NZV8 Concept Corner: ’33 Coupe

15 February, 2015

 

data-animation-override>
Every month we ask the cover car owner for the concept they’d most like to build, or see built

You’ve seen what Warren Black can do with a Holden Monaro in the current issue of NZV8 (Issue No. 118), but what if Warren turned his attention to a hot rod?

“I’ve always liked ’33 coupes, so I wouldn’t mind building one. I’m toying with the idea of putting a different motor into the Monaro, so I’d drop the existing motor from it into one of those. I would stretch the front end by around eight inches just to give a bit more room, and to give it a bit of a custom look. I’d also widen the guards, more so at the back, to run the same size wheels as I’ve got on the Monaro.

“With those wheels the diff would be pretty narrow but it would give the car a killer look. Of course, it’d need to be on airbags, and sitting as low as possible too, which might get interesting with the guards, but it’s worth a shot.

“While I usually like black cars, I’m thinking maybe a midnight blue — real dark, so it’s almost black but not quite. I’d keep the chrome grille, and so on, but shave the handles and smooth it out a bit.

“It’d just be a streeter, but you’ve got to race everything at least once,” Warren laughs.

“Interior wise, the car would run bucket seats up front, and I’d go with the same style of door trims as on the Monaro.”

We’ve seen that Warren isn’t one to do things by halves, so if he ever turns this concept into reality, we’re sure it’ll be even better than it sounds — now that’ll take some doing!

Travelling companion

It’s easy to see why the Morris Minor Traveller was one of the best-loved variants of the Morris Minor. Introduced in 1953, it was equipped with the same independent torsion bar front suspension, drum brakes, and rack and pinion steering as its saloon sibling but, with their foldable rear seat increasing versatility, many Travellers were used as trade vehicles, says Derek Goddard. Derek and Gail Goddard, the owners of this superbly restored example, have run Morris Minors since before they were married in 1974.
“Our honeymoon vehicle was a blue Morris Minor van — it was a rust bucket,” says Derek.

Super Leicht Gullwing

It’s fair to say that nothing much in the classic Mercedes world gets past Mercedes-Benz Club stalwart Garry Boyce so it wasn’t surprising to learn that around 15 years ago he had sniffed out an extremely rare 300SL lightweight Gullwing as well as a 1958 300SL Roadster hiding away in the Waikato. The cars were not for sale but Garry eventually managed to persuade the owner to allow him and his restoration team to take a look at the Roadster. They discovered a very distressed but largely unmolested car. The car was so original that the body had never been off the chassis, meaning most of the parts and fittings were still present and correct, as they had been fitted by the factory.