SUBSCRIBE TO THE
MAGAZINE NOW
Facebook-f Instagram

Little ‘Pirate’ up for grabs

25 March, 2015

It was at the first New Zealand Drag Nationals at Kopuka on a dry summer’s day in 1967, where Bob Rossiter’s ‘Pirate’ dragster faced off against the team of Lucas and Saunders in their matching flathead-powered rail job called ‘77 Sunset Strip.’

The Pirate, running on an exotic homemade brew of sodium peroxide, nitromethane, and magnesium sulphide, sat on the start line spitting flames of multicoloured gas out of the weed burners. Neither pilot would inch forward to stage, with some saying it was the longest pre-stage driver psych-out in drag-racing history. But then, just before there was a full meltdown, they both pulled up to the start line and the starter excitedly leaped into the air and dropped his flag.

The cars left in a plume of tyre smoke, clutch dust, and black coal, and the capacity crowd all stood to see the two cars careen toward the finish in the midst of all the dust.

The Pirate won the day and Bob Rossiter was crowned New Zealand’s first National Top Eliminator. All these years later the Pirate (and Bob) still exist, and the rail is lovingly looked after by the good folk of the Southward Car Museum after it was purchased in 1968 by none other than Len Southward himself.

Fast forward a few decades or four and another famous drag racer/fabricator/hot-rod builder by the name of Graeme Berry steps in and does the impossible — he builds an exact model-car scale replica of the Pirate dragster, perfect in every single detail imaginable. This very model, donated to the Scroungers Car Club, will be going up for Auction at the 13th Annual Hot Rod Blowout on Sunday, March 29, 2015. If you want to own a piece of drag-racing and hot-rod history, bring your cheque book and get a bid in on this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.

NZ Classic Car magazine, November/December 2026 issue 408, on sale now

18 October, 2026

Star status for classic Porsche
A long search ends: finding the right car
Unveiled at the Frankfurt Motor Show in 1963, the Porsche 911 heralded an iconic lineage of sports cars, known for their exceptional performance, remarkable racing reliability, and adaptability, second to none.
New Zealand Classic Car, in conjunction with Star Insure, recently conducted a photo competition to find 13 suitably impressive classics to grace the pages of the magazine’s 2027 calendar. A flood of entries showed that Kiwis recognise eye-catching designs and restorations. Many are handy with a camera, too, and have entered some outstanding results.
The choice was not straightforward, with multiple stunning entries, and Geoff Long’s immaculate 1990 Porsche 911 (964 Factory designation) took top honours. Fortunately, Geoff had Ethan Hanlon handy to take the accompanying photos while working in his office.
“I’ve got a young employee who is doing work experience in my office at the moment, and he’s a very avid photographer. So, I said, I’ll buy you breakfast and then why don’t we go and take some photos. He found the right spot, and he spent over an hour photographing.”
Originally sold new in Japan, hence the right-hand drive, the Porsche was resident there for four years before being exported to New Zealand, as Geoff recalls.
“I bought it two-and-a-half years ago, but I looked for it for over two years, because it’s just the colour scheme, interior and exterior I was after. The service file that came with it is extensive; I mean, it’s been beautifully looked after, which is what I wanted to continue, as it does get driven. It doesn’t sit in the garage.”

Classics on the green

16 October, 2026

Many pretenders vie for the title, but the Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance gets my vote as the biggest thing since sliced bread.
The 71st edition of the world’s pre-eminent and best-known concours event featured 28 classes, judged by a 180-strong jury, which also chose the recipients of 26 special awards.
The size of the event, the number of visitors, and, most mind-numbingly, the sheer number of amazing cars, is almost overwhelming. There are so many quality cars to gaze upon, and so many people gazing at those cars, that it is almost impossible to cover everything.
Notable among the many attractions were the centenary celebrations of the 24 Hours of Le Mans, an elegant Talbot-Lago Grand Sport, Hermann Graber’s Swiss-bodied cabriolets and coupés, the jewels of Otto Vu Italian V8s, early Alfa Romeos, Lincoln and its centenary, and cars with unorthodox propulsion systems.