Kiwis love Aston Martin

16 June, 2014

 

Kiwis love Aston Martin more than any other country does anywhere else in the world.

Global Sales Director for Aston Martin, Christian Marti, announced at the Australasia Dealer Conference, held in the Barossa Valley, South Australia, that Aston Martin in New Zealand had the highest market share in the world (luxury segment) in 2013.

Aston Martin/Independent Prestige General Manager, Greg Brinck, was there to accept the accolade.

“We had a fantastic 2013, particularly with the new Vanquish, so we were confident that we’d be ‘up there’ internationally, based on the New Zealand market share stats that we had received. It is particularly fitting that we achieved the number one spot in the centenary celebration year for Aston Martin.

“The celebration events that we shared with our customers and owners during the last year, again emphasized to us the real passion held here in New Zealand for Aston Martin sports cars. The future certainly looks bright with a strong model range and all-new dedicated dealership, in the not too distant future.”

There seems to be plenty to look forward to from Aston Martin in New Zealand, so let’s see what the rest of 2014 has to offer.

Lunch with … Rodger Anderson

At first, I wondered if I’d driven up the wrong driveway. The car in the garage was an early Mustang resplendent in royal blue with two broad gold stripes, which was not what I was expecting. I knew that Rodger Anderson, who made his name in Minis and a BMW 2002, was a Porsche man these days — the other end of the spectrum from American muscle. I had no idea of his affection for Detroit iron. It didn’t take long to discover just how passionate this former Saloon Car Champion is about cars, as long as they’re interesting.

Back from the brink – 1968 MGB GT

Auckland classic car enthusiast Kerry Bowman soon realised he had a massive job on his hands in restoring his classic 1968 MGB GT. When Kerry and his MGB first appeared in New Zealand Classic Car in March 2021, in “Behind The Garage Door”, the stripped-out shell had revealed some nasty surprises. Once the true extent of the hidden damage was discovered, the work would normally have been handed over to a professional fabricator. However, with the assistance of experts such as MG specialist restorer, Paul Walbran, Kerry has completed an impressive restoration and saved this car from the scrapheap.