHRA) in conjunction with The Mount Shop are running a raffle with the prize being a 1936 Ford Sedan.

After running previous lotteries, with the prizes being two-seater vehicles, NZHRA have listened to the overwhelming call for a family car this time around and have responded with the purchase of the Ford.

The car has a lot of history being previously owned by Nelson’s Wayne Gardiner for around 35 years. When Wayne was diagnosed with terminal cancer in 2011, his fellow members at Golden Bay Rodders hot rod club pulled together to get it back on the road. Wayne had the pleasure of driving the car for about eight months before he passed away and the car was left to his daughters.

Since being purchased by NZHRA, the car has been bought back to top condition, as well as having new wheels fitted, which were provided by Auckland-based wheel wholesalers BG Marketing.

A few more custom touches are set to be added and NZHRA are aiming to showcase the completed vehicle at the Kumeu Classic Car and Hot Rod Festival on January 17, 2015. It’s at this event that tickets will go on sale for the first time.

The vehicle will also be on display at Hibiscus Rodders’ Beach Festival in Orewa on January 23–25, at Leadfoot Festival in Hahei on February 6–8, and Repco Beach Hop in Whangamata in the last week of March. Hot rod clubs nationwide will have tickets for sale during this time, as will the NZHRA office via their website, hotrod.org.nz.

 

Ford’s Mustang – the endlessly hip American dream machine

28 May, 2026

Fifty or so years ago, the only place in New Zealand to see a Ford Mustang was on the racetrack. In a local market severely constrained by a lack of new motor vehicles, the new North American Ford was a dreamy icon boosted by considerable motorsport success.
Import licences for cars were limited, and if Kiwis travelled abroad, the amount of currency they could take with them was restricted. What’s more, those funds could not be used to buy a car for importation back home. Yet it was OK to spend the money on heavy drinking at a London pub, Gucci shoes, sable fur coats, and excessive stays at the Hôtel Martinez at Cannes in France.
However, any rare Mustang that landed on our shores would not be destined to pose around Auckland’s then trendy Queen Street on a Friday night but would more likely be found in the care of well-known racing drivers on the starting grid at local motor racing tracks.

Chrysler’s classy cruiser

22 May, 2026

I first saw our feature car, a 1970 V8-powered Regal 770 hardtop, towing a trailer carrying the tidy Ford Anglia classic racing saloon in Broadspeed racing colours that has featured in these pages. The coupe is comparatively rare here, which means anyone contemplating purchasing one of these big two-doors is sure to see prices continue to climb. The latter Charger has claimed much of the Aussie Chrysler limelight, but the simpler and classier lines of this car, which appeared dated soon after its introduction, now have a more timeless appeal.
Former owner, Balclutha motor engineer, Mike Verdoner, remembers the car well. He believes it came from Dunedin originally.
“I’m not sure about the car’s history, but I bought it off its owner at Kaitangata. Unusually, it was advertised in the local newspaper, the Clutha Leader, which was a surprise as these usually go for a lot more money on the internet. I had it for quite a few years. It needed a little bit of work to tidy it up, so I had to decide whether to spend the money on it to do it up, which could have been twenty grand. Its value at the time was not like it is now, so I sold it to Ewan. It’s probably now worth three or four times what I sold it for.”