NZV8 #164

TRANS-AMS BACK AND BETTER THAN EVER

Fast Scary

TORANA HITS MAXIMUM ATTACK

$10.99

9 416803 510003

EVIL CAMARO BUILT TO SHRED

JAN. 2019 ISSUE 164

+ BOOSTED GT40 + SHOW-AND-GO IMPALA + FLAWLESS F100 MEMOIRS OF A DIEHARD CAR GUY + NZ’S BIGGEST SWAP MEET

contents JANUARY 2019

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The Cars

24: SCARY FAST — TORANA RACE CAR ON THE STREET 32: ARMED AND DANGEROUS — GT40 ON BOOST 68: CLASS OF ITS OWN — TYRE-DESTROYING CAMARO 80: GOING BIG — TROPHY-HAULING IMPALA 102: BEST-LAID PLANS — A NOT-SO-SIMPLE F100

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The Events

54: MCLEANS ISLAND SWAP MEET 98: MANGATAINOKA MOTORS HOT ROD CAR DAY 120: ENZED CMC ROUND 2

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The Other Stuff 04: SHORT SHIFT 08: NEWS 10: TORQUEBACK 12: JUST QUICKLY 16: ONLINE THIS MONTH 18: DAILY GRIND 20: IN THE BUILD 22: EVENTS 40: SUBSCRIBE AND WIN 42: STRAIGHT TALK 62: DRAGGED UP 64: NZ’S QUICKEST 66: AEROFLOW RACE DIARY 88: SOCIAL SCENE 90: CONCEPT CORNER 126: CMC NEWS 128: CARGO 132: A DECADE AGO 134: LOCAL SPECIALISTS 136: COMING NEXT MONTH

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92 Special Features

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44: FLIGHT OR FRIGHT — DIARIES OF A WELL-SPENT YOUTH 92: DREAM SHED — FORDAHOLICS ANONYMOUS 112: THE THUNDER'S BACK — THE RETURN OF TRANS-AMS themotorhood.com

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feature car

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1977 Holden LX Torana SS

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WORDS: CONNAL GRACE PHOTOS: ADAM CROY

THE HOLDEN TORANA HAS A HISTORICAL REPUTATION FOR ITS FEARSOME ABILITY ON TRACK. THIS ONE’S GOT ALL OF THAT AND IS TAKING IT STRAIGHT TO THE STREET

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feature car

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2018 Ford GT40

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TAKE THE BONES OF A VEHICLE DESIGNED TO DOMINATE IN ENDURANCE RACING, ADD A PAIR OF TURBOS, AND PUT IT ON THE STREET … WHAT YOU GET IS AN ARMED AND DANGEROUS THREAT TO PUBLIC SAFETY! WORDS: CONNAL GRACE PHOTOS: ADAM CROY

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he legacy of the Ford GT40 started in the early 1960s, when Henry Ford swore sweet revenge on Enzo Ferrari for reneging on a deal … blah blah; never mind the petty bullshit that could only have sprung up between two rich entrepreneurs in the middle of the 20th century, because the GT40 you’re looking at here shares nothing with the Le Mans icons of 1966, save its shape and name. Instead, it is

the crowning glory of the Ford-mad father-and-son team that are Nigel and Nick Andrews.

Nigel and Nick have both done the supercharged thing, both in Falcons, both of which have been featured in this magazine. As Nigel had wanted to build and own a GT40 for as long as he could remember, and they each wanted to have a crack at the turbo path, it was an easy decision to combine both for their next project.

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Special Feature

The Cars of John Medcalf

SOME OF US HAVE HAD INTERESTING CARS AND STORIES THAT GO WITH THEM, BUT NOT MANY OF US HAVE AS MANY STORIES TO TELL AS JOHN MEDCALF. HERE ARE HIS MEMOIRS OF A LIFE WELL SPENT WORDS AND PHOTOS: JOHN MEDCALF / SUPPLIED

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In 1995 it was confirmed I’d received my PHD and what better way was there to celebrate than take the Monaro for a blast?

HK Monaro in 1981, just after paint in Wanganui

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rowing up in Wanganui in the ’70s was great for a car fanatic. Hot rods and street machines were everywhere. Chopped tops, extravagant paint, and Friday-night cruising were in. Rake jobs, requiring everyone to sit in the front to keep the fat rears off the guards, were the look to have, as narrowing the rear end was something only achieved through diet and exercise in those days.

