The Cord found up in the rafters

17 October, 2016

In 1987, whilst visiting a friend, Graham Gibson happened to glance up into the rafters of the large shed and noticed a pair of front mudguards that belonged to a Cord. He recognized them straight away because of the distinctive retractable headlights.

The Cord was purchased and taken back to Sydney and completely restored. Apparently it was in so many pieces that there were no two pieces bolted together. After a few months of scratching his head, wondering where to begin, Graham worked on the philosophy that the more parts he bolted together, the fewer there were to worry about — the final result speaks for itself.

We’ve included a few additional photos that didn’t make it into the November issue of New Zealand Classic Car — grab your copy below to read the full story. 

Grab your copy of the November issue of New Zealand Classic Car (Issue No. 311), now!


A second dose of Dash

When the car arrived in Wellington in December 2018 it was duly taken along for entry certification. Vehicle Inspection NZ (VINZ) found some wrongly wired lamps and switches — not too bad — but, much more significantly, some poor welding repairs. As the structural problems were probed more thoroughly, we realized the previous owner’s restoration would not do and we needed an upgrade. Dash had made it into the country but it would take some time and money before he would be free to explore any of New Zealand’s scenic highways.
We took the car to our new home in Johnsonville in the northern suburbs of Wellington and I pored over the car in detail to figure out what was next. There were lots of new parts on the car and a very perky reconditioned drivetrain but the chassis needed serious work.

Lunch with… Jim Palmer

In the 1960s, Hamilton’s Jim Palmer won the prestigious ‘Gold Star’ four times and was the first resident New Zealander home in the New Zealand Grand Prix on five consecutive occasions. He shared the podium with Stirling Moss, Jack Brabham, Bruce McLaren, Graham Hill, Jim Clark, Denny Hulme, Jackie Stewart, and Chris Amon. The extent of his domination of the open-wheeler scene in New Zealand will probably never be matched or exceeded. Yet he’s always been modest about his achievements.