#0157 ember 2025
December 2025
PO Box 458, LEVIN 14 Tiro Tiro Road, LEVIN
Patron Chair Deputy Chair Secretary Treasurer Co-Treasurer Club Captains Committee
Welfare Officer Custodian & Maintenance Spares Team
Library Archives Branch Delegate Spark Editor Spark Distribution VIC Team
Tom Hayes Jon Dayton jongdayton@gmail.com Robin Strachan Merryl & John White horowhenua@vcc.org.nz Jackie Job jackiejob73@gmail.com Daphne Williams dh.dub@xtra.co.nz Greg Oliver Julie Riepen Bill Cottle Callum Farmer Richard Salt Andrew Judd Daphne Williams Bill Laney Bill Cottle Callum Farmer callumfarmer77@hotmail.com Rex Williams Jeff Fox Colin Brooks Robert Cammish Don Macdonald George McLean Don McLaren Clive Bardell Robin Strachan Diane Strachan John White Bruce Jamieson brucejamieson48@hotmail.com Murray Tinsley Verdon Heath, Ivan Horn, Jeff Fox and Robert Cammish
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Meeting Branch Night - 1st Wednesday of the month at 7 30 pm Committee Meeting - Last Wednesday of the month at 7 30 pm Working Bee - Saturday following Branch Night at 9 00 am Spare Parts - Open Saturday following Branch Night at 9.00 am Branch Bank Account No - 03 0667 0269227 02 (Westpac) Name: VINTAGE CAR CLUB OF NZ INC HOROWHENUA BRANCH
Almost the end of another year, and for me a time to reflect on an eventful few months since taking up the role of Chairman of this branch, something I feel privileged to have done. Also to reflect on those friends and colleagues that have passed since last year. We have one or two members who are not very well at present and I hope they recover quickly to enjoy time with their family over the holiday. My thanks to the committee members who have all played their part in keeping the club running. Whether it is looking after the building and bookings, to our club captains for going the extra mile with the events they put on, our magazine editor for producing Spark or our Librarian who took on a mammoth task re-arranging the library to make it more user friendly. A special thank you to John and Meryll White for taking on the secretary role from me, so no more Nigerian princess’s trying to give me millions of dollars, and the offers of special pillows, events to go to and flights. I do not miss any of that. Also, a special thank you on behalf of the whole club to our Treasurer Jackie for not only keeping us solvent but for all the extra work putting together our new Constitution. Recently someone remarked that to be a good member you should enter National events. Well I would dispute that. We all joined this great organisation because we have an interest in vintage transport, whether it is very early or more recent
classic cars, motorcycles, trucks, agricultural machinery (not covered by the VCC I know) but you get my drift. A love /interest in older transport. For some of us it’s the local runs and rallies, visits to other collections, etc but most of all friendship with like-minded people. I’ve done my time on big rallies, be it in the forests of Scotland and Wales on the RAC, in Germany, to the first Portuguese TAP Rally in 1968, to Cyprus where, when serving with the UN in 1978, I entered the Cyprus International, using a UN Land Rover. I was told on no account could I win! Well, a certain Roger Clark and Ford made sure of that, but it was fun and we weren’t last. Cost can be a big factor these days, especially accommodation, so lets just enjoy what we want as individuals. Big events or small, it’s the friends that you make and the fun you have that are important. Our first meeting after the New Year is on 4th February, when we also hold our Restoration of the Year award, so maybe after the festive cheer we can finish those projects we have been working on in time to enter. The first working bee will be on the 7th February, incorporating the “big cleanup “ and a BBQ after. So with that in mind Carol and I would like to wish all of you a Merry Christmas and a Happy, prosperous, but most of all a healthy New Year. Jon Dayton
Another year is almost up and what a way to finish our final club night for the year with Christmas cake and mince pies and a good old nog & natter. It was another packed club night, and as an informal gathering, was an opportunity to chat with friends old and new, wishing each other a Merry Christmas and New Year preparing to get into the up-andcoming festive spirit. Our November garage raid was another success with a visit to the garage of one of our new members, John Camm, in Raumati. John has an extensive collection of vehicles, including Mustangs, early American cars, and in particular one vehicle that caught everyone’s eye, a 1952 Pontiac Coupe in very original condition. Thank you to all members who have opened up their garages throughout the year for us all to view. It is a rare opportunity to view some truly amazing collections, and to see what is actually out there. Members of this month’s Kapiti Mid-week run visited Lavender Creek Farm in Te Horo. This is a 5-hectare farm with over 7000 Lavender plants producing Lavender oil, soaps, etc. and sold locally in their onsite shop. Following the visit, the members then proceeded onto John and Jenny Jackson’s place in Ohau for a picnic lunch. Our monthly club run to visit the Rush family collection was a huge success, and well worth the visit. Terry and his son Tim were excellent hosts. They could not be more informative regarding early motor racing at Manfeild, Ohakea, Levin and Pukekohe. The unique collection is enormous, and some of our members had been before, however this was another opportunity to see what they had missed during their first visit. There was plenty to talk about, and we enjoyed our picnic lunch on the premises with Terry providing the tea & coffee. The first of our Christmas Parades was in Levin. It was a huge success with special thanks to those members who brought along their vehicles
