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A taste for vintage classics: Doug MacDonald and Murray Frew

8 March, 2017

 

Classic motor racing is all about fun and camaraderie, and Doug MacDonald has been enjoying motor racing at his favourite racetrack —  Teretonga Park Motor Race Circuit — since the very first meeting in 1957.

It was 60 years ago when Doug competed in his MG TD alongside a bunch of dedicated enthusiasts from the Southland Sports Car Club, who helped create the popular southern race track.

“It’s my favourite track [Teretonga Park Motor Race Circuit] and it’s why I decided to come back again this year for the 60th anniversary year of the track,” Doug said.

Now living in Marahau near Motueka, the 85-year-old had also been back for the 25th and 50th anniversary meetings the latter also with an Alfa Romeo built in New Zealand.

Created by Herb Gilroy in 1968, the Alfa Romeo 750 Competizone 1750 was built as close as possible to the original car.

“I saw this lovely little Alfa Romeo for sale alongside another Alfa on the side of the road and after talking to the owner, I got together with some friends and we got it home,” he said.

The Alfa Romeo was modelled on two development cars that the Italian company had built in 1955 but never raced.

“I believe Herb contacted Fiat, who owned Alfa Romeo, and Cisitalia, who had developed the car, and they forwarded the blueprints to him so he could build it. It’s a lovely little car and so forgiving on the track. It’s very comfortable too,” he said.

Doug was now the car’s third owner and he had decided to keep the 1750cc twin-cam engine pretty much standard.

“We decided to keep it that way for reliability rather than go for more power, and it has been very reliable with 22 races and hill-climb events completed in 2015 with very few problems,” he said.

Doug enjoyed the atmosphere of classic racing, and the Evolution Motorsport Classic Speedfest 2017 event reminded him of the first, back in 1957 when temperatures were very similar.

“Those fellas on the Formula Junior Jubilee Tour will be enjoying this weather. They will be thinking they are in the South of France in this heat,” he laughed.
He was thrilled with the way the club had developed the circuit.

“It really is a very good circuit and I love driving around it. It’s just a great atmosphere,” he said.

Enjoying the heat with Doug, and sharing the same tent to shelter from the summer heat, was fellow vintage racer Murray Frew from Ashburton, parked up with his big orange Chrysler 62 Special.

Murray has owned his race car for some 20 years, and it was originally built in the Methven area.

“It was built pre 1950, and the fellow who built it knew what he was doing,” Murray said.

Based on a 1929 Chrysler 62, the 250ci (3769cc) side-valve six-cylinder engine provides deceptively quick performance for such a big car. Murray had competed in many circuit races and hill climbs with the car.

“If you look carefully you can see that the fellow who built this cut the rear of the chassis off and welded it onto the front of the chassis, resulting in a long wheelbase and a very well-balanced car. It’s great to drive,” he said.

Typical of New Zealand specials of the day, the car made use of what was available, he said.

“It runs through a Vauxhall gearbox, and if you look carefully at the fuel tank above the rear axle, you can see that the tank is made from two kitchen sinks bolted together,” he said.

Both MacDonald and Murray had thoroughly enjoyed the Southern Classic series of meetings with the good weather adding to the enjoyment.

Grand Routier — in the french tradition

10 July, 2025

Sitting in Paddy and Patsy Williams’ Dunedin garage is a stunning example of one of these rare French grand routier sedans. It is a 1949 four-door Lago-Record Factory Berline sedan, to give its full name. Daughter Cath let us know how proud she was of her dad, who had been tinkering away in his garage on this car for so many years.
Without exaggeration, it has been a mammoth task. I first saw this Talbot-Lago in mid 2019. The long-nosed, sweeping, curved four-door saloon, clothed in its misty green metallic paint, was quite breathtaking. There’s more than a little English influence in it, too, harking back to company owner Tony Lago’s involvement in the Clement-Talbot-Darracq era. The long front wings and bonnet, usually multi-louvred, highlighted with artful touches of chrome bling, are typical of the era, but these were indeed luxury length. Interiors provided leather-clad, armchair-style seating and ample legroom, with touches of wood and surprising details such as dainty childproof interior locks — a far cry from today’s lozenge boxes.
Paddy, a retired civil and structural engineer, knows his way around a lathe. He has a well-equipped garage-workshop to assist in any machining tasks along with his other passion for restoring classic motorcycles.

The Great River Road

4 July, 2025

A few years ago my family, knowing my fondness for driving, gave me the book Unforgettable Road Trips: Thirty-Six Drives of a Lifetime by Martin Derrick. Most of the road trips listed take less than a day in places like Scotland, Monaco, and Australia, plus one in New Zealand. Most of these places were too far to go just for a short drive but four of them would take several days. My interest was piqued, and those four drives were added to the bucket list. To date, I have done three of them: ‘Route 66’ (USA 21 days), ‘State Highway 6’ (NZ 10 days) and ‘The Great River Road’ (USA 22 days). You can drive all of them in less time, but you could also fly over them. We wanted a decent immersion in their charms.
The great river referred to is the Mississippi. While the name conjures the deep south, the river actually starts at the bottom of the great lakes, before emptying into the Gulf of Mexico about 3800km later. The great road is more of a concept than a specific strip of tarmac, as you can drive down either side of the river on various routes. Regardless of which side you drive, time should be kept aside for detours to places such as Nashville, which is famous for something or other.