Indholdsfortegnelse for February 2025 i NZ Hot Rod

THE World's 1st Car & Bike Show at the Whangamata Club is always a great way to see in the new year, and the 2025 event was no exception. Hosted by Noddy Watts, his partner Andrea and a great team of helpers, proceeds of the show went to the local Land Search & Rescue Team for the Whangamata area. Gerry Lee provided live music, the Whangamata Club was open for food and refreshments, and the show concluded with a prizegiving and entrant $100 draws. Roll on Beach Hop!…

THERE is no denying that the hot rod demographic is aging. Many agree it's better to enjoy the camaraderie at a birthday celebration than a funeral, so it was neat to attend Woody's 80th Picnic. Hosted jointly by Harbour City Rod Club & North Shore Rod & Custom Club to celebrate Peter “Woody” Whitehouse's milestone, it was a huge turnout at the Herald Island Domain. Friends and family enjoyed great weather, live music and some great cars and people. Many also commented it was the first event in a while which felt just like the old days. Keep blowing out those candles, Woody!…

THIS story goes back to the seventies when Keith Sattler saved the remains of a 1934 Ford Coupe from becoming a stock car - which was a very common fate in those days. He already had a hot rod, so he slowly pieced the coupe together over a period of ten years. It had a touch of drag race influence, and when completed, it was a 'state of the art' car for the time. It appeared in NZ Hot Rod magazine's November 1985. The engine is an LS5 big block Chevrolet displacing 454 cubic inches and featuring open chamber heads, TRW 8 to 1 pistons, LS5 rods and a cross-drilled steel crank. Induction is via a 6-71 blower on a Weiand alloy intake with twin 600 Holleys. The stout engine…

THE first show and display outing for the '60 Buick Le Sabre was at the Mangakino Lake Hop held on 21st September 2024. A large turnout of hot rods & custom cars were on display, and the Buick caught the eye of many entrants, the public and the event judges. Much to Glen's surprise, his Buick Le Sabre took out the Best Classic Award and deservedly so. Glen is one of those guys who is very humble, and to take out this award it left him speechless. All those close to him know he deserved it for all the hard work he put into his project, along with countless others at The Toy Shed, where he works in Rotorua. Both Glen & wife Sam are part of a talented team…

AS always, Christmas is a busy time for everyone, with many events and functions to attend. The Pukekohe Hot Rod Club Christmas event appealed as it was an opportunity to actually go on a run in your vehicle. The day kicked off a bit wet at the Puke clubrooms, where a mystery run departed to Tony & Duane Antonievich's property in Waiau, Pa. Club members enjoyed catching up over a BBQ lunch and then activities for young and old included clay bird shooting and a lolly scramble. After Tony fired up his vintage plane, members made their way back to the club rooms for more refreshments at the bar and a hot ham meal - a neat day in cars with like-minded people.…

THIS project has been a dream of Geoff's since he sold his Masterton-based business in 2008. But before the '32 Coupe got his complete undivided attention, Geoff, in his school years, had always been interested in motorbikes, which gradually moved towards hot rods. His parent's neighbour was a panelbeater and constantly working on a project. Geoff was keen to tell his parents he had done all of his school homework or use the well-used line,” My teacher didn't give us any today.” As soon as he was home from school, he would be there to watch and learn the skills of panelbeating. At age 16, he sat and passed his driver's licence test in his father's 1956 Chevrolet Bel Air Sedan. Back in the late '60s, Dad would teach you…

STARTING with a Fordor sedan build completed in 1988, '32 Fords have been a strong theme throughout John & Sharon Allen's hot rod activity. The chopped Fordor placed in the Top 10 at the '88 Street Rod Nats and covered many miles all over New Zealand, picking up awards at both rod runs and Shows and even the odd pass down the ¼-mile while representing Riverside in the annual club drags. Next '32 from the house of Allen was a home-built and hi-tech 5-Window Coupe, resurrected from the remains of the old Ed Jensen race car. John reimagined it into a fenderless showstopper that has received many awards over countless years, participating in shows, runs, and several South Island adventures. Somehow, even with so many miles and much use, the…

