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Pride of the south: the South Island Endurance Series is upon us

8 September, 2016

 

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“With a cracker of a North Island series, the 2016 Carters Tyres South Island Endurance Series is set to be even more exciting, with a large prize pool and numerous new vehicles”

The 2016 Mahindra North Island Endurance Series finished off with a bang, and with the 2016 Carters Tyres South Island Endurance Series upon us, starting on September 10 at Teretonga Park, things couldn’t get any more exciting. Why so exciting? As you’ve probably noticed, the endurance-racing scene here in New Zealand is taking off quicker than a jet-propelled horse carriage. Numerous teams are throwing down big coin to European countries, bringing in the GT3 machines and exotics to have the best crack at the endurance crown.

Carters Tyres has snagged the naming-rights sponsor gig this season, alongside associate-level sponsor Allied 24/7, and they’re both contributing to an impressive $30,000 prize-pool for the series’ competitors.

“For 2016 we have $30,000 that we will pay out across the series,” South Island Endurance Racing Drivers Club secretary (SIERDC) Chris Dunn explained. “Plus we have a magnificent $10,000 Norman Sinclair original painting, a set of Michelin race tyres, and products from Endless brakes that will all be given away as spot prizes — so with prize money spread across every single class, and many spot prizes, there is an extensive spread of prizes right across the board.”

Alongside the bigger-than-ever prize pool, the line-up of cars will have any GT racer weak at the knees. Current NZ Endurance Racing Champion John McIntyre will be teaming up with Simon Gilbertson to pedal the infamous Tulloch Motorsport SaReni Camaro GT3, Trass Family Motorsport will be bringing their championship-winning Ferrari 458 GT3 driven by Sam Fillmore and Richard Muscat, and Matt and Dwayne Carter will be driving their much-anticipated Mercedes AMG SLS GT3, which will no doubt be a front-running vehicle.

Alongside the top-tier vehicles contesting the series, there will also be class one, class two, and class three. Class one consists of 3501cc-plus vehicles, class two is for the 2001–3500cc vehicles, and class three is for the small guys running under 2000cc.

After the first round (being held at Teretonga Park on September 10), the series will move to Mike Pero Motorsport Park for the October 1 event, and will then finish up at the Timaru International Raceway on October 15. It’s set to be a short sharp series that’ll no doubt keep us on the edge of our seats. We’re looking forward to seeing these new GT machines in action, and to see how hotly contested each class will be. We’ll be keeping you updated as the series goes on, so make sure to check back here after each event — until then!
 

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.