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Aussie vs Kiwi muscle car showdown at Highlands

30 January, 2015

The battle between Australia’s Enzed Touring Car Masters (TCM) and New Zealand’s Enzed Central Muscle Cars (CMC) is set to be one of the highlights of Highlands Festival of Speed, running from January 31–February 1 at Highlands Motorsport Park in Cromwell, Otago. It will be the third time the TCM and CMC have competed for a trans-Tasman trophy, but it marks the first time the groups have raced on New Zealand soil.

Dr John Elliot, the president of CMC says, “We’re all looking forward to it enormously!” Many of the CMC cars that you know and love will be present at the event, ready to wage war on the track with their Australian cousins.

Double Australian Touring Car Champion Glenn Seton has put his expertise to good use in setting up several leading TCM cars. One such car is the 1964 Ford Mustang regularly driven by Will Vining in TCM’s ProSports class, which he will race at Highlands. Blue Oval fans will also be excited to watch the ’66 Ford Mustang Fastback, driven by 2007 TCM champ Steve Mason, as well as Wayne Mercer’s Falcon XB GT, Tony Karanfilovski’s ’69 Mustang, and Keith Kassulke’s ’74 Falcon Coupe.

That’s not to say Holden has been neglected — with noted historic racer Carey McMahon’s Holden Torana SL/R 5000, and Garry Treloar’s ’72 HQ Monaro making an appearance, Holden’s finest will be well represented by the Aussie brigade.

The event is a celebration of New Zealand motorsport through the years — including vintage and classic saloons, and open wheelers competing on the Highlands’ circuit. As a true family event, the motoring is not the sole attraction; there is also a mass of festival-style entertainment, food, and refreshments to keep every member of the family happy.

Tickets cost $39 for an adult on Saturday only, or $49 for an adult on Sunday only. Otherwise an adult can attend both days with a weekend pass costing $80. Children 16 years and younger receive free entry with a paying adult.

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.”