Innehållsförteckning för No 148 September 2017 från NZV8

The oldest recorded petrol-powered vehicle in the world was produced in 1885. Not too long afterwards, in 1902, the first electric car was produced to much fanfare. As we all know, the first of those fuel types rose to success; the other seemed to fade into oblivion, despite various manufacturers launching their own electric concepts along the way. It wasn’t until the ’90s that electric power started to gain momentum, as battery technology progressed to a point at which the concept started to become feasible. Electric power hasn’t been petrol’s only competitor; among the other concepts that have come and gone, Chrysler tested a turbine-powered concept in-depth around the early 1960s. Of course, there’s also diesel, which started to take off in passenger cars around the same time as Chrysler…

The team at New Zealand Classic Car magazine were lucky enough to be able to feature a 1970 McLaren F5000 M10B race car — the last McLaren car to grace the famous McLaren garage before it undergoes renovations in the near future. Part of that photo shoot included a taking a video clip of the highly strung small block Chev being fired up inside that iconic garage for the final time. Visit themotorhood.com and search ‘M10B’ to check it out. WIN BIG If you’ve never heard of Summernats, this is unlikely to be of interest to you, but if you’d like to have a crack at taking yourself and three mates over to the world’s greatest horsepower party, hop onto themotorhood.com now! Thanks to Summernats and Three, we’re giving away…

Hollywood has a habit of producing some kick-arse blockbuster car movies: Bullitt, Gone in 60 Seconds, Two-Lane Blacktop — the list is endless. No doubt you will be familiar with at least one of those titles, and, with that in mind, you will also be familiar with the movies’ true stars — the ones in which the actors drove around. As a kid, Lower Hutt’s Paul Bailey made the mistake one day of sitting down and watching the cult movie Vanishing Point — you know, the one that starred a white Dodge Challenger that got all sorts of destroyed courtesy of a pair of Caterpillar bulldozers blocking the road? (Except that it was actually a Camaro that was wrecked at the end of the film rather than the Challenger —…

I recently worked out that at the June long weekend this year, it was exactly 50 years since I attended my first hot rod show — at Roselands Shopping Centre in Sydney’s south. I find that hard to believe. When I was growing up, I had five sisters, and my parents soon worked out that it was easier to send me to boarding school to keep the peace. So, I was in luck, as I was in the right place. On that historic day in 1967, it took me two hours to make my way across town via two buses and a train — but it was well worth it. So, 50 years later what has changed? Well, that’s simple — the quality of the builds. Back then, most hot…

THE TOY SHED OPEN DAY / ROTORUA SWAP MEET The miserable depths of July are hardly a hotbed of events for Kiwi car enthusiasts, but the central North Island city of Rotorua had things covered during the weekend of July 8–9. The Toy Shed’s open day on the Saturday was followed by the Rotorua Vintage and Veteran Car Club’s annual Central North Island Swap Meet and Car Show on the Sunday morning. The Toy Shed open day is a big deal, as it provides any and all petrolheads in the area with an excuse to combine awesome cars with cheap beer and a sausage sizzle. When the skies are an ominous shade of grey and the breeze coming off Lake Rotorua is the epitome of winter, the open day is…

Watching ‘Fanga Dan’ Woolhouse shimmy his Holden Commodore sideways at 200kph (322mph), you don’t notice whatever shriek the tyres emit as their hold on the tarmac is torn away. All sound is dominated by the hard-edged scream of a firebreathing L98 pushing all eight cylinders to the upper reaches of its rev limit. The Pukekohe sweeper is a bitch of a corner if you mess it up, but Fanga gives the impression that he could do it in his sleep. He probably could — he’s done it plenty of times during a drift career spanning close to 15 years. As Dan grew up around high-performance Japanese imports, a future behind the wheel was guaranteed, although even he is unlikely to have predicted just how far he’d get. However, as Dan…

