An HQ to die for
Mention the acronym HQ and most people in the northern hemisphere will assume this is an abbreviation for Head Quarters. However, for those born before the mid-’80s in Australia and New Zealand, the same two letters only mean one thing – HQ Holden!
Christchurch enthusiast Ed Beattie has a beautiful collection of Holden and Chevrolet cars. He loves the bowtie and its Aussie cousin and has a stable of beautiful, powerful cars. His collection includes everything from a modern GTSR W507 HSV through the decades to a 1960s Camaro muscle car and much in between.
In the last two Holden Nationals (run biennially in 2021 and 2023), Ed won trophies for the Best Monaro and Best Decade with his amazing 1972 Holden Monaro GTS 350 with manual transmission.
Ed is a perfectionist and loves his cars to reflect precisely how they were on ‘Day 1,’ meaning when the dealer released them to the first customer, including any extras the dealer may have added or changed.
Don’t forget that this edition also comes with our FREE huge wall poster.
This issue features a 1922 Delage-Hispano Suiza CO2-modified.
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Events
Ayrburn to showcase classics and future classics
Ayrburn is set to host an extraordinary display, celebrating classic cars of the past and showcasing the future icons of motoring. This prestigious event will feature a remarkable selection of vehicles, including some of the most legendary and innovative models from renowned brands.
Set against the stunning backdrop of Queenstown’s Ayrburn historic precinct, the inaugural Ayrburn Classic Festival of Motoring (March 21-23, 2025) promises to be an unmissable event for car enthusiasts and those seeking a motoring event unlike any other in New Zealand.
1967 Chevrolet Camaro SS – America’s heartbeat
General Motors’ reply to the Mustang’s overwhelming popularity following its launch in 1964 was the Camaro, setting in place a pony-car rivalry that is today as strong as ever.
Dunedin enthusiasts Ivan and Julie Webster enjoy cruising in their Camaros. Yes, there are two of them in their garage, a 1967 and a 1971 model, both in pristine condition. I first saw their 1967 Camaro, its vivid green sparkling in the sunshine at the 2024 Cromwell Classic and Hot Road Car Festival after it secured a Top 10 award.
You could be forgiven for mistaking it for a recent restoration, but when I caught up with them, it was a surprise to find the restoration of this Chevrolet began in 2008 and finished in 2010!
It’s impressive work, and it still looks great after 14 years of cruising. As Ivan explains, the car does get used to going to South Island shows.
“It was finished in time for the Super Chevy Weekend Nationals 2010 in Invercargill, and it went well when it won an Entrants Choice, Top 10 placing.”
1970 Fiat 124 BC Coupe – Gino’s renaissance
Possibly one of the most universally underrated of all Italian classics has to be the Fiat 124. Launched in 1966 as a four-door saloon, two-seat Spider and the following year as the Sport Coupe, the 124 epitomises the best in Italian car design.
For Eion Greig, Italian classic cars have been in the blood from a young age, a passion which began with help from his father, as Eion recalls.
“My dad (Robin Greig) had three Fiats that he purchased new. It all started with a 1965 500D, then an 850 sedan that he purchased in the late ‘60s and then a 1971 Fiat 128 and that’s how a passion for Fiat certainly rubbed off on me. My Dad held on to that car (the 128) and it was our main family car for many years. It was my first car,” says Eion.
“I just love how Italian cars just push the envelope of performance and style and combined with my love of classic motorsport, Fiat was a brand I was naturally drawn to.”
MGs on parade
MGs turned out in force at the MG centenary display in Auckland, proving these perennial favourites are as socially magnetic as ever.
Under current brand MG owners, Saic Motors, we are now seeing thoroughly modern hatchbacks and saloons and a stunning new two-seater sports car bearing the MG badge, but for most of the brand’s first 100 years, MGs were always parts bin specials. This was taken to extremes in the BMC and British Leyland eras when they became, for a tim,e just sad ‘badge-engineered’ Austins and Morrises.
However, as Auckland MG car club captain Paul Walbran says, that has certainly contributed to so many of them still being on the road today. Because so many components were sourced from Austin and Morris saloons, parts remain plentiful, and a vast army of fans across the world is enough of a market to keep small manufacturers of the less common bits in business.
This is why so many of them were able to turn up at the centenary display at Vellenoweth Green on Auckland’s Tamaki Drive waterfront in early December.
Is MG’s cyberstar a real MG?
It’s a dramatic car and a welcome return to the two-seater sports car market for MG, but this question is something most people need to get their heads around first.
Whether this is actually an MG is not a question that troubles this car’s owners, Auckland MG car club captain Paul Walbran and his wife, Bronwyn. Even though they are ideally placed to see their car’s obvious differences from most of the other MGs – 89 of them – gathered to celebrate the marque’s 100th anniversary on the waterfront at St Heliers in Auckland.