My first car was a ’56 Ford, purchased for the princely sum of $250 from a farmer’s daughter, who seemed unsettlingly happy with the deal, considering I’d beaten her down from $350. I drove the car all the way home from Waverley to Wanganui with the handbrake on — my first of many mistakes. My cleverer high-school mate, Brett Guthrie, had a ’57 Ford Customline — he’d converted it from four to two doors, chopped the roof, and dropped in a big block. Impressive for a high-school student!

Mine was only a Pommy 100E Prefect, slow as a slug on a walking frame. I did know of a local who had somehow squeezed a 283 Chev into one, but my non-existent mechanical skills were not up to that. Besides, you reportedly had to pull the engine to change the plugs, and the passenger doors liked to fly open due to excessive torque. I settled for throwing what I thought was a 1600cc Escort engine into it, only to find it surprisingly slower than the original side-valve. Turned out it was only an 1100cc and was well used. I was probably the only Wanganui street freak to do an engine transplant that actually resulted in less capacity and power.

I also tried to paint the Prefect electric blue metallic, but, after months of preparation, I picked a windy day to paint it outside. My parents let me use their dusty one-car garage, which had a low wattage bulb at the far end. I pulled down the door and

hoped for the best. It looked quite good in the shed, but, on emerging into the light, I found large dark areas at the end of each panel where I’d let off the airgun. I felt sicker looking at it than the paint fumes had made me feel after several hours cooped up ingesting them as a result of minimal protective equipment. A quick sand back and I had another go. This time the weather was fine, but the hired compressor wouldn’t hit the necessary pressure and I ended up with a flat, suede job — that might be trendy today, but not back then.

One day, when biking to Wanganui High School, I blew through the compulsory stop at the bottom of St Johns Hill at Springvale. I explained to the cop who stopped me that whatever might be coming would have had to go through the truck that was already going through the intersection before it got to me. Not the point, I was told.

“Do you have a car?” he asked.

“No,” I lied, thinking on my feet.

Two weeks later, I did the exact same thing in the 100E and the same cop was waiting for me.

“I’m going to talk to your father,” he promised me, and, good to his word, he did. I lost the keys for a few weeks. Things were so much easier 40 years ago.

I soon tired of the 100E, and last saw it heading up St Johns Hill, the new owner hardly visible amid the cloud of blue smoke permeating the interior through the large hole in the floor cut for the Escort fourspeed.

Number two — an apt name — was a ’62 Anglia panel van, which I went to test-drive in Woodville. I was supposed to meet the owner at the local pub, but his mates told me that he was out on a country road trying to get the thing to run. Sure enough, when I got out there, it wasn’t going anywhere, and

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Event report

McLeans Island Swap Meet

Island Paradise?

WORDS AND PHOTOS: ROD DUNN

FANCY A TRIP TO A NICE QUIET ISLAND? IF SO, MCLEANS ISLAND IS PROBABLY NOT THE ONE! BUT IF YOU’RE IN THE MARKET FOR PARTS, THERE’S NO BETTER PLACE TO LOOK

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This very tidy 1964 XM Ford Falcon ute was one of the large number of vehicles for sale. Priced at $35K, it came complete with RRS coilover suspension, power steering, and disc brakes.

A 221ci straight-six engine and threespeed auto completed this tidy package. All you had to do was get in and drive

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ach October, the Canterbury branch of the Vintage Car Club of New Zealand holds its annual swap meet at its property at McLeans Island, just outside Christchurch.

The event is advertised as New Zealand’s largest swap meet, and that probably isn’t far wrong, with more than 650 individual sites, as well as more than 40 one-make car clubs hosting displays.

Held over three days, the meet attracts thousands of people,

who not only pick through the trailers and boxes for that elusive item but also like to wander among the vehicles on display.

While the mums and dads are off rummaging through the sites, the kids take the time to play in the playground and on the large inflatables set up for the weekend; it’s a win-win for everyone.

This year saw a slight increase in automotive hardware and parts compared with previous years, which was nice to see, as that’s really what it should be about. There was all manner of

Even though Saturday turned out quite warm, the same couldn’t be said about Friday, as a steady rain turned much of the ground into a mud bog. However, that certainly didn’t deter the bargain hunters from showing up

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