Innholdsfortegnelse for No 144 May 2017 i NZV8

Acouple of issues ago, I alluded to the fact that things are changing around here pretty quickly. What I didn’t mention is that one of those things is me … Having worked for NZV8’s parent company, Parkside Media, for 13 years now, and held the title of Editor of NZV8 for 10 of those, all based in the company’s central Auckland office, change is in the wind for me. In those 13 years, there have been some massive changes within the print industry, changes that have made being involved in it both fun and challenging, and have caused businesses within the industry to rethink their approach. It’s been an interesting opportunity to be involved with a business such as Parkside through these challenging times, and it’s great still to be…

THEMOTORHOOD.COM NOSTALGIA ACTION At the time of writing, we’re preparing to cover the Bay Rodders Nostalgia Drags — although the weather forecast isn’t looking all that flash. Search ‘Nostalgia Drags’ on themotorhood.com to see what went down this year — that is, if the event does end up happening — or you can always check out last year’s event should the weather have other ideas for this year’s. MORE BEACH HOP! We’ve got a bunch of Repco Beach Hop 17 photos in this issue’s event report, but if you’re still hanging out for more while waiting for our NZV8 Beach Hop Annual 2017 to hit the shelves, themotorhood.com has just the ticket! Just search ‘Repco Beach Hop 17’ on The Motorhood for individual day reports as well as photo galleries…

EMAIL YOUR BUILDS TO EDITOR@V8.CO.NZ FALCON STUNNER The team at Matamata Panelworks have yet another tough XA Falcon coupe in the build. The car, belonging to customer Dave Hart, has received plenty of custom body fabrication, including a custom raised hood, a full custom tail panel, and more. With the usual high quality of workmanship, it’s hard to tell where the factroy bodywork ends and the custom work begins. Wanting performance to match, the team are installing a worked 351ci Windsor, which is being backed by a Tremec TKO 600 five-speed manual gearbox. The interior will be equally as impressive with a Dakota Digital dash cluster set to be added to the custom dash panel, and custom seats also to be installed. All going well, the car will be on…

THE NEXT YEAR WAS SPENT COMING UP WITH A 10-YEAR BUILD PLAN Spec: 1977 HOLDEN TORANA LX ENGINE: 540ci big block Chev, Dart Big M iron block, splayed four-bolt mains, Scat 4.25-inch stroke crankshaft, Engine Pro rods, Diamond pistons, 30-thou over (0.030-inch), 9.1:1 compression ratio, Steve Morris Engines roller camshaft, solid-roller lifters, Brodix BB-2 X aluminium heads, T&D shaft-mount roller rockers, Reher Morrison rocker covers, Reher Morrison single-plane intake manifold, C&S Specialties E85 blow-through carburettor, two Master Power GT45 turbos, Extreme Velocity O-ringed aluminium intake elbow, Sinco aluminium intake piping, two Turbosmart Race Port 50mm blow-off valves (BOVs), two Turbosmart Power Gate 60mm external wastegates, owner-built exhaust manifolds, two-inch primary pipes, four-inch exhaust, custom wastegate pipes, MSD distributor, crank trigger, ICE 10A two-step ignition, ICE Pro 100 9mm ignition leads,…

DAY ONE The Go Waihi Warm Up Party marks the official start of Beach Hop every year, and things were no different for this year’s Repco Beach Hop 17. For entrants who’d arrived in Whangamata nice and early, the day started with a vehicular congregation at the Ford NZ Reserve (better known as Williamson Park during non–Beach Hop times of year) for a 9.30am cruise to Waihi. Others began their Beach Hop experience for the year by cruising straight to Waihi and going from there. While the weather forecast wasn’t too flash for the remainder of the week, Wednesday promised nothing but sunshine and happiness, and had no drama in delivering either. The main street of Waihi’s CBD, Seddon Street, and surrounding side streets were soon transformed from strips of…

While Santa and the Easter Bunny may get us excited once a year, the American Muscle Car Club’s show only happens once in every three. The wait is well worthwhile, though, with the club always putting on one of the best events you could ever ask to attend. This year, the 13th running of the show was sponsored by Galaxie Electrical, and, as always, it brought jaws to the floor and bulges to the pants of most who attended. From the moment spectators entered the doors of Te Pai Centre, in Henderson, Auckland, they knew they were in for an impressive display of cars covering almost all muscle car manufacturers. The club, known for its dedication to true muscle cars, is picky when it comes to what cars can go…

