Racing line: carnage in the wet at Ruapuna

22 January, 2016

Andre Heimgartner returned to the BNT NZ Touring Car Championship over the weekend of January 16–17 at Ruapuna in great style, capturing the round win at the fourth event of the championship.

Heimgartner claimed two race wins and a second placing in the final race of the weekend, which was won by championship leader Simon Evans.

Evans’ race-three win may have been in jeopardy following a lap-one clash with Scott Taylor, but a post-race investigation deemed it a racing incident and no penalty was applied.

For Heimgartner, who has returned to the championship after a year of competing in the Australian V8 Supercar championship, says it was a pleasing weekend in what were wet and trying race conditions over all three races.

“It was a tricky weekend — the weather certainly played a part. It was a fun weekend though, we didn’t finish a single race with the same conditions that we started with; I really enjoyed it,” said Heimgartner.

Race three was a reverse grid, which saw Heimgartner start from the rear of the field, forcing him to push hard in the early stages of the race.

“I made some good places off the start, but then found myself caught up in the Evans/Taylor incident and was then almost last again, so I had to battle through the pack to get back up the front.

“Simon is driving really well at the moment, so it’s nice to be able to come and challenge him. I’m really looking forward to Teretonga next weekend [January 23–24] where we can have another go.”

In class two, the weekend was largely dominated by series newcomer Sam Barry of Waipukurau who qualified on pole and scored a race win and a second place in the weekend’s opening two races. 

However his points lead was short-lived when he failed to finish race three after he was caught up in a multi-car incident at turn one, which ended his weekend in the sand trap.

The class-two race-three win eventually went to Wellington’s Brock Cooley, which saw him tie on round points with Invercargill’s Liam MacDonald.

The round win went to MacDonald based on a higher qualifying position from earlier in the weekend.

With MacDonald only competing in part of the championship, it is now Cooley who has his eye on the class-two championship.

“It was a great weekend for us in the Speedy Signs Ford. We banked some valuable points for our championship campaign, and we’re now leading it. I’m really pleased with how the weekend has gone,” said Cooley.

“Brad Lathrope is still in the championship hunt, so we’ll have to be mindful of him going forward and make sure we continue to finish ahead of him and maintain that margin.”

The BNT NZ Touring Cars will race again over the weekend of Jan 23–24 at Teretonga near Invercargill.

NZ Classic Car magazine, July August 2025 issue 400, on sale now

Good for the soul, a dose of Hemi Orange – Chrysler’s champion Charger
The Australian-developed Chrysler Charger was a game changer for the company in 1971, as it faced a faltering start introducing its new VH range. The stylish big coupe signalled a massive change of direction and emphasis for Chrysler.
Auckland racing driver Rod Coppins raced successfully in Australia and New Zealand. Rod found success behind the wheel of a couple of Chargers, and it is a special E49 R/T in the custody of Mike Todd for some years, that is our feature car.
A full restoration of this car has been completed at Auto Restorations (AR) in Christchurch. We recently sampled the car, ready to be shipped back to Mike and spoke to AR’s Harry Dawber, leading the team who completed the superb restoration of this rare piece of NZ motor racing history.
I mentioned that Chrysler Chargers were never built to this standard as we walked around the gleaming Charger in its Hemi Orange colour scheme.
“We took a lot of time getting those shut lines exactly right. It’s been a great car to work on, and the paint and trim have been very well done by the team here.”

Britannia rules the roads – Royal Tour Cars – part 2

Royal rollers and fancy Fords
Ford Zodiacs had transported the Queen Mother during her tour in 1958 but five years on, their glitz had perhaps faded a bit too much for an actual monarch. As there was no longer a convertible version of Britain’s Zephyr or Zodiac on offer, Ford looked to their American arm for a replacement, finding it in the huge Ford Galaxie. The Public Service Garage purchased the car at around £3000 for royal tour work and VIP transport.