Last year’s inaugural Brits At The Beach event was a huge success with more than 220 cars and 4000 spectators. This year the popular event is back and will take place in Tairua with activities from this Friday (7^th Oct) to Sunday (9^th Oct).

The event includes a parade, show and a British Village Fete, where you can admire the cars up close and have a yarn with the owners. Viewing is totally free, and vehicles and bikes can be pre-registered at 
www.britsatthebeach.co.nz or registered on the morning before the parade for $10. The event is open to all British-built vehicles of all ages. (more…)

The Paeroa Antiques Weekend is all on for Saturday 17th September and event organisers are inviting owners of vintage and classic cars to take part.

Held in the world famous in NZ town of Paeroa, there will be a car parade through the main street and then a display in the centre of town. Registration is not required, keen participants can just turn up at 10.30 am on the day for the muster up Taylor’s Ave (by the L&P Cafe), ready for the Parade at 11am.

The parade will finish up in Wharf St in the centre of town where cars will get lined up for display and there will be old fashioned devonshire teas and a sausage sizzle available with a live band for entertainment.

For those who wish to join in, there will also be a car rally setting off at 2pm for a gentle circuit, finishing at the historic homestead, Corbett House, in Hikutaia. (more…)

The dates have been announced for this year’s NHRA National Hot Rod Show with the event taking place on the weekend of October 15th-16th. The organising committee is in full swing putting everything into place for the weekend.

The club has also announced that Mobil Oil has come on board as an associate sponsor, this means all major sponsorship is in place. All indoor trade display sites have been sold (they all will be car related of course), but there is still limited room outside for some more trade displays.

Hawera is gearing up for the weekend with the town business association organising a Hot Rod themed shop window display competition, and a market day with the local rock & roll club on the Saturday morning.

On Friday night the bar of show sponsor Rough Habits are holding a “Rock FM” party, so this will be a great night with lots of give-aways and fun. The Lazyboyz band is booked for Saturday night’s dinner.

The trophy’s are designed and are going to be very unique this year so if you want to win one, better get your entry sorted. (more…)

The Orewa Hot Rod Cruise Night is on the first Friday of every month and that means the low-key event is all set for this Friday (July 1). It’s a great excuse to get your ride out of the garage during the winter months and do some cruising through the Orewa township.

The event is open to all American, Australian, hot rods, performance and classic car and is a chance to meet other enthusiasts. The main meeting area is Orewa community car park on Florence Ave and the event kicks off at 7pm with cruises each hour thereafter. There are a range of local eateries to visit and usually a strong turnout of vehicles, so if you live in the greater Auckland area get down and check it out. (more…)

The Men’s Health Trust New Zealand is an organisation that does loads of work to make sure Kiwi men keep healthy and stay educated on health issues. We can use all the help we can get, because let’s face it – we are pretty useless.

For an upcoming event the Men’s Health Trust is inviting all motorsport fans to the launch of its The Big You Night at the SkyCity Convention Centre, Auckland on Saturday 30th July 2011. This black tie event is in honour of Motorsport legend Kenny Smith and will help raise funds for Men’s Health Trust New Zealand.

Older race fans will be familiar with Kenny Smith but the younger crew may not know of this legend of International motorsport. Smith first debuted in the 1963 New Zealand Grand Prix with the likes of Bruce McLaren, Chris Amon and Denny Hulme. Now at the age of 69 and in his 53rd season of racing, Kenny is still competing against today’s much younger drivers.

The only event that nearly thwarted Smith’s career behind the wheel was a triple heart bypass operation in 1987. While many thought his career was over, his return three months later saw him carry on where he left off. Ken now vigilantly visits the doctor every 6 months, and is an example of the determination, persistance and courage required for a long lasting and successful racing career. Inducted in to the Motorsport New Zealand hall of fame in 1995, he was also honoured in the Queen’s birthday honours list by being awarded the MBE in 1988. Smith’s passion for single seater racing has seen him mentor many of New Zealand’s top young drivers including Scott Dixon and Brendon Hartley.

The Men’s Health Trust Visit is now selling tickets to The Big You Night fundraiser, go to www.you.org.nz/younight for more information and to book.

The team at Magoo’s Street Rods have just been in touch to tell us about their upcoming annual Open House.

This year the event is being held on a Sunday (March 20th) which should make it more accessible to those that have had problems attending in the past due to work, sport & travelling.

The Hospice Wairarapa charity will again be running the food & drinks side of things and this year there will be Emporio coffee available too.

The award for Best Represented Club (based on the total number of display cars) has been hotly contested over the last few years so it will be interesting to see whether Gearjammers can take the honour back from Moonshine, or will another club wrestle the title away?

Something new for this year is that in conjunction with promoting plans for the new Masterton Motorplex dragstrip there’s a mini-Cacklefest. Scott Miller & Michelle Davidson are confirmed already. You can expect at least 4000hp during the fire up so bring some ear plugs!

In addition to the opportunity to tour the famous Magoo’s Steet Rods workshops and see a wide range of rod & restoration projects underway, the shop will be open and there’s some pre-stocktake specials plus a massive 20% off a wide range of books.

There will also be some spot prizes on the day for those who bring and display their hot rods, street machines & classics. (more…)

The 10th anniversary of Beach Hop at Whangamata saw thousands of hot rods, muscle cars, rat rods, lowriders and more descend on the sleepy seaside town. The cruise to Onemana with more than a thousand cars was amazing. The weather was awesome, and so were the people. We’re looking forward to Beach Hop 2011!

Check our events galleries section for images of events and cruises. Images from Beach Hop 2010 coming tomorrow!

The fourth annual Americarna event is taking place in Taranaki this week. It’s all about cruising, classic cars and celebrating all things American.

Tonight (Friday 26th) is the highlight of the event with the main street cruise along Devon St in New Plymouth. The cruise route will be open till 11pm.

Tomorrow is a big day (9:30am – 4pm) at New Plymouth Race Course with music, food, trade stalls and prizes will be awarded for car category winners. A black 1964 Ford Galaxie is also set to be given away.

If you want to find out more about Americarna Taranaki or get details on next month’s Americarna Invercargill, check out the Americarna website here.

Check back next week to view images from the event online.