For a start, it’s an EV, but then so are many other modern MGs, of which there was a smattering at the display. It’s not unusual for owners of old MGs to also have a modern MG in their stable. They have made peace with progress.
1922 Delage / Hispano-Suiza co2 – a restomod like no other
Louis Delage’s model CO was typical of the interwar period from 1919 to 1939. Built for continental grand touring, they were often the mount of the rich and famous. War-surplus aero engines were cheap and plentiful and were often retro-fitted to these magnificent cars for racing and speed record attempts, although the featured car received its Hispano-Suiza transplant later in its life.
This featured vehicle is a 1922 Delage CO2. Delage produced around 280 CO2s, all with 4.5 litre 6-cylinder engines. The cars had a lot of aluminium content and as such were in demand during World War Two for recycling into aeroplane fuselages and wings. Only 10 or 11 CO2s exist today, and Allan Dippie and his brother Martin own one of them. It is formally known as Delage CO2 chassis number 910.
This car was sold new, along with several others, into Australia via agents Joubet and Joubet around 1922. Allan didn’t know a lot about its history until it was discovered in poor condition in western Victoria over thirty years ago.
In 1995, a complete refurbishment in meticulous detail began on the forlorn Delage by the famous Delage Garage of Melbourne. The owner had decided to power the sports car with a Hispano-Suiza aero engine. This was a ‘restomod’ of historic note as this was a common upgrade in the 1920s by owners wishing to go racing, and the best way to do this was to fit a surplus World War 1 fighter plane engine.
Europe Report – Salon Prive Giro Dei laghi
Our correspondent samples the continental delights experienced by many who have gone before on the Grand Tour of Europe and finds plenty to be enthused about. Then there were the cars!
The Grand Tour was not as some crazy car people might think invented by Jeremy Clarkson and his pals when thinking up a new title for their TV programme. Indeed, the development of the Grand Tour dates back to the 16th Century and was most highly popular in the 18th Century when grand tourists, primarily from the UK, set off to explore the cultural wonders of Europe and, in particular, Italy, returning home with mementoes and souvenirs of their journey.
The expression itself, Grand Tour, was first used by Richard Lessels, a Roman Catholic priest and travel writer who coined the phrase in his book The Voyage of Italy, first published in 1670.
Motorman – the car Denny drove to success
Denny Hulme’s favourite Repco V8-engined Brabham BT23, a Formula-1 single-seater, played an important role in New Zealand’s motorsport history. Never the most powerful F1 engine compared to its rivals, such was its reliability, it was this car that swept the modest Kiwi into Grand Prix prominence and world championship success in 1967.
Our only Formula-1 world championship winner was surprised at the interest shown when he demonstrated a 21-year-old Brabham in Australia in 1987. Five years later, Denny Hulme spoke with Donn Anderson about his enthusiasm for historic racing. Denny achieved four podium finishes in 1966 with a Brabham powered by the Repco V8 and would finish fourth in the championship points.
His debut outing with the Australian-sourced engine was in a Brabham BT19 at the 1966 British Grand Prix at Brands Hatch, where he finished a promising second behind team boss Jack Brabham, also Repco V8 powered in his team car.
The engine was off to a great start, but in the next two Grands Prix in Holland and Germany, Hulme retired with ignition problems. He was third at Monza for the Italian GP, retiring with a loss of oil pressure in the US GP at Watkins Glen and then taking third in Mexico and second in the Oulton Park Gold Cup in England.
The house of cars
Cars have been a large part of David and Leona Eadie’s life, and over the years, they have built up an eclectic collection of classic cars, motorcycles and memorabilia reflecting their interests. A quirky solution was found to secure the collection. All are very special to the couple and in superb condition. However, there comes a time when a hard decision has to be made and David is pleased to share how the collection came about and to offer some of the collection for sale to those who will appreciate them.
David tells us, “When we retired to Queenstown ten years ago, it was our intention to collect a few classic cars – but where to put them? It was a good opportunity to think outside the square and do something different that would add a whole lot of extra appeal to just owning a few old cars.
And, so we built the “Car House”, just a stone’s throw from our home.”
Edsels, whales and burgers
Battered by the earthquake in 2016, Kaikoura has bounced back and remains a focal point for classic and custom enthusiasts drawn to its welcoming seaside atmosphere and its annual Kaikoura Hop festival. There’s plenty to see and do, along with a great array of local cuisine, including now, a rather special car collection operated by the Harmon family.
What does a tourist town specialising in whale watching have in common with a Ford Motor Company brand that only lasted three years? Answer: Kaikoura! It’s home to what is probably the largest collection of Edsels outside of the USA and Canada. Unconfirmed and possibly more conjecture than accuracy, but the fact is that there is a privately owned collection of Edsel’s in Kaikoura, including some very rare models, but more about them later.
