What’s in the January February issue 391 magazine

Well, love it or hate it, we have to accept the fact that we made this mustard-coloured, Skoda-chassied, fibreglass vehicle and it’s a true Kiwi classic icon now – we are talking about the Trekka.
They were a hard car to like or in any way admire when they came out in the 1960s and to be honest, as kids, we used to point and laugh at them. However, they are our best attempt at a motorcar industry so it’s time to enjoy all there is to know about this truly unique Kiwi-designed farming vehicle. When you see them in the flesh these days, they really have something about them that we can now, actually appreciate and enjoy as the Trekka… is all ours.
It’s time to own it NZ and our cover story this issue is on two beauties, a ute and a station wagon. Enjoy.
“Thanks to Trekka enthusiast Todd Niall, the intriguing tale of this quirky utility vehicle’s singular rise to stardom as New Zealand’s only genuine ‘mass-produced’ car, has been properly told. It’s a story of the founding dynasties of the New Zealand motor industry, political intrigue, and government manoeuvring, recounted in his book The Trekka Dynasty (Iconic Publishing, Auckland). It’s a great read.
For decades, overseas funds were really the only way you could legally bring a new car into New Zealand. That’s because After World War II, the government was becoming increasingly jittery over the worsening balance of exports payments and import licensing was restrictive and competitive.”