While most sheds or collections we feature in NZV8 have started within the last decade or two, the amazing Carrington House collection goes back a lot further than that. As impressive as the collection is, the building that it’s housed in is potentially even more of a standout — depending on your taste, of course. The main residence on the property in Carterton — about an hour and a half north of Wellington — was built in 1874 as the residence of Reverend William Booth, one of Carterton’s most prominent citizens. The sawmiller and farmer by trade moved the house to its current location in 1894, to allow a sawmill to be established behind it to mill the 6000 acres of native timber on the property. Over the years, an…

Other parts of the country had had their fair share of rain; now, on the weekend of the sixth and semi-final round of the 2016–2017 Enzed Central Muscle Cars (CMC) series, it was the turn of Auckland and Waikato, with flooding in a number of areas, Hampton Downs being one of them. Friday was reasonably dry, with the CMC drivers able to get two dry practice sessions in. Saturday, however, was a different story, with delays at the start of the day due to the amount of water on the track, compounded by the debris that had also washed onto the surface. The qualifying session on Saturday was called ‘wet’, and the drivers headed out onto the track with rain lights blazing and wipers beating. John Midgley set the quickest…

RAW NOISE What does 1150hp of unmuffled twin-turbo big block sound like? Pretty damn good, if you ask us. We’ve got raw footage of Aaron Jenkins’ Torana running in our photo studio, and the sound that came out of those four-inch straight pipes and reverberated around the studio is one of the coolest things about this car. Find out for yourself by searching ‘Aaron Jenkins’ on themotorhood.com. THE KIWI–COBRA CONNECTION DIY is in the Kiwi DNA, and, while there are plenty of Kiwi-built Cobra replicas around, a few Kiwis were actually instrumental in the development and building of the original Cobras. One such gentleman was the late John Ohlsen. We managed to sit down with John’s widow a few years back to find out all about his involvement. Search ‘Kiwi…

In this role, I consider myself very fortunate to have up-close access to some amazing vehicles and events. While it’s not getting any easier to find the time to attend feature-car photo shoots, I always prefer to do so when possible — it gives a far better sense of the work, thought processes, and passion that have been put into the cars, and that’s something that can be diluted over the phone or via email. Being able to see a car up close gives a feel for the way it’s been built, and I also find opportunities to question things. These aren’t blunt, ‘Why did/ would you do that?’ questions, but internalized I-wonder-why-they’d-do-that musings about certain aspects of the car that make me think the way the owner may have…

TORQUEBACK, NZVB MAGAZINE, PO BOX 46,020, HERNE BAY, AUCKLAND 1147; EMAIL TORQUEBACK@V8.CO.NZ A MATTER OF ERGONOMICS Dear Editor, I’ve got another curly one for you — ergonomic information on reclined racing car / sports car driving positions? Maybe someone out there knows where some info can be found on the subject? The library and internet have come up with nothing, so I’m scratching my head. Can anyone point me in the right direction to get any information? My next awkward question is with regard to late 1930s Studebakers. I have a photocopy of a photo of a ’37 pickup — very nice styling/design when most others were all boxy. Does anyone out there know who the designer was, as this styling was way ahead of its time? As I’m interested…

EMAIL YOUR INFO TO: EDITOR@V8.CO.NZ APRIL 25 RENEGADE ROD AND CUSTOM ANZAC DAY CAR SHOW After paying your respects, make sure to finish Anzac Day off by heading to the Renegade Rod and Custom Club’s annual Anzac Day Car Show. To be held at Bar Africa, 1 William Pickering Drive, Albany, Auckland, the event is open to all vehicles — hot rods, muscle cars, classics, and more. As well as a great range of cars on display, plenty of prizes will be up for grabs and a band will be playing classic hits. Check out the Renegade Rod and Custom Facebook page for more info. APRIL 30 HAMILTON SWAP MEET The Classics Museum at Hamilton is always worth a visit, but visitors will get to see a whole lot more…

