Innehållsförteckning för No 203 April 2022 från NZV8

Ford has finally released the new-look Ford Ranger Raptor and we’re happy to say the performance now matches the looks. Along with all the body upgrades released earlier this year on the lower tier Rangers, the Raptor will now be optioned with a screaming twin-turbo 3-litre petrol. The new power plant is rated at 391hp, 430 Ibft, which is ahuge step up from the current four-cylinder diesel’s 210hp, and will make it the most powerful in class. If that wasn’t enough, it features race-bred anti-lag to keep the turbos spinning, and also a near straight piped race mode, dubbed Baja mode. Other improvements include a switchable four-wheeldrive system that now allows all-wheel-drive to be used on the tarmac to improve grip, unlike the old system which only allowed two-wheel drive.…

The name Greg Murphy needs no introduction on these pages. He’s been kicking arse on racetracks around the globe for decades before stepping down from the podium to hand the reins over to the next generation. Among his numerous accolades are the legendary ‘lap of the gods’ run around Mount Panorama and countless V8 Supercars podium positions. But what separates Murph from some other drivers is that he’s a legitimate car guy, the type of bloke that it’s easy to sit down with over a beer and just talk cars. Needless to say, he’s owned his fair share of cool rides over the years, ranging from Escorts and Datsuns through to a number that would be at home in these pages, along with a handful of late-model powerhouses. His tastes…

The Anarchy Racing funny car of Darren Hayes is always a welcome sight when it shows up at the track, and we expect that the most recent round of upgrades will only add to the appeal. After running an iron block Hemi up until three years ago, things changed when the block began to split. Little did the team know at the time what hurdles an extra 10psi of boost would make, and that they would in essence spend the next three years chasing their tails to try to get on top of it. In fact, the issues extended to a melting piston in the replacement 500ci aluminium block set-up. That has just been rectified by Reece Fish at RCR Race Engines and the engine is now back in the…

If you caught part one of this story in the last issue, you will know that the team at Real Rides in Silverdale attempted to build a C10 in 10 days. Bossman Kayton thought it would be a great way to kick off the new year and shake off the boys’ hangovers — 10 days to take a dilapidated, old bare-metal truck and transform it into a daily driver cable machine. If you haven’t seen that article, we strongly suggest you do, as it will give you a little more insight into what you’re about to read. If you saw the truck at Kumeu, you’ll know it wasn’t quite ready to drive off into the sunset. After 10 hard-slogged days, a mammoth effort by all the crew, and despite ordering…

Like a fine wine that matures with age, Muscle Car Madness — hold on, who am I kidding? All I know about wine is that white goes in the fridge and you can drink red straight away. Also, to be fair, I don’t think a lot of wine was consumed over the four days of Muscle Car Madness. Beer and Bourbon on the other hand … but the analogy still rings true. MCM has matured and refined with age to a welloiled machine. Yes, it does skirt very close to the edge of the rules and regulations, but that is one of the things that makes it so damn cool. To say it is a bit of a bogan fest is not an insult as the South Island does bogan…

We were going to wait until the next issue to make mention of Hugh Gardiner’s freshly completed Pontiac, but the car is just so damn good we couldn’t resist giving you a sneak peek. The build has recently been completed by AV8 Motorsport before being sent out for a shakedown session. A few suspension-setting tweaks by Kerry Holland at Top Gear Autotech have the car performing as well as Hugh had hoped from the outset. Of course, the issue now is the lack of events due to the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic, but once the class is back on track, you can bet Hugh will be one of the first lining up to race. We’ll bring you a full article on the build in the next issue, but for now, just…

America is getting back to normal, and that means shows are returning to the calendar, including a return for the crème de la crème of hot rod shows, the Grand National Roadster Show, which takes place in Panoma, California, each year and awards the most coveted awards in the industry. Taking out America’s Most Beautiful Hot Rod award for 2022, which is a trophy that stands no less than 9.5 feet (2.9m) tall was Jeff Breault and his innovative ’34 Chev built by the team atDevlin Rod and Customs in Wichita. The car is a very rare (one of only 31) Holden-built Chev, and was purchased in bone stock condition some 10 years ago. Eight years ago the goal was set to build it to win the AMBR award, and…

