Tickets went on sale for the NZHRA Hot Rod Lottery last week, but we now have more info on the prize car and how you can enter.

Due to a large response received during the last Lottery, ticket numbers this year, have been increased to 30,000. The prize? A stunning 1926 Ford Roadster.

The Roadster has a 350 Chev engine with Ford 9 inch diff, 350 Turbo transmission, and tube axle front end with white satin interior finish. It is not just the Roadster up for grabs either, with the car will be a new set of mags from BGWorld Wheels, Mothers High Performance Car Care products have added boxes of product to keep the car in show condition and Classic Cover Insurance Limited are offering a year’s free cover.

Tickets are available for purchase through NZHRA Clubs and there is a full listing on where you can get your $6 ticket from here at the NZHRA website.  The Roadster can be seen on the 25th September at the Tararua Rodders Show n Shine in Levin and at the National Hot Rod Show in Hawera on the 15th -16th October – tickets will also be available on site at both venues. (more…)

Tickets have just gone on sale for the 2011 NZHRA Hot Rod Lottery and this year’s prize hot rod looks like a real beauty.

It’s a 1926 Ford Roadster finished in a striking green hue. There’s a 350 Chev shoved under the bonnet, a tube axle front end, 9-inch diff and a 350 Turbo transmission. Everything is nicely in order and a white leather custom interior sets it all off.

Tickets for the lottery are $6 and can be purchased through NZHRA clubs around NZ. Ticket sales close on November 10th with the draw taking place on November 19th. The winner will be notified by phone.

You can also see the lottery Hot Rod as it attends events in the coming months. It will be shown at Tararua Rodders show n shine event in Levin on September 25 and the National Hot Rod Show in Hawera on October 15-16th. (more…)

It was nearly eight decades ago that Edsel Ford, son of Henry, commissioned a special one-off machine. It was a 1934 Model 40 Speedster and after having various owners has just been restored and put on show at the Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance in the States.

The unique roadster features iconic styling and was originally penned by E. T. Gregorie. The vehicle has been subject of a number of changes over the years, but remains powered by a 100 hp (75 kW) 4.0-litre V8 engine that was first installed in 1940.

The custom model served as Edsel Ford’s personal roadster and following his death in 1943, toured the United States before being sold for just $603 in 1958. Following the sale it vanished for 41 years, until it resurfaced at the 1999 Amelia Island Concours d’Elegance. Nearly ten years later, the car was sold to a Texas collector for $1.76 million USD. Sadly, that buyer died shortly after the sale and the speedster was returned to the Edsel & Eleanor Ford House which enlisted RM Auto Restoration to restore it to its original 1940 design and condition.  (more…)

One of the rarest and most fascinating V8 vehicles in the world will cross the auction block later this month – the 1965 Ford GT40 works prototype roadster.

While most Ford enthusiasts now the origins of the iconic GT40 very few would know much about the GT40 roadster. This particular model is chassis number GT/111, meaning it was the 10th car built after the original GT40, which featured chassis number GT/101, only 12 GT40 prototypes were built in total. Seven of the prototypes were coupes and five were roadsters. This particular roadster is one of only four to survive and one of only three to have been raced. It was thought lost for many years but has been recovered and restored and is one of the rarest and most desirable GT40s in the world.

Under the bonnet is a 4.7-litre (289 cubic-inches) V8 engine with four Weber twin-choke carburetors and an output of 444 horsepower. Changing the gears is a ZF five-speed manual transaxle that sits in the middle of the chassis, there’s also four-wheel independent suspension and four-wheel hydraulic disc brakes. (more…)

Being America’s number one Dodge Viper dealership for 11 years has its special perks — like being able to ask the top brass at Dodge for a drop-top version of the hardcore Viper ACR. Apparently  that’s exactly what Nebraska-based Woodhouse Dodge did after hearing that the Viper was soon to be extinct, and Dodge obliged. What resulted was a very limited run of 20 examples of a drop-top ACR, complete with the coupe’s tweaked suspension, mammoth brakes and special final gears in the transmission.

