New Zealand Classic Car 373, January 2022 is out now!

13 December, 2021

Beach Buggies might be 60s years old but their perky charm is even more fun today. Get the vibe, the history and the how-to in New Zealand Classic Car 373


 

 

As modern cars get softer, the cute curves and the raw dak-dak-dak beat of classic Beach Buggy blasts you with raw sensation — and the smiles per mile go through the roof. We check out this timeless classic and its 60-year-old creation myths and legends. We also look at a 1906 Cadillac, and preview the Jaguars that were going to race in Jaguar’s centenary Historic GP in Taupo, now postponed to 2023, thanks to Covid. So, if you want to see them all in one place now, it has to be NZCC! Sticking with the Dune theme, we’ve also got a pristine Holden Sandman that’s also now precious Kiwiana. It’s as ‘westie’ as a mullet —  all business in the front and party in the back!


What to expect in the January 2022 issue of NZCC


McLaren M8? No it’s Mirage…


Taupo Historic GP’s Jag centenary cancelled
Classic racing Jag lineup now only in NZCC


Before eight is enough, one was enough
Cadillac’s 1906 single-cylinder workshorse

Plus lots more in New Zealand Classic Car 373!

Range Rover CSK — the original SUV

The Range Rover, thanks to Charles Spencer King, went into production in 1970 boasting an iconic shape that would last until 1996. The vehicle that would create the SUV moniker came about because Rover decided it was time to add a bigger four-wheel-drive vehicle, one with a 100-inch wheelbase, to the model range. Land Rover made a 109-inch wheelbase model but the standard vehicle had a 88-inch wheelbase.
The new model would be more suitable for road use than the existing Land Rover, which was considered to be predominantly for rural use. To make sure it could cope on any road it came standard with the Rover 3.5-litre V8 engine. The body design was originally sketched by King and went into production with only a few minor touch-ups by the Rover styling team.
According to King, “The idea was to combine the comfort and on-road ability of a Rover saloon with the off-road ability of a Land Rover. Nobody was doing it.”

Ford’s Mustang – the endlessly hip American dream machine

Fifty or so years ago, the only place in New Zealand to see a Ford Mustang was on the racetrack. In a local market severely constrained by a lack of new motor vehicles, the new North American Ford was a dreamy icon boosted by considerable motorsport success.
Import licences for cars were limited, and if Kiwis travelled abroad, the amount of currency they could take with them was restricted. What’s more, those funds could not be used to buy a car for importation back home. Yet it was OK to spend the money on heavy drinking at a London pub, Gucci shoes, sable fur coats, and excessive stays at the Hôtel Martinez at Cannes in France.
However, any rare Mustang that landed on our shores would not be destined to pose around Auckland’s then trendy Queen Street on a Friday night but would more likely be found in the care of well-known racing drivers on the starting grid at local motor racing tracks.