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:


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

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.

A tradesman’s estate — the Cortina GT Estate

The owner of our featured car, Rod Peat, used to rally a Cortina GT back when the words ‘rally’ and ‘trial’ were interchangeable. In times after that he could also be seen beside Mal Clark in various Targa NZ rallies, getting the famous Rover V8 or Lotus Cortina in spirited fashion around and over the various special stages that make up those events. After children, houses, and career, Rod decided it was time to own a GT again.
A search on the various systems available turned up a car Rod and probably most of us didn’t even know existed: a genuine Ford factory Cortina Estate GT.