The Ford Mk1 Cortina salvaged from the wrecker’s yard

16 September, 2016

Chris Alexander discovered the car in a wrecker’s yard in Mangere, South Auckland, seven years ago, sitting forlornly on a wooden pallet. It was a completely stripped shell with the four doors attached, and it quickly caught Chris’s eye. He immediately thought ‘rally car’ — what a fantastic opportunity to start a project.

Chris wanted to recreate an Alan Mann Cortina. The four-door shell was ideal for rallying, as the spare wheel can easily be stowed inside the cabin along with all the necessary accessories, leaving only the fuel pumps in the boot. Chris built the Cortina with a retro theme in mind, wanting to keep it classic, but mixing in the modern touches for safety and reliability.

He had planned to campaign his Cortina in this year’s Targa, but unfortunately had to withdraw at the last moment due to illness. He expects to make a full recovery, and is looking forward to competing in the Classic Rally of New Zealand 2017.

We’ve included a few additional photos that didn’t make it into the October issue of New Zealand Classic Car — grab your copy below to read the full story.

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Coaching from the bench: Casting plastic knobs and rubber parts

16 July, 2026

Casting rubber items is simple if you have a good original to work with. The item doesn’t have to be perfect. You can use plasticine to smooth out cracks, and you can even make whole prototypes out of low-fire modelling clay available from craft stores if you need to. Prototypes can also be made of wood or metal.
You will need mould dams to contain the liquid urethane moulding solution until it cures. You can build boxes out of strips of wood, but I have found that small plastic boxes and bowls such as those you would use for leftovers in your fridge work well if you spray them with a mould release agent.
Temperature is important to the chemical processes involved, so work in an area that can be maintained at around 20 degrees. You will also need adequate ventilation because the fumes can be dangerous to breathe. And you will want to wear latex gloves to protect your hands.

Fraser Cars – low flying into the fourth decade

10 July, 2026

With almost three and a half decades under its belt, Fraser Cars is one of New Zealand’s longest-surviving car manufacturers. The company first opened its doors for business in 1988, during the boom time for kit manufacturers. During the ’80s, around 40 different companies were building kits and turnkey cars for this niche market. Of those, only Fraser and Almac Cars (established 1981) are still in business today.
Most of the new kit car companies were killed off in the cradle by the threat of new legislation that never eventuated and definitively by the sudden availability of high-performance Japanese cars when the floodgates to second-hand imports were opened. The now long-retired founder of the company, Neil Fraser, first came across Lotus Seven replicas while racing Lotus Cortinas in the early ’80s. He regularly found himself racing against a little Caterham, a Lotus Seven–styled car built in England. He was very impressed by its simplicity and handling. In 1986 Fraser built his own Lotus Seven–type car, using the knowledge he had gained from several close looks at the Caterham.

The Ford Mk1 Cortina salvaged from the wrecker’s yard

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