Smart Keys/New advertiser

Those Members attending the March Club Night will recall that during his presentation Brett Gander from Century Batteries recommended locking your car when in the garage at night, and storing the key 5+ meters away from the car (ie: NOT on a hook alongside the car!). This allows the car electronics to close down completely and save it continuously awaiting instructions form the smart key– which effects the battery.

We have a 2020 Suzuki Vitara with a Smart key, so I asked the question from Suzuki NZ.

The following was the reply—

Dear Mr Strong Thank you for your email. The suggestion of locking your car even in the garage is a good one as this ensures the car is fully shut down/turned off. (The car wont lock if the ignition is in the ACC position and, if left in the ACC position overnight, the car battery will discharge). With Suzuki vehicles there is no issue with having the key fob near or in the vehicle when the car is fully turned off. No matter where the key fob is, the car is always ready to react to an input and under normal circumstances (fully charged car battery) the system should be able to start the car even after a couple of weeks of no use.

A NEW ADVERTISER! LASER PREP

This is a form of cleaning with out chemicals or abrasives. It is an eco friendly and cost effective way compared to other methods such as media blasting or paint stripping. It can remove light rust off delicate car/engine parts. It will easily clean a metal head gasket—previously impossible with conventional cleaning methods. So what is laser cleaning? Laser cleaning is revolutionary new way of cleaning— a concentrated light pulse hits a contaminated hard surface and achieves the delamination of the surface (so called ablation) with out any deformation of the surface.

Benefits are - no harsh chemicals, no abrasives, no expensive set up cost (as with media blasting), no loud noises during the process, no hazards as with high pressure equipment, very precise cleaning and no clean up cost! Initial discussion will determine if our laser is the best option for your project.

This cleaning can be done in your garage if required as it is plug and play! Cost is dependant on size of job and location (if it cannot be delivered to us)

Saturday 6 February 2021, Waitangi Day, we set off in our 1937 Graham Crusader, with friends Audrey and Erwyn Fail in their 1938 Dodge, to take part in the Eastern Bay of Plenty VCC Rally in Whakatane, take a few days going around the East Cape to arrive in Gisborne in time to take part in the Three Rivers Rally, before heading home on Valentines Day, 14th February. We dropped our dog Baxter off at Doggy Jail (read doggie heaven), on a farm near Katikati, where he would enjoy 10 days of swimming in the river, playing in cow pats and bossing around the other doggy inmates.

Our accommodation for the next three nights, a motel in Landing Road, Whakatane, was fully booked and speaking to the locals and management of the motel, Whakatane has been busier than ever, since the Whaakari White Island tragedy. The downturn they expected, has not yet arrived. Sunday morning saw 30 cars line up at the start at Paroa Rugby Club, including ourselves, Fails, Alistair and Gwen Jones, Deidre Rennie and Tony Fraser, Les and Helen Duggan, James Turner and Josh Duncan, Richard and Gabrielle Salt, all from Bay of Plenty Branch. What a great turnout for BOP!! It was a stunning day and the Rally had been set by Peter and Robyn Hadley, their very first attempt at setting a rally.

We set off and immediately became “challenged” when asked to write down the “Streets on the left”. No problem we thought, but were later to learn that there were NO STREETS on the left, there were roads, drives and crescents, but no streets – first fail! From there on we tried to be on our toes, counting beach entrances at Ohope, letterboxes in Stanley Road, and answering a number of questions while enjoying the beautiful drive around Whakatane/Ohope/Taneatua and back to Paroa Rugby Club for lunch. After lunch we headed north to Matata, before heading left off the Matata straights and uphill into the Pikowai area, returning via the Matahina Dam. It was a brilliant day and the Hadleys did really well with some quite “tricky” answers required. No Silverware for the BOP group to worry about that night, but the next day Audrey and Erwyn received a phone-call to say that one of their answer sheets had not been recorded and they had got 2nd in the Post Vintage Class and 2nd Overall! Well done guys! A shame you didn’t get recognised on the night, but a great day anyway. With Monday being the Public Holiday, we decided to stay in Whakatane and let all the holidaymakers head home from 2 long weekends in a row. We had a drive around and saw the Duggans and Fraser/Rennies doing the same. A nice walk along the waterfront and a bit of a nap in the afternoon and we were ready and rearing to go the next morning.

First stop was Opotiki, to fill up for the final time at reasonable prices, then it was on down the coast with a number of stops at some amazing vantage points and to watch a jetboat racing up the Motu River. What fun and a good excuse to come back again. Lunch was at Te Kaha, where the old hotel burned down some years ago and a new multi-level hotel, café, restaurant and shop had replaced it. Beautiful, fresh, pan-fried fish and salad on the edge of the water, fantastic! And then the heavens opened! This heavy shower was the only rain we had all trip and oh gosh, do they need rain all down the coast.

Further down the coast we visited a beautiful old church sitting right on the waters edge at Raukokore, with a big cemetery behind it. We were astounded that almost all the folk in the cemetery had the surname “Stirling”, including 3 brothers killed together in a car accident.