LAKE SPEED JR — CERTIFIED LUBRICATION SPECIALIST Most of you reading this will know enough about engine oil. You’ll understand enough about oil viscosity, zinc content, and API ratings to know the difference between what goes into your daily-driver and what goes into your V8. The tradies among you who drive a late-model diesel vehicle every day may know more than most — after all, you can’t just run any old oil if you’ve got a diesel particulate filter (DPF). However, beyond the surface-level stuff, the world of oil is largely a mystery. And, we’ll be the first to admit, it sounds awfully boring. Who really wants to know more about oil? Well, as it turns out, it’s not that boring. We were able to chat with Lake Speed Jr,…

It was back in 2009 that the stars finally aligned for Geoff Sadler to build his dream street rod. Sure, he’d owned various cool cars over the years but nothing quite at the level of what he was planning. The wait was well worth it, though, as, rather than end up with a build that didn’t match the vision in his head, Geoff had planned it well enough to make sure the reality would be even better. Having been a member of North Shore Rod and Custom Club since the early 1990s, when he was driving a ’64 Impala, Geoff was inspired by cars a touch quicker than his own. He was influenced by Bill Kilgour’s impressive Chevelle (as seen in this issue) and Terry Bowden’s T-bucket, aptly named ‘Insane’.…

FANGA THE MAN Our main photo man, Adam, isn’t just good at the still stuff. We caught up with ‘Fanga Dan’ Woolhouse at a recent sponsor day, and Adam whipped up some cool video footage for us that included a brief interview with the man as well as plenty of raw V8 noise. Search ‘Fanga Dan’ on themotorhood.com see it. MORE MOTOREX Kiwis are better than Aussies at a lot of things, but there’s no denying that the Oz show scene stands a head and shoulders above ours. Look no further than the recent Meguiar’s MotorEx in Sydney for evidence of that. If the event report in this issue didn’t do anything for you, perhaps our online photo gallery will. Search ‘MotorEx’ on The Motorhood. SPEEDSHOW HEROES Despite what we…

In this job of mine, I’m lucky enough to be given some great opportunities, and the most recent — and definitely up there with the most memorable — was the chance to ride shotgun with ‘Fanga Dan’ Woolhouse in his VF Commodore drift car. Fanga’s car control is exquisite — it’s as though he is telepathically linked to his machine — and the aural sensation of the Vortech-supercharged six-litre L98 screaming in the upper reaches of the rev range is like nothing else out there. From inside the cabin, the exhaust note’s volume is eardrumbursting, in the best possible way. It’s a car that you can read more about further on in this magazine, and, while I’m aware that drifting is not a form of motorsport frequently found on the…

HAVE YOUR SAY — WRITE TO US TORQUEBACK, MAGAZINE, PO BOX 46,020, HERNE BAY, AUCKLAND 1147; EMAIL TORQUEBACK@V8.CO.NZ Hi Todd, Thought you might like this. Mum caught me outside the Goodwood shop after her shopping spree there. What an epic four days. ‘Mad Mike’ [Whiddett] was mad as, flying the New Zealand banner. I know he’s not driving a V8 but they love the sideways Kiwi there — his fourth year there, I think. My highlight was seeing the Denny Hulme McLaren racing up the hill. What a noise. Beautiful! Regards, Paul Power Thanks for sharing, Paul. It sounds as if Goodwood should definitely be on the bucket list for all car lovers! We’ve loved watching the videos of the various machines heading up the hill, that’s for sure! In fact,…

EMAIL YOUR BUILDS TO EDITOR@V8.CO.NZ After owning a string of Tri-Five Chevs over the years, Russ McIntyre is now building what he considers to be the ultimate ’55. The car is currently in the hands of Simon Tippens at Creative Metal Works, where the sheet metal is being brought up to better-than-factory condition. To date, a new recessed firewall has been added, to allow for Russ’ engine of choice — a big block, of course — and new floor sections have been created and the rear quarters perfected. While the plan for the car isn’t for it to look completely wild, Russ wanted it to drive as nicely as possible, so the body now sits on a full Art Morrison chassis. You can bet that with two perfectionists like Russ…

