Southern classics

It’s always great to see classics being resurrected, especially when you have seen them in their as-found condition.

Gore’s Graham Baird used to be a panel beater in the town but has been employed for the past few years at the local Fonterra dairy factory. This has enabled him to seize the opportunity to use his skills to restore classics.

In recent years, there has been a substantial increase in the number of classics being restored in the region — backed up by more car clubs catering to different tastes — and Graham’s current classic driver is a case in point. It’s a stunning and very rare Plymouth Suburban station wagon that clearly displays both his skills and those of the local craftsmen who helped him to complete the lengthy project.

The final result has seen a flurry of awards and top-10 placings for the car at shows from Timaru to Gore during the two years it has been completed.

“I spent 15 years restoring the car to its present state. I believe it is one of only two in New Zealand, and the effort has been well worth it. I’m very pleased with it,” Graham told us.

Graham’s workshop enables him to carry out various projects, and he is currently working on fellow Gore enthusiast Ian Soper’s 1950s Dodge sedan. It’s starting to take shape, although there is still a lot of work to do.

“Ian’s has been a long-term project, but it’s starting to look good. I’ve just finished the front right guard, so it is getting close to the paint stage. I think Ian may keep the maroon colour of the main part of the bodywork,” Graham explained.

Also in Graham’s workshop is what can only be described as a ‘ barn find’ — which so many of us hope to stumble upon at some stage. In this case, the car is an HT Holden sedan with a fair bit of surface rust and the odd minor ding, as well as some rust in the places to be expected for this model. Graham reveals that it’s going to be his son’s car.

“We found it advertised in Cromwell, went up to look at it, and bought it. We drove it home, and it is quite repairable and should look good when it’s finished,” he said.

Mechanically, the Holden appears to be in good shape, thanks to the dry Central Otago air, and it fired up at the first turn of the key, emitting the characteristic buzz that this model has as Graham backed it out of the workshop. Although the paint is now faded, it is intended that the car’s original Holden blue colour will be kept.

Graham is now looking for another personal restoration project, something like he has restored before — perhaps an HQ or later Holden Monaro needing some comprehensive TLC.

After racing a 1963 Giulia Super in the upper North Island for a number of seasons, Rob Herbert wanted to find and rebuild one. A tip-off about two Giulias possibly for sale in the Waikato led him to make his way down from Auckland with his father, trailer in tow. A deal was done, and the two cars were purchased. They had sat outside for close to 30 years, and were in need of some serious work.

The plan was always to build just one car, and the condition of the pair made this an easy choice. The 1966 South African–built Super was stripped down, soda blasted and sprayed, and work began on the repairs. New rear arch repair panels were flown in from Alfaholics in the UK, and lower door sections and the front panel were made on site by a local craftsman.

Rob picked the Alfaholics Trackday/mild Race ‘Blue’ Handling Kit for the car, which will be employed for fast road use, road trips, and track days. The kit lowers the car quite a bit, and adds new Bilstein dampers, a massive front anti-roll bar, and poly bushes all round. The car was painted a custom baby blue in Rob’s dad’s garage, and 15x5.5 TZ alloys from — where else? — Alfaholics were chosen for each corner. The interior will be fairly standard, except for some more wrap-around, period-style seats and a Momo Prototipo wheel. The two-litre engine and box have just been installed, all the brake lines have been bent up and installed, the wiring is being assembled, and minor trim work is being completed. Rob hopes to have the car finished in the next couple of months.