The Paterson family have been firing Lichfield Poultry Farm-sponsored front engine dragsters down the Meremere tarmac for many seasons now, with a few different drivers in the hot seat in a couple of different cars. This season has seen the welcome return of Ana Paterson behind the wheel of younger brother Cameron’s ‘green’ car. While supportive of the move, the driver change-up is largely the result of Cameron sustaining concussion and being unable to race due to the risk of tyre shake. The driver isn’t the only new thing this season, however, as the engine combo and race class have also been changed up, too. The last time Ana was driving was in the family’s purple car running in Comp, whereas this time around she is runningin Supercharged Outlaws, with…

It was the early ’60s and Pontiac was on the very Itop of the motorsport mountain. It had been dominating both NASCAR and NHRA racing in the States at a time when the much-used phrase ‘Win on Sunday, Sell on Monday’ was starting to make a whole lot of sense in boardrooms across Detroit. This, keep in mind, was in direct contradiction to the AMA’s gentleman’s agreement of 1957, which forbade all manufacturers from factory-backed racing in response to the horror crash at Le Mans two years earlier that had killed 88 people. Most US manufacturers promptly ignored that rule or found loopholes. Pontiac’s new chief Bunkie Knudsen was one of the most blatant, openly throwing resources at racing in an attempt to revive the marque’s stodgy, car-for-a-retiree image. The…

Often when we think of car builds, our minds instantly shoot to the stars with massive power outputs, inch-perfect panels, interiors draped in exotic materials, and a parts list that clearly had very few budget constraints. This car is most certainly not of that calibre; instead it sits firmly at the other end of the scale in most regards, but not when it comes to the fun factor or impact. In fact, we’d hazard a guess that this little Austin J2 would beat out plenty of big-dollar machines for both of those criteria. Originally saved from certain death via slow rot while sitting in a Central Otago paddock, Che Watt dragged the J2 home with the anticipation of one day building a burnout machine from it. It sat for a…

MIGHTY FINE STUDE Cast your mind back to issue 185 and you may recall prolific Studebaker builder Trev Halstead’s latest project — a ’51 Stude Commander Starlight coupe. The car is now knocking on the door of completion after thousands of hours have been poured into it by his own hands, and as you read this the final top coats will have been applied. The coupe features extensive body modifications that bring its roofline down to only 1.3 metresoff the tarmac. To achieve this, the roof has been chopped — 4.5-inch front and 3.5-inch rear — and the body channelled 3 inches over the chassis. The chassis itself has a custom four-link rear, and the front end has been Z cut 4-inches, and it will ride on airbags. The bodywork includes…

All good things must come to an end, and with GM moving on to other platforms, it was inevitable the LS7 was bound to eventually have its retirement card pulled. First offered in the C6 Corvette Z06 and later the fifth-generation Camaro Z/28, the 7.0 litre 505 hp LS experienced a huge following in the aftermarket and was utilised in racing applications the world over, including our very own Supertourers. Similar to the powerhouse LT5, which was axed last year, the LS7 stock is now on run out and is already unavailable in many places. It would seem that the LS3 is the last LS-based crate available, although we’ve been told stock is non-existent here in New Zealand, and in the US it’s a four-month backlog of orders being filled,…

With Gen3’s introduction now well and truly on our doorstep, the most contentious car spec — the gear shifting mechanism — has been set in stone. Would they ditch the stick and go paddle shift or stay true to their roots? The current stick shift requires mastering the special driving technique of heel/toe downshifts, something that sets the series apart from other international race series. Because of this, plenty of racers and fans alike were very vocal in support of keeping it. “We have always celebrated the difficulty that comes with driving a Supercar. The shifting of gears has become part of the artform required to succeed in our category,” Supercars’ CEO Shane Howard said. During Gen3 testing, both systems were fitted to the six-speed Xtrac transaxle before the decision…