Arriving early at any drag meet anywhere around the globe, you’ll be met with hoards of greasy-fingered drivers and crew members furiously spinning spanners on cars, performing last-minute checks and prerace rituals. If you were to stumble on Andre Gil’s stunning Chevelle during one of those walks, you’d probably find something different. Sure, a car of this level requires last-minute check-overs, but you’d be unlikely to find greasy hands anywhere near it. Instead, you’d find the car almost surgically clean, and Andre, a selfconfessed perfectionist, calmly polishing it. While there’s no question that the car was built to fulfil Andre’s dreams of going fast, it also had to look the part. Ironically, its current appearance is a complete contrast to how it looked when it began its drag racing days…

The yearly spectacle of the CRC Speedshow is something permanently affixed to the local automotive calendar, as it should be. Why? Speedshow manages to provide an event capable of catering to just about every facet of Kiwi automotive culture, from old-school hot rodders through to the import fans of a younger generation, despite its target audience being of a more casual variety. Anyone who knows their way around a car event will know that it’s no mean feat to curate a show that’s accessible to Mum, Dad, and the kids, while remaining engaging for bona fide petrolheads of the skinned-knuckle variety. Likewise, any show targeted at hard-core car people is unlikely to garner the interest of those who want nothing much beyond a day out with the family. Despite the…

I’ve always loved Ford Bonus pickups, but they’re a touch too truck like,” says Paul Bailey. Understandably, the man is not afraid to shape metal to suit his dreams, so he’s gone into great depths to let us know what he’d do to the bodywork to get it to suit his tastes. That work would include moulding the front bumper into the front guards for a much smoother look that would extend towards the rear, where any metal deemed to be too sharp or protruding too far would be given a good trim. Those mods are simple compared with the larger body alterations, which would include chopping three inches out of the roof height and nosing the bonnet by a couple of inches to match. To accentuate the pickup’s smooth…

1969 FORD MUSTANG DAVE POLWART It seems to be a fact of life in the V8 world — almost all cars built to as high a standard as Dave Polwart’s 1969 Ford Mustang started out as rusty wrecks. That was certainly the case with this sleek machine, which was painstakingly restored and modified by Ian Kenyon many moons ago. But don’t be fooled by the unbelievably straight body work, nor the mile-deep purple paint, because the intention was never to scoop trophies. With a 482ci stroker, Tremec TKO 600 five-speed manual, and RRS suspension and steering componentry, this machine was built to drive. That’s still his goal for the car, 10 years down the track, despite suffering several engine-related setbacks. However, there’s no denying that it looks as brilliant as…

A quarter of a century after it shattered the sports car mould, the non-conformist Dodge Viper has been confirmed to be nearing the end of its natural life. The Detroit facility at which the Viper is assembled is scheduled to shut down on August 31, 2017. While this does mean the end of the brutal V10- powered weapon we know and love, things are slightly less grim for the 80 staff employed in its manufacture. Fiat-Chrysler Automobiles (FCA) expects to find employment for the team at other FCA plants. WIDEBODY HELLCAT We’re aware of the Mopar overload in this news section, but the latest Hellcat update is well worth a mention. For any local Moparphiles in the market for some imported muscle but who don’t fancy their chances of nabbing…

EMAIL YOUR INFO TO: EDITOR@V8.CO.NZ SEPTEMBER 3 ROCK ’N’ WHEELS What are you doing this Father’s Day? If you’re in the Canterbury region, how about attending Rock ’n’ Wheels — a motoring extravaganza for the whole family, with car show, swap meet, live entertainment, and refreshments all on offer? This year’s event will be held on Sunday, September 3, at Amberley Domain, from 9am to 4pm, and all proceeds will go to the Amberley Lions to be given back to the community. SEPTEMBER 14–17 KAIKOURA HOP Last year’s South Bay Racecourse venue was a step into the unknown for the organizers of the Kaikoura Hop, but it was one that paid off, with plenty of space available. This year, Kaikoura Hop is looking better than ever before, with a four-day…