Spec: 1956 CHEV CAMEO ENGINE: 350ci small block Chev, GM ZZ4 crate engine, four-bolt mains, Comp Cams hydraulic roller camshaft, Comp Cams roller rockers, GM aluminium heads, 1.94-inch intake valves, 1.50-inch exhaust valves, Whipple supercharger, custom billet air intake, Holley EFI ECU, custom alloy fuel cell, individual coil packs, custom crank trigger, billet serpentine pulley mount, three-inch exhaust, AdrenalinR mufflers, HPC-coated exhaust, custom aluminium radiator, custom oil cooler DRIVELINE: GM 4L80-E four-speed automatic, nine-inch diff, Positraction LSD centre, 3.5:1 diff ratio, custom driveshaft SUSPENSION: Tubular front control arms, Strange adjustable front coilovers, adjustable four-link rear, Strange adjustable rear coilovers, front and rear sway bars, rear Panhard bar, power-assisted rack-and-pinion steering BRAKES: Un-boosted, Wilwood master cylinder, Wilwood six-piston front calipers, Wilwood four-piston rear calipers, Wilwood discs WHEELS/TYRES: 18x8-inch and 18x10- inch…

Spec: 1966 AC COBRA ENGINE: 427ci Ford FE, Edelbrock Performer alloy heads, Holley Street Avenger carb, Pertronix ignition, twin 2.5-inch exhausts, stainless-steel mufflers, alloy radiator, electric fans DRIVELINE: Ford C6 automatic, Jaguar Salisbury diff SUSPENSION: Double-wishbone front, fourlink rear, aftermarket shocks, standard springs BRAKES: Remote brake booster, Wilwood fourpot calipers front and rear WHEELS/TYRES: 15x8-inch and 15x10-inch Halibrand knock-on wheels, 255/60R15 and 275/60R15 Dunlop tyres EXTERIOR: Custom-built polished aluminium body INTERIOR: Stewart Warner gauges PERFORMANCE: Untested “WE GOT TALKING TO A GUY WHO USED TO WORK FOR SHELBY” The good old Kiwi grapevine and our can-do attitude are undeniably part of what’s helped to put New Zealand on the map. There’s not much that Kiwis won’t try their hand at, and, through sheer determination, they generally do a damn fine…

The weather gods did their bit to disrupt this year’s running of the IHRA Nationals, but a week’s delay from the event’s scheduled date certainly didn’t seem to hurt. The entrant numbers were split a touch by other events taking place on the same day, but, for those racing, spectating, or organizing, the event was a success well worth celebrating. Going into the event, which was the final round of the 2016–2017 IHRA Nationals series, points were close in many classes, so the round would decide who took home bragging rights as national champion. With Night Speed Drag Wars taking place the night before the event, the track crew had their work cut out for them. However, they worked their magic — scraping the dead rubber, laying new rubber, and…

Let’s get this straight: Mark Holdaway’s not an idiot, not in the slightest. In fact, we’d say there’s a damn good reason for his apparent mechanical madness. His creation, which on paper may sound like an underpowered hybrid freak show, is anything but. The 1947 Willys may be an amalgamation of various parts, hot rod style, and rely on what, by today’s standards, is a very outdated but nostalgic power plant, from which Mark’s extracted more horsepower. However, for Mark, that’s all part of the appeal, as the word ‘normal’ isn’t one he’s keen to be associated with. His love of the fairly rare Willys wagon goes back to his earlier days, when he was lucky enough — or, more likely, brave enough — to build a 350 Chev small…

Just over a year ago, Hampton Downs Motorsport Park launched its GT Membership model — a membership designed to sit alongside other exclusive memberships found at the likes of the very best golf and yacht clubs. While such memberships are very common in the northern hemisphere, they have not been tried in this part of the world, Australia included, until now. Where the motorsport membership model has been successful overseas, the facility has been purpose built, and built to a very high standard. That is also the case at the Hampton Downs and Highlands motorsport parks, which are both owned by Tony Quinn, and where the GT Membership has flourished. In fact, the Hampton Downs GT members are raving about the club, so we decided it was time to catch…

GROUP2 UPDATES At the last Enzed Central Muscle Cars (CMC) AGM, there was discussion about Group2 and how to differentiate it from the more modified vehicles of Group1. That discussion included times and weight as well as various other options. As a result, and after much debate, the committee has decided that, from the beginning of the 2017–2018 season, Group2 will run on the 245-millimetre-wide tyres that are available from Hankook, not the 275mm ones that most vehicles are using at present. Theoretically, this should help to increase the speed differentiation between the classes that has been eroded over the past few seasons. A NEW CHALLENGER The team at Mitchell Race Xtreme are once again busy building a Group 1 championship contender, this time for the Ross brothers of Cambridge.…