It was very sobering, but time to get back on the road heading for our accommodation for the night at Lottin Point, just a few kms of the highway, down a VERY steep, sealed road, is amazing! . Lottin Point, just a few kms of the highway, down a VERY steep, sealed road, is amazing! As we sat on our front terrace with a nice glass of wine, all we could see was pohutukawa trees and sea. The steep cliff in front was not negotiable for these oldies! And the instructions in our room told us that all guests are responsible for their own wellbeing and especially their own children. We were lucky that New Zealand’s Navy were staying there while mapping the ocean floor. We were in good hands we felt. Next morning we took time to go down to the Bay, further along a metal road and through a farm road and were really pleased we had. Such a pretty bay and some lucky motor homers camped in a very sheltered spot – another spot to return to.

We headed on towards Hicks Bay, where there is a fabulous new children’s playground, and a magnificent, brand-new, gymnasium/sports centre, with big banks of solar panels, for a very few houses, and even less permanent residents! A coffee at the East Cape Manuka Visitors Centre just before Te Araroa, was well worth the stop. This is a factory producing Manuka Honey and lots of associated products. The smell of Manuka along the roads thus far had been very, very strong, (rivalling Privet in smell!), so no doubt they had plenty of places to have their bees.

Then in to Te Araroa to see New Zealands largest pohutukawa tree, before heading out to the lighthouse at East Cape. We were told the road was very rough and not suitable for our cars – but took the punt anyway. What we found was a couple of kms of gravel, then 18kms of tarseal, all the way to the lighthouse! A brilliant road made with the Provincial Growth Fund, as a number of large signs told us. Even the carpark at the end was sealed and marked, however, 800 steps up through the bush to see the view from the lighthouse looked to be beyond this group. In fact, a young couple arrived back as we were leaving to go and they were tired and shaky, so we enjoyed a picnic lunch and returned back to Te Araroa on that nice sealed road. Thanks Shane Jones!

Our wee guidebook to the Cape, told us that St Mary’s Church at Tikitiki should on no account be missed – and they were right! This amazing Church is full of wonderful Tukutuku woven panels and magnificent carvings. Just to see the incredible stained glass window was worth the visit. It tells the story of two 17 year old young men who viewed the amazing bus trip to Gisborne as a huge start to their adventure of going to World War One, and who are now laying in Cemeteries in Europe, one in France and one in Belgium. The dear Maori lady who talked to us had been to visit their graves in 2017, 100 years after they died and spoke with love of those who are caring for their remains in those places. Such a moving place. A Must Stop, if you do this trip.

After passing through Ruatoria, and Te Puia Springs, we arrived in Tokomaru Bay for a night in “The Old Post Office” B & B – and that is a story for another time! Next morning we headed out early and visited the absolutely stunning Anaura Bay, before reaching Tolaga Bay. We walked to the end of the restored wharf, before we headed on to Gisborne along the coast where so many “Shanties” have sprung up beside the sea, helping out the local housing problem. We noted that each “Shanty” had a late model vehicle and a nice boat outside, many flying the black, white and red flag!

Gisborne is a very busy place, and logging trucks went past our motel day and night, both laden and unladen, heading to the port, even Saturday night! We found it quite difficult to get a meal on Thursday night as most places were fully booked. Friday night we enjoyed a really lovely barbeque with other Ralliers and members of the Gisborne VCC at their Clubrooms, before we were up and rearing to go by 8.30 on Saturday morning for the Three Rivers Rally. Entrants came from Nelson, Waikato, 2 from Auckland, and BOP, 3 from Eastern BOP and the rest from Gisborne.

On a beautiful, sunny and clear morning, we wandered the roads around the edge of Gisborne, following a route through farms, orchards full of apples and pears, paddocks of tomatoes all red and gorgeous, kiwifruit and avocados, and miles and miles of squash and maize. We saw a yard with the biggest line-up of pristine logging trucks we had ever seen. Mercedes, Freightliner, Kenworth, MAN, Isuzu, a lot of money in that yard! A short trip on the main road, climbing and descending big hills took its toll on one vehicle. The 1912 New Pick 16/18 HP, driven by Dale and Jenny Conlon from Nelson, had gearbox trouble and on changing gear it locked and moved no further! Some strong arm tactics by fellow ralliers, lifted/dragged it off the highway to a safe spot. We continued to Morere where we turned left onto the Mahia Peninsular and travelled through amazing roads right out to Mahia, at the end of the road. (Some of us…..Fenns…. even made it to Mahanga). The views were amazing, at one point there were beaches on both sides with just a narrow strip of land in the middle, and wouldn’t we have liked to see the fishing boat moving on to the huge trailer parked on the beach? After lunch at the local pub, we were free to make our own way back to Gisborne and the Fails and us decided to travel a little further South to Wairoa and then back via and inland road. This was a truly beautiful road and we enjoyed seeing another part of the country we hadn’t travelled.

Prizegiving at Smokey Joe’s Restaurant at the Gisborne R.S.A. that night was a big thrill for Graeme and I, winning the Post Vintage Section and The Rally overall! The meal was less memorable!

We travelled home to Waihi Beach next day and got home before the expected heavy rain settled in. An amazing 10 days of Vintage travel yet again, including 2 really lovely Rallies. 1000 miles of trouble-free motoring. We would really recommend this trip if you are even remotely thinking of it.

Anyone interested in doing it as a group next February?

PS: The New Pick was taken back to Gisborne VCC Clubrooms where the owner and other members were endeavouring to get it on the road in time for Art Deco the following weekend.

Road into Lottin Point

With Joy and Steve Growden, Eastern BOP Branch, at Mahia Beach