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One step closer to autonomous travel on New Zealand roads

23 November, 2016

You’ve seen the self-driving cars running people over on the internet, and the likes of newspapers being read on main highways thanks to autonomous technology. Now New Zealand will be hopping on the today-of-tomorrow bandwagon with the first demonstration of a self-driving vehicle on Kiwi roads having taken place on November 17.

The joint venture between New Zealand Traffic Institute (Trafinz), Volvo, New Zealand Transport Agency (NZTA), the Ministry of Transport, and car manufacturer Volvo, set a self-driving car loose on Tauranga’s roads where it travelled up to 15km in normal traffic conditions, without needing input from a driver.

According to Volvo Cars NZ General mManager Coby Duggan, the vehicle self-drives using sophisticated technology to navigate the roads, which operates at ‘level 2’ — a global standard that measures the degree of the vehicle’s autonomy.

“Under level 2 or partial automation, the automated system executes accelerating, braking, and steering, however the driver will be required to interact with the vehicle and intervene if necessary as they are ultimately responsible for how the vehicle operates.

“By 2021 we expect Volvos to be at level 4 or high automation, where the system will monitor the driving environment and will maintain control even if the driver does not intervene when advised by the vehicle,” he said.

So forget sending the kids off to school in your soon-to-be self-driving car, as a driver is still needed to periodically confirm an occupant is present — unless you want them to rack up the demerits early.

Henrik Järlebratt, senior product director from Volvo headquarters, broke down the science behind the technology to Trafinz conference attendees, and said that he is pleased to see agencies working together to introduce self-driving vehicles in New Zealand.

“[The] event in Tauranga is important for a number of reasons … beyond showcasing how self-driving works, it demonstrates that there is the necessary level of cooperation among car makers, government agencies, and industry bodies in New Zealand to allow the widespread adoption of innovative new technologies to customers,” he says.

Järlebratt says large-scale autonomous-driving trials are planned for England, China, and Sweden next year.

Let’s just hope that Skynet doesn’t get a wind of what’s happening — some of the drivers on our roads are bad enough as it is without an apocalyptic-driven program taking control of our cars. 

Last Tango in the Fast Lane

30 April, 2026

In the mid ’80s, I locked into a serious Nissan/Datsun performance obsession. It could have kicked off with my ’82 Datsun Sunny, though this would have been a bit of a stretch of the imagination, given its normally aspirated 1.2-litre motor — not the sort of thing to unleash radical road warrior dreams. But it did plant a seed, and it was a sweet little machine and surprisingly quick, in contrast to all the diabolical English offerings I had endured.
I was living in South Auckland at the time and was an unrepentant petrolhead. Motor racing was my drug of choice, and I followed the scene slavishly. Saloon car racing, with the arrival of the international Group A formula, was having a serious renaissance here and in Australia and Europe. There was suddenly an exotic air in local racing that had been absent for 15 years.
I was transfixed by this new frontier of motor racing that had hit our tracks in 1985–87 and the new array of machinery on display. In 1986, the Nissan Skyline RS DR30 made a blinding impression on me. The Australian Fred Gibson-run, Peter Jackson-sponsored team of George Fury and Glenn Seton were the fastest crew of the 1986 Australian Touring Car Championship. But Kiwi legend Robbie Francevic snuck through to win the Aussie Championship in his Volvo 240T after a strong start and consistent finishes.

NZ Classic Car magazine, May/June 2026 issue 405, on sale now

26 April, 2026

Reincarnation of the snake
We are captivated by a top-quality sports car
The Shelby NZ build team at Matamata Panelworks has endured a long and challenging journey, culminating with the highly anticipated public unveiling of the 427SC and firing up of its sonorous V8 at the 2026 Ayrburn Classic Festival of Motoring in Queenstown on February 20. This is a New Zealand-built car with loads of character and potential.
The car is now back in Matamata, and I finally have an opportunity to get up close and personal with it. But before then, the question that must be asked is, “Why would ya?”
The first answer is easy, as mentioned in the last issue of New Zealand Classic Car (#404). It was a great way to use up all the surplus Mustang parts acquired while converting brand-new Mustangs into Shelbys. The unused new Mustang parts would be great in any kit car, but the 427SC in front of me cannot be classified as one.
This is not a kit car. The reality is that it is a high-quality, factory-made production car.
Possibly the second answer is because the CEO of Matamata Panelworks, Malcolm Sankey, wanted to build a replica of the car that is a distant relation to the Shelby Mustangs scattered around his showroom floor, a car created long before the first Mustang was even thought of, and the brainchild of Carroll Shelby back in the early ‘60s.