June 2023

NZ Hot Rod

New Zealand's Longest Established Automotive Magazine

NZ Hot Rod1 min read
NZ Hot Rod
MANAGING EDITOR: Paul Grace ACCOUNTS: Liz Grace DESIGN & PRODUCTION: hotlobster design ltd (UK) CORRESPONDENTS: Spook Howard, Craig Houston, Wayne Scraba, Bruce Taylor, Chris Harris, Siggy Eichholz, John Daley, John Faulkner, Lew Bonnington, Steve Re
NZ Hot Rod4 min read
Box 8 Waipu LETTERS
HI PAUL & LIZ. Seeing the results of my Familiaral Art 4-part feature kicking off in the November ’21 issue portraying the talents of the Campbell brothers was indeed a treat. Extracting information out of those two guys is/was as entertaining as wel
NZ Hot Rod4 min read
Publisher's PODIUM
THIS month's magazine cover is a first for us and makes a dramatic statement in favour of Greg and Diane Haliday's 1941 Willys Americar Coupe. It's dramatic because we decided to feature two photos of the same car on the cover. I took that decision a
NZ Hot Rod2 min read
Just in PASSING
SEVERAL readers enquired about the story published on Kiwi hot rod trailblazer and drag racing pioneer Grahame Berry's Walk of Fame sign in his local town, Upper Hutt. Here's a close-up of the sign and the text below for clarity. In 1984 Grahame Berr
NZ Hot Rod2 min read
Beach Hop Snippets
IF YOU own a 1933 or 1934 Ford, you'll want to be a part of the Model 40 Convention to be held March 8-10 next year. Celebrating 90 years of this beautiful model Ford, the event is open to modified and original examples but is limited to 100 entries.
NZ Hot Rod1 min readIndustries
New Arrivals
Brought to you by For all GM restoration supplies. POPULAR Chevrolets from the ‘50s revolve around the Tri-Fives but hold that bus because the ’59 year Chevrolets and Buicks and even Cadillacs had superior exterior styling and stunning interior desig
NZ Hot Rod3 min read
Rad Rod
AS most car enthusiasts know, General Motors’ high-end’ marque was the Cadillac. Their main opposition was the Ford Motor Company, and they also had their opulent brand for the “rich and famous”; this was the Lincoln, and these cars made their mark i
NZ Hot Rod3 min read
NZHRA Street Rod Nationals 50-Year Anniversary
FOR the past few years, the Street Rod Nationals has been cancelled due to COVID or other problems. However, the Zone 9 clubs were determined to run the event as it coincided with the 50th anniversary; the first was held in Taupo in 1973. We may have
NZ Hot Rod2 min read
Golden Bay Rodders 45th Anniversary 28th-30th April
ONCE again, the Golden Bay Rodders put on an excellent event. This time it was to celebrate 45 great years of Hot Rodding. The weekend kicked off on Friday night. After everyone had collected their goodies bag, they were all treated to a top-notch BB
NZ Hot Rod1 min read
HPC Nostalgia Drags
WITH the 2022 event cancelled because of Covid, there was much anticipation for the 2023 event. The event poster featured Russell Lowe's Strange Magic ‘56 Chev, and with plenty of marketing for the event, Bay Rodders was on track to more than make up
NZ Hot Rod3 min read
Ian Hooper Memorial Run
THE 5th Annual Ian Hooper Memorial Rod Run featured old-school camping, a great beachside location, an entry fee that is just triple the minimum wage, and a bunch of early-model hot rods & custom cars. Where and when was it? The 5th Annual Ian Hooper
NZ Hot Rod1 min read
Competition Meeting 5
EIGHTY entries lined up for Competition Meeting #5, the last of the annual Comp Series meetings for 2023. The fastest speed and quickest ET of the meet, plus the number one qualifier in Top Comp class, went to Roy Bingley's 1923 T Altered powered by
NZ Hot Rod5 min read
Haliday's Hauler
THIS ’41 Willys coupe saw drag strip action in the ‘50s and ‘60s in Alabama before being tamed and transformed into a street rod, running a smallblock Chev/Muncie combo. In 2005 Greg Haliday purchased the car out of Fayetteville, 40 miles from Atlant
NZ Hot Rod1 min read
Dashing Design
WHEN Dave Webster purchased his ’37 Ford Coupe, it was fitted with its stock factory dash painted hot rod flat black and retrofitted with a set of Autometer gauges. It was a straightforward and logical solution to replace the old Ford 6-volt gauges,
NZ Hot Rod3 min read
2023 Pre 49 Street Rod Nationals
AFTER attending the NZHRA Rod Run Nationals in Christchurch, a run was organised to The Pre 49 Street Rod Nationals held immediately after. It left on the morning of Monday, 10th April, and when we arrived after the fairly long drive, we went straigh
NZ Hot Rod2 min read
Betty Boop
DUE to her husband, Paul's connection with their local club, Greymouth Rodders, Diane has become increasingly involved in the local rodding scene. She really comes into play with the organisation of their famous two-yearly run. Paul already had a nic
NZ Hot Rod3 min read
Hamilton Memorial Rod Run
ANZAC DAY 25th April is a special day in New Zealand for all of us to remember those who gave their lives in the two World Wars. However, for hot rodders, it is also a day for them to not only remember those who served in the World Wars but to rememb
NZ Hot Rod2 min read
KiwitRod Run own
THE 11th Annual Kiwitown Cruisers Rod Run, Otorohanga, was held on the weekend of 21 - 23 April and was based at the K T C clubrooms. Friday's entrants arrived at the clubrooms, and the bottom paddock was set aside for camping. Bar facilities, a saus
NZ Hot Rod1 min read
Hot Rod Blowout
IT'S been 21 years since the inaugural Hot Rod Blowout, and it was a refreshing change to see it staged at NAPA Autoparts Dragway after council red tape prevented it from being held at the previous venues. It was the first car show ever held at the d
NZ Hot Rod1 min read
Pre-’90s Team Champs
THE rules are simple. Grab three mates with a Pre ‘90s non-Jappa with rego, WOF, street tyres and two throttle return springs and head to Meremere. Previously known as the NZ Hot Rod Magazine Club Champs, it has been opened up to those who are not a
NZ Hot Rod2 min read
Industry NEWS
IT'S been long overdue, but GMS Hot Rods has moved to a larger purpose-built facility to accommodate the business growth. We are still in the West Auckland region, where the new facility offers more room, better efficiency and productivity to better
NZ Hot Rod8 min read
Upcoming EVENTS
> 4 Rodders Breakfast Kustoms' Club Rooms McLean Island > 4 Wellington Rodders Breakfast at The Larf'n Tiger Café at Hutt Indoor Sports, 93 Hutt Park Rd. Doors open at 8.30 and there is a Managers Choice Trophy and a breakfast voucher to be won! > 4
NZ Hot Rod2 min read
Toolbox TALES
YOU may recall, many years back, reading a list of comical accident claims made to insurance companies. Such as, I swerved to avoid a lamp post, but it jumped in front of me at the last moment—that sort of thing. This is a true story about how a Fren
NZ Hot Rod1 min read
Features and Specifications
CAR BUILDER: Dan Tyler, Rocket Speed Equipment, Hamilton ENGINE: Engine builder: Ray Barton Racing Engines, Robesonia, PA. RBRE 472ci Hemi race block, heads, crank, I-beam rods, rocker gear, timing gears, JE pistons and rings. Comp Cams roller cam an

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