Five reasons to sink your teeth into New Zealand Classic Car Issue No. 297

18 September, 2015

September’s New Zealand Classic Car (Issue No. 297) is now on sale! And there’s plenty of excellent content bound within its pages to keep you entertained.

The first thing that we think of when we hear ‘flat-six’ and ‘rear-engined’ in the same sentence is the Porsche 911. But in this issue we take a look at one of the most unique American vehicles ever created that shares the same layout — the rear-engined Chevrolet Corvair. Unfairly singled out in Ralph Nader’s infamous book, Unsafe at Any Speed, we reckon that the high-performance turbocharged 1965 Corvair Corsa that adorns the cover is definitely the business.

Fit for royalty, this 1952 R-Type Bentley has lead an interesting life amongst the glitz and glamour of Hollywood’s rich and famous. Now residing in Christchurch, this gorgeous Bentley now leads a more quiet life, and is only brought out for special occasions — including our full feature.

If you like Italian, then read on. We feature one of the finest 1988 1.7 QV Cloverleaf Alfa Sprint’s you are ever likely to see, discovering in the process what links this car has with the lucky shamrock that’s more usually associated with Ireland, the famous Targa Florio road race, and even Enzo Ferrari.

Take a look at what we discovered hiding away in a barn on a Waikato chicken farm — you’ll be amazed at 200 classic cars, the property of a collector who once owned 75, yes 75, PA Vauxhalls.

Check out our great nationwide news section, and, if you’re in the market for a classic car or trade professional, then our cars for sale and trade directory section will also be of major interest. And don’t miss out on this month’s great subscription offers.         

Pick up Issue No. 297 of New Zealand Classic Car below, and you don’t even need to leave The Motorhood!

Stag roars again

The Triumph Stag pictured here has been lovingly restored from what was once, in the owner’s words, “a horrible, terrible job”. Owners Glynn and Alison Gaston hail from Dunedin and along with their grandchildren now enjoy cruising in the Stag after a three-and-a-half-year restoration.
In 2011, Glynn was looking for a classic car to restore. After 21 years with Air New Zealand he was working as a Super Shuttle driver, with four days on and four days off, which gave him the time to take on such a project — something he had always wanted to do.
“I’d looked at quite a few cars over the years. The idea was to restore a car as something to keep me going. I had looked at different MGs and I would have quite liked an Austin Healey or something similar but they were really expensive.
“Then I saw a Stag and I thought, Ah, this is nice. This is what I would like.

Our cover car is winning prizes

The stunning 1958 Buick cover car from our September/October 2024 issue 395 magazine, is winning awards at car shows. Congratulations to Dave and Catherine Parker on taking out Presidents choice at the Tararua Rodders Crome & Custom show. The Buick had to beat some fierce competition to achieve first place with plenty of top quality vehicles on show. 
Photographs Dan Strawbridge and Kevin Walsh.