GET BAGGED Thinking of converting your X-frame ’58-’64 Chevrolet to air ride suspension? Avoid the hassles (and delays) of international shipping by purchasing Kiwi made. Kruzin Kustoms have just released their own 1958-64 Chevrolet Full Size Car Air Bag Installation Kits. These are fabricated in-house using mild steel and suit bellow-style air bags (also available through their Rod & Kustom Shop). The kits are a bolt-in affair requiring minimal modifications to your car, which make it an easy task for competent DIYers. These kits are a perfect combination to use alongside the new Ridetech E5 Control system. Check them out at Kruzin Kustoms Rod & Kustom Shop at 39 Kelvin Grove Road, Palmerston North, or call the crew on 06 357 5013 for more information. www.kruzinkustoms.com VIKING PERFORMANCE Made in…

NZV8: Hi, Jenn thanks for taking the time to chat. To kick things off, can you please introduce yourself to the V8 readers? Jenn: My name is Jenn Ireland and I am married to Ricky Ireland with three kids — Josh, Hannah, and Max. We live in Matamata, working from home running the administration side of our Earthmoving Company, Ireland Earthmovers. NZV8: Can you recall when you first became interested in cars, and when did that focus shift toward burnouts in particular? I guess I’ve always had a love and appreciation of all different types of cars — I get this from my Dad, with all the stories he would tell me from his teenage years of ‘hooning’ around the Shore in his Hillman. I grew up with Holdens and…

When the DB Racecars Chev Beretta of John Dillon and Rod Benjes came to an untimely demise against the concrete walls of Napa Dragway in late 2020, the pair swore they would be back. What many people didn’t know is that they already had a few plans underway for a new build before the incident happened, however, it definitely forced their hands to turn that plan into reality. While some would assume they’re Chev guys, the reality is they are both open to anything that’s cool, and the swoopy Eleanor-inspired bodies built by Tim McAmis Race Cars are definitely cool. Adding to the appeal of the shape is that no one is running one locally, so they put in an order last year, and the body has just landed. A…

Drag racing is not new to Andrew Gundry; way back in the ’80s he bought an engine from New Zealand drag racing royalty Graham ‘Cub’ Roberts. The 1977 vintage 302 Windsor had been plucked from a Mustang. The “packet a day” smoker was rebuilt by Andrew as a tough street engine. He ran it successfully in his Fairlane at Bay Park in Mount Maunganui, at the same time good friend Steve ‘Toddy’ Todd was also pedalling a pretty tough big-block stick-shift Camaro. After a few seasons beating each other up on the quarter-mile, Toddy sold his Camaro, and teamed up with Andrew, both of whom campaigned the Fairlane. The pair decided to give the 302 a bit of a birthday and splashed out on some much needed/wanted go-fast bits. With…

"Happy life, happy wife” — it’s one of those adages (actually it’s part of a piece of doggerel from the early 1900s) that can be interpreted in a few ways but actioned in millions more. Cars guys are all too familiar with the phrase, and most are constantly dancing around it as they scheme about ways to get the next car project across the line. So when Paulette Briggs spotted this AP5 Valiant over a decade ago at Mopars in Geraldine and fell in love with it, her husband Mark saw it not only as a way to keep his lovely wife happy, but also as a way to pull off something he’d wanted for a long time — not that Paulette was privy to the scheme; she just thought…

Here are some quick hits of content from social-media channels around the globe, curated by Low Fast Famous. They relate to some of the projects and completed builds that have been generating the most interaction and impressions in the past 30 days. Check out more of the work from the vehicles highlighted via their Instagram handles listed or at Low Fast Famous: @lowfastfamous LOW FAST FAMOUS 1967 Chevy II @LSX_KODY With the way vehicle values are going these days it must only be a matter of time before the Chev II gets out of hand as well. With its lightweight body and the ability to take a big power plant, they make an attractive option! Kody has ticked all the boxes with his build, packing in an LS3 engine along…