We’ve been having a big argument in the NZV8 offices about which is the best of GM’s two most iconic F-body cars of the late ’60s — the first-generation Chev Camaro, or the first-generation Pontiac Firebird? Help us avoid having to call the ambulance out, and vote below!
24 April, 2025
When the car arrived in Wellington in December 2018 it was duly taken along for entry certification. Vehicle Inspection NZ (VINZ) found some wrongly wired lamps and switches — not too bad — but, much more significantly, some poor welding repairs. As the structural problems were probed more thoroughly, we realized the previous owner’s restoration would not do and we needed an upgrade. Dash had made it into the country but it would take some time and money before he would be free to explore any of New Zealand’s scenic highways.
We took the car to our new home in Johnsonville in the northern suburbs of Wellington and I pored over the car in detail to figure out what was next. There were lots of new parts on the car and a very perky reconditioned drivetrain but the chassis needed serious work.