The Edsels are part of a larger collection of US vehicles interspersed with some Australian and British classics owned by the Harmon family. The Harmons are well known locally with business interests in fishing and hotels among other things. They also operate Harmon’s Classic Car Museum, which was established in 2017 and features a display of around forty cars.
1975 Morris Mini 1000, Mark III – Minis make you smile
Minis take a special place in many hearts. Retired Christchurch engineer Gordon McGimpsey and wife Lesley once used a Mini as their daily driver, so they seized the opportunity to resurrect one of these British Icons.
Gordon has transformed a Mini 1000 after two years of hard work, cleaning, and scraping off years of road dirt and rust. The couple now reside in a villa at a Christchurch retirement village where Gordon completed the Mini in the single, attached garage.
It’s a space considerably smaller than the large garage he was used to when he began the project at their original home in Heathcote.
His family are incredibly proud of his restoration of the 1975 Morris Mini 1000, and his daughter, Michelle, contacted us via an email back in April 2024, expressing how proud she was of what her dad had done.
We love getting letters like this one, and it was the photos that clinched it, what an outstanding piece of work has been done on one of these iconic little cars. I met with Gordon and Lesley the week his Mini was finally licensed and roadworthy, and we celebrated with a few laps of the village clock tower!
Looking back: Roadside Attractions – Part 1
A Personal Odyssey of South Auckland’s Car & Motor Racing Culture 1963-1992
South Auckland, the industrial powerhouse of Auckland City for decades. Its insatiable thirst for land and resources for its expanding industries is endless. From the ‘60s to the ‘90s, it saw the establishment of many car assembly plants and associated industries. It attracted myriad diverse social cultures, skills and interests into communities, eventually amalgamating into one big city. Gerard Richards recalls his departure from north of the bridge and moving to South Auckland in 1976, mixing with a lively car culture alongside larger-than-life characters.
Peter Bruin – the quiet achiever
New Zealand motorsport has produced some amazingly talented engineers who not only left a lasting impression on people they me, but many also achieved success on the racetrack. Peter Bruin was one such talent who impressed Bob Hulme from the first time he met Peter at the Auckland Car Club.
Peter Bruin was one of those guys who was well-known to many yet not widely known to all. Rather than blow his own trumpet, Peter would just get on with things and let his work speak for itself. He was a motorsport enthusiast who loved the technical aspects as well as driving.
Born in the Netherlands in 1946, Peter came to New Zealand at an early age when his parents decided to emigrate. They bought a section in Auckland’s Northcote. Foundations and a floor platform were built to erect the house. The rest was built using a kit set shipped out from the Netherlands. The house is still in family ownership today. Schooling would not have been easy for the young Peter as he had to learn a new language and was likely teased by fellow students.
Kits and Pieces – a very different car show
If you thought building your dream kit car in New Zealand was limited in choice, think again as Patrick tours the annual Kit Car show.
In New Zealand, only one club specialises purely in homebuilt cars. Yes, many other clubs dabble in it, like the Hot Rod Clubs. In that instance, most of their vehicles are existing cars that have been customised, with only a scattering being built from a kit or a jumble of parts on a garage floor.
The Constructors Car Club was formed in 1988 and is the only club catering specifically for homebuilt and kit cars. Despite new and more stringent rules, the club believes that anybody can still build their dream car whether they start with a pencil and a T-square or buy a kit in a box. Any engineering problem has a solution. Admittedly the lines between hot rods and homebuilts can occasionally be blurred as some hot rods come as a kit in a box.
Having been a part of the Constrictors Car Club since its inception in the late ‘80s, it is no surprise that I should be at the first public show the club has held in over 10 years. With just under 50 cars in attendance, it is a smaller show than shows held in days gone by, a reflection of the way most hobbies are going that don’t involve a tablet or a game controller
Market Report – Alfa Romeo 147 GTA
The back catalogue of Alfa Romeo is awash with some of the greatest enthusiast cars ever built, especially the cars with the letters GTA attached.
GTA or Gran Turismo Alleggerita (Lightened Grand Tourer), was only given to a select few Alfa, which fitted the bill for absolute lightened performance. During the first half of the noughties, Alfa created GTA variants of the 156 saloon and 147 hatch. Both of these have become not only coveted from within the Alfa community but also bonafide modern classics in their own right.
Price On – influencers
We all have had (sometimes) significant influencers in our lives who governed some of our decision-making.
Here are a few of mine!
Book Review
Kiwis at Speed
By Steve Holmes
PUBLISHED 2024 BY DAVID BATEMAN LTD
ISBN 978-1-98853851-8
RRP $59.99
Classic car news
Summer is a busy time, but we were out and about all over the country to bring you all the news from as many events as our team could get to!
Here are a few of them: Tractor Trek, TACCOC Christmas racing, Southern Classics, Kumeu Classic Car and Hot Rod Show, Cromwell Classic and Hot Rod Festival, Ferrari Passion Day, Legends of Motorsport at Taupo…
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