Nostalgic charm: The Very Vintage Day Out

1 October, 2018

 

It can sometimes be difficult to reconcile your hobbies with those of your partner, but the Very Vintage Day Out neatly straddles the divide with an awesome vehicle display featuring classic cars, muscle cars, and hot rods from the ’30s to the ’60s, as well as the Miss Pinup New Zealand beauty pageant, a bake-off, dressmaking competition, and the ‘Photo Safari’ — united by the appreciation of all things vintage, pinup, and rockabilly.

The event will display vehicles from a multitude of car clubs, including the American Muscle Car Club, Manukau Rod and Custom Club, Hibiscus Rodders, Trouble Bound Hot Rod Club, South Pacific Packards, and Auckland Hot Rod Club. They’re also opening the floor for other enthusiasts to display their period vehicles. If you’re keen to display yours, head to their registration page to register your vehicle for either day — each driver will receive a complimentary pass to the day’s event.

Now in its seventh year, the Very Vintage Day Out continues to cater to those passionate about pin up, tattoo art, retro fashion, and the cars that go along with it. Whether you’re just curious, or a diehard vintage aficionado — or your partner is — it promises to be a fantastic day out, with live music, a fully licenced bar, and great cars.

The Very Vintage Day Out takes place 3 and 4 November at ASB Showgrounds in Auckland. Head to veryvintage.co.nz for more info and to grab your tickets.

You’re the one that I want – 1973 Datsun 240K GT

In the early 1970s, Clark Caldow was a young sales rep travelling the North Island and doing big miles annually. He loved driving. In 1975 the firm he worked for asked Clark what he wanted for his new car, and Clark chose a brand-new Datsun 240K GT. The two-door car arrived, and Clark was smitten, or in his own words, he was “pole vaulting.”
Clark drove it all over the country, racking up thousands of miles. “It had quite a bit of pep with its SOHC 128 hp (96kW) of power mated to a four-speed manual gearbox,” he says. Weighing in at 1240kg meant the power to weight ratio was good for the time and its length at almost 4.5 metres meant it had good street presence.
Clark has been a car enthusiast all his life, and decided around nine years ago to look for one of these coupes. By sheer luck he very quickly found a mint example refurbished by an aircraft engineer, but it was in Perth.

The originals – the Ledgerwood Collection

Thanks to Central Otago’s dry climate, it’s no surprise to find that Wanaka couple Jim and Daphne Ledgerwood are steadily developing an incredible collection of amazing coupes. ‘The Originals’ they have are as per factory new condition, and their aim is to keep them for everyone to see how it was done back in the day—pure nostalgia.
An occasional email from Jim usually reveals another gleaming addition. The collectors also have an impressive display of American pickups. It’s our gain and US enthusiasts’ loss, as car agent’s adverts proclaim, “Sorry you missed out. Gone to New Zealand!” Some of Jim and Daphne’s cars are almost part of the family, hence their nicknames.