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Get your hands on the August 2016 issue of New Zealand Classic Car now!

10 August, 2016

The August 2016 issue of New Zealand Classic Car has hit a shelf near you! Take a sneak peek at what to expect from the glossy pages of this issue.

When David Burke-Kennedy went to visit the owner of this beautifully restored Triumph Herald, he was surprised in more ways than one.

Packard was once the standard by which other cars were measured. The quality of its cars was such that in the 1920s the company could justifiably claim that its cars were Rolls-Royces without the oil leaks. Take a look at what the Packard Automotive Plant looks like these days here. 

We take a look at the history behind VW’s war machine, the Type 82 Kubelwagen, and its progression into the car we know as the Beetle. 

Lachlan Jones experiences Rolls-Royce’s breathtaking new Dawn convertible for a day and gives us his verdict. 

This month we delve deep into the innards of the internal-combustion engine, and look at the intricacies of rebuilding and reconditioning it — we talk to the experts. You can find your local specialists here.

For all of this, plus much, much more, grab the August issue of New Zealand Classic Car now:




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Ford’s Mustang – the endlessly hip American dream machine

28 May, 2026

Fifty or so years ago, the only place in New Zealand to see a Ford Mustang was on the racetrack. In a local market severely constrained by a lack of new motor vehicles, the new North American Ford was a dreamy icon boosted by considerable motorsport success.
Import licences for cars were limited, and if Kiwis travelled abroad, the amount of currency they could take with them was restricted. What’s more, those funds could not be used to buy a car for importation back home. Yet it was OK to spend the money on heavy drinking at a London pub, Gucci shoes, sable fur coats, and excessive stays at the Hôtel Martinez at Cannes in France.
However, any rare Mustang that landed on our shores would not be destined to pose around Auckland’s then trendy Queen Street on a Friday night but would more likely be found in the care of well-known racing drivers on the starting grid at local motor racing tracks.

Chrysler’s classy cruiser

22 May, 2026

I first saw our feature car, a 1970 V8-powered Regal 770 hardtop, towing a trailer carrying the tidy Ford Anglia classic racing saloon in Broadspeed racing colours that has featured in these pages. The coupe is comparatively rare here, which means anyone contemplating purchasing one of these big two-doors is sure to see prices continue to climb. The latter Charger has claimed much of the Aussie Chrysler limelight, but the simpler and classier lines of this car, which appeared dated soon after its introduction, now have a more timeless appeal.
Former owner, Balclutha motor engineer, Mike Verdoner, remembers the car well. He believes it came from Dunedin originally.
“I’m not sure about the car’s history, but I bought it off its owner at Kaitangata. Unusually, it was advertised in the local newspaper, the Clutha Leader, which was a surprise as these usually go for a lot more money on the internet. I had it for quite a few years. It needed a little bit of work to tidy it up, so I had to decide whether to spend the money on it to do it up, which could have been twenty grand. Its value at the time was not like it is now, so I sold it to Ewan. It’s probably now worth three or four times what I sold it for.”