Anyone who’s ever built or seriously modified a car will, at times, have thought to themselves, I wish there was a product that … Well, Neill Bryce, an electronics engineer by trade, had exactly that thought — except that, rather than remain frustrated, he decided to do something about it. A self-confessed car-building rookie, Neill set about building a Mad Max Main Force Patrol Interceptor clone back in 2007 — no, not the black two-door coupe; the yellow and blue sedan variant. While the originals used in the movies were XBs, Neill’s was, and still is, an XC. Although that meant it’d never be 100-per-cent movie accurate, he was happy nonetheless. Not even having a toolkit at the time, Neill decided that the best way to get what he wanted…

EMAIL YOUR INFO TO EDITOR@V8.CO.NZ Gary Cawthra’s Falcon coupe is hands down one of the best-looking cars on the strip in New Zealand. Although the homebuilt work of art has given only a glimpse of its full potential, it’s currently under the knife once again Part of the driver for the changes — excuse the pun — is that Gary’s daughter, Casey, is set to share driving duties this season. The modifications include a four-speed Lenco with Liberty shifter and Crower clutch, replacing the three-speed Lenco, and a new injection set-up including a billet manifold. This should see the car making even more power, plus — more important for Gary — it should be a bit more user-friendly when it comes to servicing. We know we aren’t alone in looking…

There’s starting young, and there’s starting young. Andrew Lougheed takes that term to a whole new level, having purchased this 1967 Ford Galaxie at the age of just 14! Sure, his parents may have helped him out, but he was every bit as invested in the vehicle from the outset as his family were, and the car was, and still is, his and his only. While at age 14 you’d expect the purchase to be a cheap paddock-basher soon destined for the scrapheap, that wasn’t the case; the car, which was found for sale in Australia, was a genuine low-mileage high-optioned XL model. A quick trip across to Sydney confirmed that the car was indeed as described, and, before long, Andrew was trying to work out where to store his…

Tucked away on a beautiful two-acre block of God’s own in North Canterbury is the home of well-known local car guru Ben Johnson and his partner, Rainy Stevens. To say that these guys love their cars would be an understatement. With three large sheds and a couple of lean-tos spread out on their property, many treats await those lucky enough to be given access to look around. On being asked how long he has had petrol coursing through his veins, Ben replies, “I’ve been into cars for as long as I can remember.” A mechanic by trade — which is quite handy when you are a petrolhead — Ben ran a garage workshop in Kaiapoi for many years, but sold it about five years ago to move on to other…

FUNCTION AND FORM The team at Als Blower Drives will see you right for any supercharger or induction-related needs, such as their Don Garlits Streetcatcher nostalgia-style carb scoops. Available to suit blowers sized from 6- through 14-71, as well as smaller low-profile superchargers, these high-quality Enderle-style butterfly scoops are produced under the best manufacturing procedures, and with the best materials, to suit almost any application the serious rodder requires. Whether you want an enclosed single-carb model for 6-71-style blowers, top-mount dual-carb blowers, or four-barrel-style electronic-fuel-injection (EFI) units, the Als Blower Drives team will have a scoop for you. Visit alsblowers.com or email gpp@alsblowers.com for more information. BOOM AND ROOM Ever wanted bass and boot space in the same car? Well, that’s no longer a car-audio paradox, thanks to the Zeroflex…

You have to be brave to book an event in winter, particularly one that revolves around a hardpark and burnouts. But seeing more than 5000 punters come through ASB Baypark’s gates for the first ever WinterJam proved that if you get the formula right, and deliver on it, people won’t mind a few drops of rain. Smoke, headlights, and engine revs make for an ideal combo on a Saturday night, and, with a strong family vibe in the mix, the outcome is nothing less than solid. Word on the street was that it had been 15 years since the last official burnouts were held at ASB Baypark, and, when a further announcement was made that the event would be held in the twilight, spots were quick to fill, with the…