PHOENIX
The second part of the Fabolous Shed Raid, the visit to the Pleasure Palace of the Austin Guru, Ian Williams. (Photographic evidence from the editor)
NEWSLETTER OF THE WAITEMATA BRANCH VINTAGE CAR CLUB OF NEW ZEALAND
WAITEMATA BRANCH DIRECTORY
CHAIRMAN: ROBERT CHAPMAN 021 038 3281
CLUB CAPTAIN: Awaiting appointment.
robman@orcon.net.nz
SECRETARY: JACQUI GOLDINGHAM 09 44 58811 waitemata@vcc.org.nz
TREASURER: JACQUI GOLDINGHAM 09 445 8811 goldienz@orcon.net.nz
BRANCH DELEGATE: IAN GOLDINGHAM 09 445 8811 goldienz@orcon.net.nz
EDITOR: MICHAEL GREIG 0272455786 michael.john.greig@gmail.com
SCRIBE Moveable Feast
PAST CHAIRMAN: BRENDAN LAMAIN 021 132 4557 brendanandterry@gmail.com
COMMITTEE: MAX JAMIESON, MIKE HOPE-CROSS, HAMISH ANDREWS, MARCUS LING, STEVE SHARP, RAY FERNIER, STEVE CRANCH
Looking Forward
COMING EVENTS
November It was the shed visits
December 7th Sunday, Rob’s Xmas Run
January Time resting
Saints Hillclimb 6th
February Lochinver 26-27 Art Deco 19-22
March TBA
April Editors Birthday 13th
May TBA
June AGM
Highland Fling 27-1 March
Vero Internation Festival of Motoring 15-21st Highland Fling -1st .
Irishman’s !
Club Night: Usual Xmas BBQ: Bring meat etc, plates and eating irons. the rest is supplied to the usual standard. Tuesday 2nd December
Waitemata
Events
Sunday 7th December. For Rob’s Mighty Pre-Xmas Run.
Start at the ‘clubrooms’ Albany at 10.30am.
Ending up at a Nice Lunch place. Not far from home. Prime up the vehicles for the Sumer Hols!
Art-Deco Festival 2026
Hawkes Bay VCC. Featured marque will be Rolls-Royce & Bentley.
19-22 February 2026 Lochinver.
The vintage experience that the proper Vintage Driver must partake in. The journey to the hunting lodge is an adventure in itself. Thursday 26th February/Friday 27th .
*Note this event flows on to Highland Fling. Highland Fling.
Friday 27th February-Sunday 1 March 2026
Held by the South Waikato Branch, overnighting at Te Awamutu. Traditional event that members have enjoyed.
Vero International Festival of Historic Motoring
Nelson Tasman, 15-21 March 2026.
Still accepting late entries and add-ons.
With a bit of organisation, one would be able to put these in a line and attend all.
From a picture on the wall at home of local cars done a few years ago.
Purchased at a local gallery. Painted by Graham Downs, ink on paper. The Hearne Brescia and the Goldingham Sunbeam in splendor with the small photo taken at Chelsea with the WD Riley with the Brescia. Photo taken by the editor
https://youtu.be/fgMV5jZJzGI
Above is a link to u-tube with a few of the cars and bikes at the event.
Suitable for our chaps.
The address above is of the event! Fill in the details and e-mail it to Tony whose details are at the top of the page.
COMBINED PAST EVENT SHED RAID
Saturday 8th November
Presented and commentary from Dee Humphreys.
A beautiful summer day saw, once again, a good turn-out of folk wanting to check out the Motorcycle collection of Mike Ensor.
Organised for the Nor West Auckland Branch of the Vintage Austin Register (VAR)with an invite for Waitemata VCC and the Daimler SP250 Club members to join us.
Both invited clubs had a small splattering of members turn up with the majority of folk being VAR members.
After I’d set everyone off from the Albany Hall with a few instructions on how to get to Mike’s place, and once at Mike's place they were to look out for a lime Fluro jacketed Keith Humphreys who was waiting at Mike’s entry gate to direct cars into the tight parking area.
Like our last visit to Mike’s, almost exactly a year ago to the day, his generosity in giving us his weekend time was greatly appreciated. Not only is he a busy working man, he and his two sons enjoy classic car and classic bike racing. Both watching and partaking of and even the weekend of our visit they were supposed to be somewhere down country racing the Jaguar.