CHECK THEMOTORHOOD.COM FOR REGULAR NEWS UPDATES FIVE TIMES THE FUN Without fail, every new car becomes more complex than the model it replaces, the next-generation Ford GT being a perfect example. The machines, capable of 216mph, are so rapid that they apparently require a Formula 1–inspired steering wheel, which includes an adjustment knob to switch between different driving modes. Normal and Wet modes are self-explanatory. Then there’s Sport mode, which, according to Ford, is for “more spirited ventures”. The last two are the interesting ones — Track mode for racetrack play sessions and V-Max mode for ultimate straight-line speed. Each of the modes alters components such as throttle calibration, stability and traction control, transmission tuning, suspension stiffness, and ride height. Track mode changes the aerodynamics, automatically deploying the rear spoiler…

EMAIL YOUR NEWS TO: EDITOR@V8.CO.NZ THE ENDUROS ARE COMING While most race series are winding down as summer comes to a close, the endurance side of things is just gearing up, with the Eneos North Island Endurance Series (NIES) set to kick off in Taupo on May 20. The series has seen huge growth over the past few seasons, and ’17 will be no different, with yet another bumper grid expected to contest the three-round championship. Front runners Trass Family Motorsport (TFM) will be running to the grid with a completely rebuilt 458 GT3. Over the off season, the car has received a new engine and gearbox from the factory. However, it will face some tough competition, with Smeg Racing having just taken ownership of a current-spec Audi R8LMS Ultra.…

There has been much written and said about the demise of the Aussie car industry. There is no denying that it’s a damn shame. We farewelled the Falcon late last year and, as we prepare to do the same to the Commodore, we turn the spotlight onto their performance partner, HSV. What will become of one of our favourite tuning houses? Does the end of the Commodore mean the end for it, too? Short answer: no. HSV is remaining tight-lipped about the guise of the next-generation HSV and, instead, is concentrating on giving the much-loved Commodore platform the send-off it deserves. To mark this monumental changing of the guard, as well as the 30th anniversary of the HSV brand, HSV has pulled out all the stops to ensure that its…

This month’s cover-car owner, Aaron Jenkins, said he didn’t have a dream car, and, looking at his Torana, that’s easy enough to understand. So, for this month’s concept, we handed the reins over to staff photographer Adam Croy. Here’s his sick and twisted vision: “I weirdly love Chev Corvairs, but I also love the crazy Pikes Peak International Hill Climb specials that you see on YouTube, and so on, so surely there’s a way to piece the two together, right? “I think the best thing to do would be start with a 1969 Corvair, and add the bodykit used by Frank Gardner’s touring-car Corvair from the 1970s, with its massive wide fenders. Being a hillclimb special, it’d need the custom-built overthe- top spoilers front and rear for maximum downforce, as…

David Wood vividly recalls earlier days in which he witnessed his father’s motor-racing exploits, his six-cylinder Zephyr sharing the track with some of New Zealand’s most capable racers. In addition, David’s mother was a McLaren — her dad being a brother of the father of New Zealand’s famous Bruce McLaren. So it should come as no surprise that, more than half a century later, David finds himself racing in the Historic Muscle Cars (HMC) series — a series dedicated to preserving the spirit of racing as it was in the good old days. While period-correct is the intention, the brutes that trade places in HMC are a far cry from the wheezy old Zephyr the elder Wood pedalled in his day. No, these are muscle cars as they were intended…

MACDONALD SECURES CLASS TWO Nineteen-year-old Southlander Liam MacDonald secured the class-two title in the BNT NZ Touring Cars after a very impressive campaign that included North Island circuits on which he had never before raced. The class-two championship win is MacDonald’s first national title in what is his first full-time season in the BNT NZ Touring Cars Championship. “It’s bit of a relief; I don’t think it has actually sunk in just yet,” said an elated MacDonald. “I have never raced at most of the North Island circuits, and we’ve picked up wins everywhere we’ve been. It’s been a great season.” MacDonald was the dominant force in the championship, taking a hugely impressive total of 12 race wins over the course of the season. The youngster plans to defend the…