THE Eagles song “Take it Easy” will be forever remembered by the verse, “Well, I'm a-standin' on a corner in Winslow, Arizona, Such a fine sight to see, It's a girl, my Lord, in a flatbed Ford, Slowin' down to take a look at me.” That idyllic scenario wasn't the case for Terry Moulden, though. For him, it was standing at a bus stop in Mt Roskill, Auckland, aged 16 and waiting for a bus to take him to his job as an apprentice electrician. While waiting, he spotted the occasional hot rod drive by, and that was the spark that set his love of high-performance cars alight. He took an extra job on Saturdays at McDonald-Halligan Motors which saw him exposed to their offshoot business – Griffiths Speed Equipment.…

IN the formative years of NZ hot rodding, our “speed fixes” consisted of time trials, beach racing, dirt track racing, speedway, stockcars, drag racing, and hill climbs. Late last year, Tony Antonievich and crew hosted the Saints Hillclimb on a beautiful private property in Glenbrook. The event paid tribute to the early days of hot rodding and also the early days of the Pukekohe Hot Rod Club which was originally named The Saints. Much thought has gone into this event to maintain a look or a vibe to it. There was a healthy group of cars running up the hill with vintage motorcycles paddock racing. The preferred parking area also had a good selection of neat cars. Hopefully, these pictures will inspire you to build something and/or participate in a…

PAUL grew up in the car culture; his father was a panelbeater and car painter in Manawaru near Te Aroha, and he spent many hours in his teens helping his father in the workshop. Once Paul left school, he became an Engineer in general fabrication and welding, specialised in stainless and alloy fabrication. Paul spent over 16 years working with engineering firms in Morrinsville and Te Aroha. Now, along with his partner Teresa, they own and operate a childcare facility called Inspiring Minds Early Learning Centre in Te Aroha. His interest in the car culture led to seven years of competition in drag racing, mainly at Meremere Dragstrip. He raced a Subaru WRX and has also owned, at varying stages, a multiple variety of '60s and '70s V8s: Fords, Holdens…

A Smart Idea CRAIG “Fingerz” Mullan from Trans America Shipping is arranging transport of this Willy's coupe Gasser from the South Island over to its new owner in Aussie. He noticed what he thought was a good idea. Above the rear vision mirror is the screen for the back-up camera. This makes it a lot easier to be able to back up over your burnout tracks, and also avoid running over wayward crew members and start line officials. Looking out the back window of any race car is hard enough when buckled in tight with a helmet and HANS device on. A smart idea, he thought. From Golly. 200,000 IN April 1992, after two years of groundwork to establish the system, LVV Certification Plate #001 was issued for a newly…

BOXING Day 2024 was again the kickoff day of Greymouth Rodders bi-annual rod run. Torrential rain helped keep the cars clean, but by the time we got to Arthur's Pass, the sun came out, and it stayed for the entire rod run, which was almost a tropical paradise. After checking into our accommodation, we went to the nearby clubrooms for registration, barbecue and a few beers. Nothing really changes with the exception of the pub crawl. In 1974 it lasted 11 hours now all the good pubs have gone and not enough pubs to have one. I reckon they couldn't find a sober bus driver! Friday saw the 67 cars entered participate in driving events at the clubrooms followed by a barbecue lunch. An optional car trial created typical “in-car”…

LIKE England, where numerous speed records were set at the beginning of the last century, Denmark also has a tradition of beach speed racing. These record attempts were held on the island of Fanø between 1919 and 1924. They were banned at the end of this period following a fatal accident and a change in regulations. But that was without counting on the determination of a group of enthusiastic hot rodders led by Carsten Bech and Thomas Toft Bredahl, who succeeded in convincing the authorities to allow a historic race reserved for traditional hot rods and pre-1947 motorbikes on the island of Rømø on the country's west coast. The first Rømø Motor Festival took place in 2016 and consisted of a 1/8-mile drag race. The event quickly grew from 40…

AS a young guy entering the car culture, that one inspiration can be defined by an ever-inspiring memory that lasts …. Dion & Trudie Willcox's 1941 Willy's Coupe is a true testament to that notion as Dion picks up his inspiration to build that dream car! “As a kid, I was always into hot rods. In the early '80s, I would have been seven or eight years old when watching the movie “Hot Rod”. The scene when they opened the barn doors and the Willy's Coupe was just sitting there-that was it! I knew, one day, I would own one myself. And it's another reason why it's a Gasser. While in the USA, at a friend's Hot Rod shop in Georgia, an old guy came in and asked if anyone…