The main workshop shed, up near the house, is home to three or four works in progress, mainly Nortons but now also a temporary home to the fuselage of a Vampire which was once flown during wartime by the family’s grandfather. They have the complete aeroplane including the engine and although they don’t intend to get it airworthy, they do plan, as a family, to restore it to a static display condition.
We then venture down to the large shed which has a top storey that is actually either a couple of apartments or one big apartment, not sure which but this is where the sons live. This gives you some idea about the size of this shed….it houses a huge motorcycle collection along with, at the present time, three
cars. The race Jaguar, a replica Bugatti and a large American car which neither Keith nor I can remember it's make.
On route to the main shed, one walks through lush greenery and encounters artfully placed motorcycle relics. Too far gone to restore but way too good to be scrapped.
The collection does change during the year. When I say the collection changes, I need to emphasise that Mike runs a business that has a big warehouse facility and there are more motorcycles stored at this facility.
While the main core of the collection stays the same, all three males of this family ride and race at events throughout New Zealand and often the bikes get changed around for maintenance and race preparation purposes.
I ponder the thought, “Does Mike know how many motorcycles he actually has”. Even if he does, I bet the wife doesn’t!!
While the majority of machines are restored, the unrestored veteran and vintage bikes are housed on a very substantially built shelf above the floor to shelf glass windows. Every restored machine runs and every restored machine is in beautiful condition and one knows they’re fed and watered, the oil deposits on the smooth painted concrete floor tells us!
Mike demonstrated the starting procedure of the 1912 FN 4 cylinder and what a honey. Hop on, turn on the petrol tap, pedal like mad and eventually the motor barks into life!
I have a friend from my vintage motorcycle days, I purchased my 1924 AJS from him a zillion years ago, Ron Fellows. Ron now lives in Tasmania and not too many years ago (2012) he rode his 1910 FN across the world to the Belgian factory where the bike originated. This was an epic journey through 15 countries and over 14,000 kms and it wasn't all smooth travel. I have the book Ron wrote about this trip and I now plan to give this prized possession (personally signed copy too) to Mike. I think it will sit nicely beside his FN.
After expressing our thanks to Mike a lot of the folk ventured homewards with mainly the Austin team heading a couple of 100 metres down the road to Austin Guru Ian Williams’s home.
Ian and partner Jules arrived back in Auckland from Wellington a couple of years ago and they have spent that time getting everything shipshape at the house where Ian used to live before his move to Wellington. Now the house, gardens and sheds are looking very loved and lived in and it’s great to have Ian back in the Nor West Austin Branch.
Passionate about Austins, Austin 7’s in particular, he’s the font of all knowledge and at last, he's getting back into spending time in the shed.
He’s rebuilding the Austin 7 Special that he had his horrific accident in at one of the VCC Waitemata Roycroft Trophy events that we held at Hampton Downs some years ago. Both the car and Ian were badly damaged. Both are continuing to mend slowly.
Ian also has a very presentable Nippy and two Triumph Cub motorcycles. In his teen years in the UK Ian became passionate about trial riding then Austin 7’s took over. After immigrating to New Zealand with his Austins he purchased from Trade me the two Triumph Cubs. One is a completely original road bike and the other a Trials bike. He later discovered that the Trials bike was a rare machine and yes, it will receive it’s deserved restoration but the Austin comes first. The jug had boiled; it was lunch time. Jules had made muffins; I had made my "now famous with the Austin team" fruit cake and picnic lunches were consumed.
The above pictures supplied by Dee.
On behalf of the participants, I must say the cake was superb and the welcoming of those that allowed the visit to their treasures was much appreciated, and the organisers of the event, many thanks for your efforts for members. The Ed.
As Editor I have been told that the inclusion of this article may offend some as the focus of this branch is on four and sometime three wheels, but it is the reason I joined the Vintage Car Club. As an innocent youth, just starting work in the world of Medical Laboratory Science and having a new motorcycle to go to work and attend the associated day and evening classes at the technical institute, I remember that day in 1971, at the back of the Statistic class which had finished, talking about motorcycles with a fellow trainee, Keith (who I still am in contact over 55 years later). The tutor passed by and said, “I have a bike in the shed which is black, and starts with the letter ‘V.” (The tale continues on the next page.)
