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Turners’ classic success

18 October, 2016

Turners Cars has been successfully holding classic-car auctions at its Christchurch branch for many years. They’ve been good for classic-car enthusiasts on the east coast of the mainland, but haven’t been an easy option for those wanting to sell or buy around the rest of the country.

Recently its first nationwide classic-car auction was held, which created an opportunity for the whole country. It used the power of an online auction format, with its whole network of 11 branches spread across New Zealand in which car owners could display their treasures, and it proved a big hit with sellers and buyers alike. Even those for whom moving their car was problematic could be involved, as photos were taken where the car was based, and posted online.

The auction was a success, with buyers spread right across New Zealand. The standout car was the legendary low-mileage 1958 Studebaker which was sold in Palmerston North for $56,000. It proved quite a talking piece, and had many visitors to the Turners Palmerston North branch while it was on display.

There were some other great examples sold, including a ’57 Ford Custom,  a 1960 MkII Zephyr, a great 1959 Morris 1000 and more, through to ‘modern’ classics such as a 1980 Ford Cortina and a 1984 Holden Commodore. The oldest car sold was a 1948 Vauxhall 12, which reached $4520.


1959Morris1000.jpg

Due to the success of the online auction Turners Cars will run another exclusively on turners.co.nz. Turners Cars is calling for entries now — visit turners.co.nz/classic. The auction will run from November 25 to December 5, with cars available to view throughout November.

Judging by the interest generated from the online auction in July, over 100 cars are expected to be put up for sale — which should make for plenty of opportunity to find the vehicle you’ve been looking for, or perhaps a great project to start?

NZ Classic Car magazine, July/August 2026 issue 406, on sale now

21 June, 2026

Rebirth of a brilliant Grand Tourer –1973 Datsun 240Z
How often do we long for that ultimate dream sports car, and that dream comes true? This is about one of the most influential Japanese cars of all time, a car that changed the sports car market.
This is about much more than the restoration of an iconic classic sports car, the 240Z. It’s about the culmination of a dream over many years and the friendships made. It’s about the people who helped and the professionals whose approach ensured that the dream became a reality, an attitude typical of the industry we call ‘classic restoration experts’.
It is no surprise that the outcome after a lengthy search by Conrad Van der Geest for the right Datsun 240Z culminated in a trophy for the best Japanese car at this year’s Caroline Bay Beach, Rock N’ Hop at Timaru.
Originally a roadworthy car in running order, it was left-hand-drive and had been driven for several years by its Timaru owner, as Conrad explains.
“A neighbour, Dave Barron, knew I was looking for one and introduced me to the owner. I had seen the car being driven around Timaru. It was unusual for one of these coming originally from California, so it was a really clean car instead of rusty, as they are prone to rust. The story goes that the grandfather passed it onto his grandson, who decided to sell it, and that’s when it came over here.”
Every issue comes with our FREE huge wall poster; this issue, it’s our cover car for this edition, a 1973 Datsun 240Z

The butterfly effect

18 June, 2026

The man on the mountain bike pedalled over, taking it all in. Gazing in wonderment at this small Japanese coupe with butterfly doors, he said, “Wow, I have never seen one of these before. What is it?” When I told him it was a Toyota, he nearly fell off his bike.
The Toyota Sera is unique amongst ’90s Japanese coupes. The Sera, which is Italian for ‘evening’, can trace its roots back to Toyota’s AXV-II concept car. Launched as part of a trio of Toyota concept cars at the 1987 Tokyo Motor Show, it shared its underpinnings with the P70 Toyota Starlet. The similarities ended there, thanks to the AXV-II’s low-slung and rounded coupe styling with butterfly doors. These doors were held upright by gas struts when fully open. Glass covered the upper section of the doors and the rear hatchback.
These features, much to everyone’s surprise, were carried over to the production Sera in 1990. Toyota marketed the Sera, which means ‘will be’ in Spanish and ‘princess’ in Hebrew, as a funky alternative to the much-loved MR2.