RAMBLER HORNET SST

having been put into the motor, there was no way the flogged transmission was ever going to be up to the task, even if Barry’s plans for it were a world away from the Summernats burnout pad that had crippled it.

Keeping everything local, Automan Wanganui looked like the place to be, the visit resulting in a new 2500rpm stall converter, with manual valve body and carbon-fibre clutch packs installed in the C4 trans.

Welded locked, and having been subjected to God knows how much abuse, the burnout-only diff was also going to be a big no-go. Barry decided a fresh start would be the best approach. Finding a second-hand nine-inch for sale, he also snapped up the rear end from an XG Falcon ute for its disc brakes, and Frankensteined the two together. The axle tubes were cut off the Falcon diff and welded onto the nine-inch housing, which was kitted out with an LSD carrier and 3:1 gears, with 28-spline axles filling the tubes.

You can’t go to those lengths with the mechanicals and not have a little bit to show for it, though, right? The ‘good from far, far from good’ approach that would have been fine for the Summernats pad just wasn’t going to cut it for Barry. So, the

ex-hack was sanded back, smoothed, and primed by Restorations Unlimited, then brought over to Wanganui Collision Centre to be finished.

That smooth black base has been layered in Xirallic green for a multi-layered finish depending on light and angle, and it looks just as good up close as it does from a distance.

A little closer up and you might be able to appreciate the interior treatment, too — excellent in its understatement.

It’s all remarkably stock appearing, but the Hurst Quarter Stick shifter and woodgrain Grant steering wheel mean that it isn’t all ’70s stock, and if you look harder you’ll spot the swag of Auto Meter gauges hidden in a nifty dash insert that Barry made in the factory style. A centre console insert houses the Philips head unit too, because this is a real-deal Kiwi street car — nothing like the barebones skid rig that entered the country. Yeah, Aussie might be a land of opportunity for the workers but, after seeing what Barry’s achieved with this Rambler, it could be said that New Zealand’s the country of opportunity when it comes to the cars.

9 Camaro pilot Steve Scoles didn’t have the best of luck during the 2018–2019 Enzed Central Muscle Cars series when the crank in the car’s SB2 Chev engine broke. He managed to get it repaired and back in the car to compete in a few more rounds before the same thing happened again at Highlands in April 2019. The only solution was to replace it and ensure the engine was better than ever. Chris Ganley was the man chosen for this task, and once completed the engine was dropped back into the car by Duane Bicknell. While with Duane, new suspension arms were fabricated to replace the previously-broken items, then the car was ready to race once more before the round at Steve’s home track of Highlands Motorsport Park. Having been out of the car for a while, and having no time to test the new set-up, it was always going to be a big ask to be on form, but knowing the track well it was game on — or so Steve thought. The first practice session showed that a few handling adjustments were required. With these made, he had high hopes for race one, but the race and season were unfortunately cut short when the car made contact with the unforgiving pit wall. Thankfully, Steve Noyer from Moselle Panel & Paint was on hand and offered to fix the car in time for the following round at Hampton Downs. Moselle lived up to the task, too, completing the repairs in time, only for the event to be canceled and the car to be locked down in the workshop due to COVID-19.

With the panel and paint looking good, Duane was given the task of remaking the upper suspension arms and giving the car a thorough check over before it heads back down south. Luckily, as a member at Highlands, Steve won’t need to wait till racing resumes again to get back on track and enjoy the freshly rebuilt machine.