I immediately replied that I would buy it. A week later I had visited it. Alas, not the 1000 cc Vincent I had dreams of owning. It was a 1954 Velocette, MAC, the 350cc. I still have the MAC and it was joined in 1974 by a 1954 Velo MSS, the 500 cc. I have both bikes and it was them that brought me to this current condition of a shed of bikes and the WD Riley 9. I now know someone with a Vincent and have found of the historical connections of Vincent and Velocette, so all is happy now. The Editor.
Looking for a new custodian.
A sleeper, a keeper, suitable for a youth around town with capacity of one only passenger, pair of dance shoes and nocturnal accoutrements.
2001Toyota MR2 Spyder.
A proper convertible, genuine 80k km. 1.8 litre OHC, 4 valve head, 138 bhp. Only $7800.
You will not get a better deal. Selling due to having bought it with the sun way past the yard arm at the sailing club.
Contact at the first instance Rob at 021 038 3281
(Very suitable for the youthful amongst us, a future ‘classic’ and a possible ‘chick bait magnet’. Will need to purchase a Pommy Stetson and stringback gloves for that classic edge. Perhaps some Brut aftershave and co-respondent’s shoes for the ultimate touch.)
From the visit.
A thing of beauty, a jewel that could be treasured. A Veteran Indian motor from the shed visits. A delicate looking piece of mechanical power that would propel a board track motorcycle to near triple numbers. Compare this to the period Edwardian English motors. This is the winner in the beauty and power. But as the twenties and thrities came, this elegance was lost in mass production.
Any other opinons?
The Ed.
In the business seat of the Vampire.
Both pics from the editor.
Below is a magical view of powerful mechanicals and in a peaceful bush setting
The Chairmans Report.
With this month’s Phoenix there will also receive a copy of the Branch's Constitution. This has been worked on over several months by Steve Cranch. Though not effectively different from the original constitution Steve has drafted out some minor changes and drafted in some others where he feels it is advantageous for Waitemata.
Your committee has vetted the changes. They have been sent to VCC headquarters in Christchurch for perusal. We discussed the draft last club night and changes from that night have been included. Now it is up to us the members to ratify the constitution by vote at our December club night. So read it and ask questions on club night if you wish and we will then have a vote.
Editorial Notes
I hope you enjoyed the shed visits as much as I did. It encourages me to make the most of age, the weather and the things that are cluttering up the shed. I brought along one of the young neighbours who met up with a few he knows. I encourage others to bring along someone to share the joys of these adventures, visit to sacred sites and loved and honoured jewels, mechanical marvels. The season has come for Santa Clones, in particular, those with beards and girth, with a merry ‘ho-ho’ into keeping the young and increasingly the elderly happy with plenty of seasonal fare and fluids. Watch out for the sun, surf and sand, and the related girth from the excess of the table.
For Sale
Yamaha SR500 1978
Second Owner, Original with agent fitted fibreglass saddle boxes. Comes with spares. Alloy wheels and discs back and front. New rings, piston and valves, braided brake hoses, new tyres. Has VIC and reg on hold. New parts still manufactured and on the shelf. Plenty of hot up kits made around the world. Workshop manual, period road tests. Regarded as an ‘‘Old Thumper”, suitable for two up and trips around the country. Often made in to café racers. Owned the bike for 10 years and done little milage as the shed is full of other projects. This is road version of the earlier Yamaha XT and TT which were motocross and dirt track models. Yamaha made this model (the SR) as the Norton, BSA and Matchless singles had left the American market with only two stroke single available. Looking at $6K but will haggle will local member. Michael Greig. 027 24 55 786
Don’t forget Mac’s Garage. Top advice, professional service, and well known and respected in the Vintage Austin and Riley world. Gearbox and diffs a specialty.
Ryan Mc Donald 09 443-3733, found at 4 Ashfield Road, Glenfield.
Wynyard Street Motors. / Devonport Tyres
Aaron Brown, owner/operator
1 Wynyard Street, Devonport. 09 4451357 | 021 040 6111 aaron@ambro.co.nz
WOFS- car and motorbike, sidecars
Batteries, servicing, repairs, brakes, tyres
BASIS open 6 Days 09 869 3141
Classic Auto Rubber Specialists. 7/1 Tony Street, Henderson
PHOENIX
CLUB NIGHT
Tuesday 2nd December
At the usual place with the usual suspects. Come on, join with us as it is your club too!