Enthusiast Essentials: what we’ve added to our must-have list this month!

3 November, 2016

With the diverse range of vehicles covered by our motoring titles, New Zealand Classic Car, NZV8, and NZ Performance Car, it’s clear that the car enthusiast demographic is incredibly varied. So how do you curate a shopping basket to cater for a car person, whether they’re into imports, V8s, or classics? Our editors have discovered a heap of products this month, and there’s sure to be something that every car enthusiast will want to add to their collection.

Playing with the big dogs

Ask any wheel guru what name is highly rated, and nine times out of 10 you will get the same reply — Rotiform. These brand-new-release Rotiform KPSs are available in two premium finishes, Flat Black/Gloss Black windows and Silver/Brushed Face. Sizes are at your discretion, from 18×8.5-inch up to a huge 20×11-inch, and they come in all the common five-stud pitch-circle diameters (PCDs). The team can also advise the best fitment for most Japanese, Euro, and even R35 GT-R–specific applications. Head to 360link.co.nz for all the details.

Beautiful in black

These new M&H nylon-braided PTFE-lined hose and full-flow hose ends are just what you need for a fluid transfer system that looks as good as it performs. The slick black finish on the hoses and fittings is perfect for turning even the nitty-gritty parts of your build into works of art, and sizing is available in -6AN and -8AN. Available from STA Parts — visit staparts.co.nz or phone 09 256 1120 for more information.

Danger zone

If you’re running an engine that’s been built for performance, you’ll want to be sure it’s operating at 100 per cent, 100 per cent of the time. The Auto Meter Pro-Lite warning light works in conjunction with a water-temperature or oil-pressure switch (sold separately) to warn you of critical water temperatures or loss of oil pressure. It can be purchased for $105.85 from myautomotive.co.nz, which also provides free shipping New Zealand–wide.

Get mounted

Tuff Mounts have been a staple in the Aussie performance car scene for nearly 10 years, and are found in all types of cars and applications — from drag racing, burnouts, show cars, and tough street through to circuit and drift cars. These are the must-have item to hold your engine in the correct location — 100 per cent captive, unbreakable design, serviceable, and they even make it easier to remove the engine.

The huge range includes these Commodore VB–VS LS conversion mounts, to convert your early Commodore to LS power. Offering direct bolt-up fitment, they are priced at $374 per pair. Check out tuffmounts.com.au, or phone +61 8 8374 0011.

Quality control

Commodore and Falcon owners rejoice — Tein, the world-leading performance suspension manufacturer, is now offering bolt-in coilovers to suit Holden Commodores and Ford Falcons. Designed in Australia and built in Japan, the Tein coilovers offer adjustable height and 16 damping settings, with easy tunability to each driver’s preference, as well as full serviceability by the local factory agent.

Available for VX–VZ and VE series Holden Commodores, and BA–BF series Ford Falcons, Tein coilovers are available from $2055 (excl. GST). Visit autolign.co.nz to find your nearest distributor.

Flow to go

When power’s your goal you need a fuel system that can keep up, and Holley’s HP Inline Billet Fuel Pumps have been designed to do just that — whether it’s carburetted or fuel injected, either the 65gph or 80gph pump should do the trick. The OEM-style gerotor pumps provide reliable, quiet operation and compatibility with pump gas or race fuel (not E85). Fully submersible in-tank, if required, they are compatible with 12V to 18.5V systems for street or race use. Holley HP Inline Billet Fuel Pumps are available from $417.79 (excl. GST) from Segedins Auto Spares. Call the team at 09 638 6439, or visit holley.com for more information.

2-in-1 rescue tool

Don’t get trapped inside your vehicle in an emergency situation. This resqme car-escape tool is carried by over three million motorists worldwide — as the compact, two-in-one keychain design allows you to cut a jammed seatbelt and break a side window in your vehicle. It can also be used with the optional accessory pack which attaches it to your rear-view mirror, sun visor, or head restraint.

Available for only $26 (or $29 with the accessory pack), resqme is a must-have, and can be purchased from Tactical Solutions Ltd at tactical.co.nz/resqme-emergency-keychain-rescue-tool.

Cool coolers

Start pinching the pennies, offer to vacuum for the rest of the year, or just beg the other half, because you’ve got to get yourself a Beerbowser. Beerbowser fridges are hand-crafted in New Zealand to replicate old-school petrol bowsers from the ’50s and ’60s, and they don’t just look the part — built around a Haier fridge, they’re brand new and come with a 12-month warranty.

Priced from $2499 (incl. GST) and with a range of options available, visit beerbowser.co.nz or phone 09 971 8191 to complete your man cave!

Premium combustion

Your classic vehicle can run on unleaded petrol thanks to Fuelstar Fuel Combustion Catalyst. Better yet, you won’t experience valve seat recession or loss of power, and it won’t cost you an arm and a leg — or be messy. It overcomes spark plug fouling and has a life expectancy of at least 1,000,000km. It’s even been technologically endorsed by NASA.

Fuelstar Fuel Combustion Catalyst is available starting at $184 to $299 depending on your engine size, and you can get one through most garages in New Zealand, or direct from fuelstar.com.

1986 Pontiac Firebird

Seeing the car with his own eyes already had Scott fizzing, but when the curator of the car let Scott sit in the driver’s seat it became a truly unforgettable day. There was no way Bo and Duke’s orange stunt jumper could compete with this. To top it off, a photograph of him sitting in the car turned up in the local paper, so he started a new school with an added aura as the kid in the Knight Rider car.
Scott still thought about the Knight Rider car from time to time, but if he had not gone with his wife Abbey to the Selwyn Motor Fest in 2018, it may have remained just a treasured memory. At the show, Abbey asked Scott what his favourite car was as they ambled round. The man she had married instantly connected with his nine-year-old self, but in a deeper voice he said, “KITT from Knight Rider”. Had she just said, “That’s nice dear,” and left it at that, life might have continued as normal. However, unaware of the hole she was about to start digging, she said that she had never heard of it.

Blueprinting basics

You occasionally hear petrol heads tossing around the term ‘blueprinting’ when referring to an engine they have assembled, and have sometimes altered significantly. What they are probably trying to say is that their engine was carefully machined to optimum tolerances and balanced — probably for racing. But that isn’t what the term meant originally. You see, in the 1950s, when US stock car race cars really had to be stock, the racing teams would go to the factories and rummage through the parts bins until they found components that were closest in tolerance to the original blueprint developed by the engine’s designers.