It’s not as simple as just hacking the roof off of a standard ACR-X either. The ACR production crew had to completely rework the roadster’s aero package with a new rear wing and a redesigned front splitter to suit the topless car. Dodge built the 20 cars just for the Woodhouse dealership, complete with its own build code. If you want to get your hands on one, make an international call to Woodhouse Dodge in Blair, Nebraska. But be sure you’ve got $107,310 ($148,500 NZ) to blow.

“She’s still the prettiest ‘lil ’32 in the bunch~”

1932 Ford Coupe. That’s right, the ultimate definitive Hot Rod. Whenever someone mentions a ’32 or a “Deuce coupe” we instantly think of tough burly men with graying beards and leather jackets proudly showing off a rough, half-finished matt black paint job, custom body chops, or some outrageous looking “half breed” of a thing they have chucked together. Ok, so maybe not all of us think that, but you get the idea!

Everyone has their favourite car, whether it be a 1955 Chevy Bel Air or a 1968 Plymouth Barracuda. Pardon me for being horribly cliche here guys, but I adore the ’32 ford coupe. (Being a Ford girl also helps!). It could possibly be the fact that you can practically do anything to these babies and they will always look great!

I also would like to point the finger at Phillip Grimmer and his pretty ’32. To me, it was love at first sight. Everything about her caught my eye, her shiny glossy black paint job, big, fat Goodyear tyres, and immaculate engine bay, what wasn’t there to love? It was like one of those intense love affairs. I couldn’t turn away, my camera filling up with photos from different sides, angles, you name it, I have it. I just had to keep going back for more and more, I was in love. It was from there on I knew what I wanted to own.

It’s easy to see why these rods are so popular, they’re so easily customized, parts are readily available, they look good in any colour you dip them into and the overall result is one incredible rod that you can easily show off and be proud of.

So, what can I say, except for Henry Ford, you are a genius for creating one of the most iconic hotrods in history, and I plan to own one, whether I build one up or buy one already done up! (Whether it kills me or not!). The ’32 will always have a top spot in my love for cars; I even got a tattoo with the words “32 Roadster” etched in my back. Not bad if I do say so myself! That’s how much I stand strong for my love of these cars and that ladies and gentleman is dedication!

As the Beach boys once sung:
“And comin’ off the line when the light turns green, well she blows ‘em outta the water like you never seen. I get pushed out of shape and it’s hard to steer, when I get rubber in all four gears. She’s my little deuce coupe, you don’t know what I got.”

Coming up next:
Wild ride with Wayne Grimmer and his big Barracuda.

Conceived and built by Chris Dixon of Wounded Knee Motors, this custom 1932 Ford roadster is a breakaway from the multitude of look-alikes that populate the modern rodding scene.

Ticket holders of the CenturyYuasa 2009 NZHRA Hot Rod Lottery waited with bated breath around New Zealand and overseas last Friday as the winner was drawn for the lottery at 1pm outside the Tauranga Police Station.

Local Motorsport enthusiast Bob Clarkson was there to make the draw, with the supervision of the Tauranga Police.

The 20,000 tickets of the sold out lottery, were bundled into the trunk of the 1930 Ford Model A Roadster which was up for grabs, Mr Clarkson was able to rummage around in the tickets to pull out the lucky winner, Dale Ross of Manukau.

Ticket Number 8869 was purchased by Dale Ross from Manukau Rod & Custom Club, a club which he has belonged to for just over 17 months. Jo Henderson of NZHRA made the call to Dale straight after the draw was made; thankfully Dale had a good grip on the ladder he was up at the time Jo called.

Dale is very much a Ford man, owning another Model A Roadster, a Jailbar and Customline, the new addition to the family of Ford vehicles will be very much at home, once Dale “has cleared some space”.

Dale’s daughter Renee, who is 11 years old and a petrol head at heart will be having a day off school next week when Dale picks up his new prize. Dale had not yet spoken to his daughter but knows that she is going to be extremely excited when she hears the news.

Presentation of the Model A Roadster to Dale will be made next week in Auckland.