The winter blues are finally easing, and the sun’s even making a tentative comeback — just in time for NZV8 Issue No. 124, the latest and greatest. Whether you’ll be reading it out under the sun, with a crisp beer in hand, or in the depths of your garage, getting your car ready for drag racing season or summer cruising, we guarantee that the content will keep you satisfied to the very last page.
There’s not a huge amount of factory drag-pack–style muscle cars in New Zealand, but we managed to track down two absolute stunners for the cover of Issue No. 124. The first is a 1964 Ford Fairlane Thunderbolt clone belonging to well-known hot rodder and collector of all things cool, Steve Keys, and it’s joined by Mark Barton’s genuine 1963 Ford 300. While in some ways the cars are very similar, with big-power and big-displacement FEs under the hood, they’re also worlds apart. Check them out and let us know what you think.
Despite dealing with so many amazing cars, it takes something really special for all of us in the NZV8 office to agree that we’d all own a certain car without making any changes to it. One of those such cars is the amazing 1947 Chev Delivery belonging to Waikato business partners Dawn King and Murray Storey. There are more than 60 body modifications, yet it appears stock, and under the hood is a very unique retro turbo set-up. It’s the ultimate mix of retro cool, and a well-thought-out build plan.
If you love a good story, you’ll love reading about Erin Hearne’s 1972 Holden Monaro HQ. He originally bought the car as a knackered runner in Wollongong 17 years ago, and since then has been continuously building it into the car of his dreams, whilst moving between Australia and New Zealand numerous times. And, yes, the car came with him each and every time — that’s the kind of dedication we love to see in our car scene!
And, speaking of dream cars, we’ve got this beautiful 1932 Ford coupe — the hot rod that its owner, Laurie Mayo, had dreamed of owning ever since he was a child. Thanks to well-known Auckland hot rodder Peter Farrant, his dreams were built into something far more tangible, in this incredibly simple, tasteful, and immaculately crafted tribute to ‘traditional’ hot rodding.
In a totally opposite vein is the slammed 1963 Chev Impala built by Aaron and Carlena Wilkie. Inspired by the rap music videos and Cheech & Chong movies that Aaron had always enjoyed, the Impala has received the full treatment — swathed in candy paint, with a custom interior and banging sounds, all of which pales in comparison to the truly unique hydraulic suspension.
We’ve got you covered for tech, too, and this month we’re looking at carburettors. The good old reliable carb has been around for about as long as cars themselves, but what exactly are they made of, what do the common terms mean, and how exactly do they work? We’ve pieced together an in-depth tell-all article with input from various industry experts to help you learn everything there is to know.
Event-wise, the recent 2015 Mount Shop Rod & Custom Autorama was a massive success, with not only 70 of the country’s best custom cars and hot rods under one roof, but also by managing to raise a cool $10K for the Cancer Society. Check out the coverage in the mag for the full story.
We’ve also got an in-depth look at the holy grail of motoring, Route 66 — long-time hot rodder and NZV8 contributor Kevin Shaw recently embarked upon a month-long expedition down the fabled route, and we’ve got a full write up in a multi-part feature over the next few issues. Keep an eye out on The Motorhood for other notable Route 66 experiences he came across.
We also caught up with a number of Kiwis who’ve made a name for themselves in the V8 scene abroad — from drag racers turned parts suppliers in Australia, through to jack-of-all-trades turned drag car fabricators in the USA, there’s a wealth of ex-New Zealand talent making waves overseas. Find out more about these incredible people in Part. I of our ‘Kiwis Abroad’ feature in NZV8 Issue No. 124.
In addition, we’ve got all the usual news, features, columns, and updates that you can expect from us, what better way to help see Winter off than with a new issue of NZV8? Grab a copy and pop a beer — you know you want to.