and supported the event. The weather turned out fine, and 13 cars turned up at the club rooms. We assembled in some sort of order and left in line around the block to the start. Unfortunately, Bill and Denise failed to get their trusty Ford car going, suffering fuel problems, and we had to leave them behind. The cars on parade represented a cross section of most cars in the club from veteran, vintage right through to post 60s and including one motorcycle. Our next event, the Shannon Christmas Parade on Sunday 14th December, saw six cars fronting up on a beautiful sunny morning. At 1030 we assembled in Stout Street to decorate our cars before being led off by the pipe band to parade around the domain. There was a large appreciative crowd of parents and children all waving out, clapping and cheering. Again, an excellent cross section of our club cars in attendance, and I thank every one of our members who brought their cars along to represent the club. Without you I am certain the parade would not have been so enjoyable. Our annual Christmas Party on the Sunday 7th December at the Club Rooms, was another success with 50 members attending the dinner. This year, there were “Secret Santa” gifts, and these was given out by Santa himself. Coming up: On January 1st is the Annual Gumboot Rally in Taihape. Let me know if you are interested in attending this event and I will try to get an entry to you as soon as they become available. Meet at the park at the end of Tui Street in Taihape at 9.00am. Bring a picnic lunch and chairs. Petrol will be available at the lunch stop. There will be some gravel roads. Manawatu VCC are travelling up on New Years Eve. If you would like to travel up with them, please let Ken Foot know. A reminder that Wellington VCC have their Annual Monte Carlo Rally coming up on Friday 16th January. Lunch stop is Manawatu Club rooms, and will be finishing in Whanganui with a BBQ at 151 On London Motel, Whanganui, in time for Whanganui Vintage Weekend. For the Monte Carlo entries, contact the organizer, Wellington Club Captain Neale Ryder, on 027 4493014. and give your name and type of car you will be using. They already have one Horowhenua Entry. The Annual Whanganui Burma Rally is on Sunday 18th January. Entries are out, and if you would like one, they are on the board at the club
rooms or let me know, as they are also on the Whanganui Rivet December Issue web site. Entries close 3rd Jan 26. The AP&I show is on at the Levin Show grounds 17th and 18th January. The Grand Parade is on Saturday 17th Jan, and I would like to get as many cars as I can to represent the club for the parade, which begins around 2.00pm, so if you could meet in Victoria Street by 1.30pm that would be great. I will send out a reminder in the New Year. We are calling for members who would like to enter their vehicle in our Restoration of the Year competition. Application forms are available now, and are on the board or let me know and I will email an entry to you. The club night on 4th February 26 will be our first club night for the year, and judging will take place then. On Wednesday 11th February, we will kick off our first Garage Raid for year. If you would like to make your garage available to members, please let Basil or myself know and we will liaise with you, and arrange a suitable time to visit. We are always looking for somewhere new and of interest for members to visit. Also coming up is our Annual Ted Green Memorial Motorcycle Rally on Sunday 22nd February. I have received a request from Horowhenua Neighbourhood Supports District Coordinator, for the club to attend an event called Neighbours Day, to be held on Saturday 14th March 26. They would love to have 3 or 4 cars in attendance to showcase our club and allow the public and community the opportunity to see what organizations and groups are available in our community. This is also an opportunity for us to promote our up-coming Swap Meet the following week on the 21st March. The Vero International Rally is on at the same time, and unfortunately, I and 7 other club members will be away at this event. Well, that’s about it from me, until the next time, don’t forget to keep that oil dripping. Have a great Christmas, and a safe and happy holiday period. Breaking News: Wheels with Attitude is on again, with the date set 1st February 2026. The Swap Meet and car show has a new venue at the Flying Club, 58 Aerodrome Road, Dannevirke. $2 entry, and children $1. Greg Oliver
Speaker for February
We will not have a guest speaker, but you all come and have your say by voting for our Restoration of the Year award.
New Club Members
We welcome Grahame Cottle, Jeffrey Bryce and Roderick Hickling who have all recently joined.
Recovering
Our club patron, Tom Hayes, had a spell in hospital with a suspected heart attack. The good news is that it was not a heart attack and he was soon discharged and is back home (cutting trees and fixing the roof). Don McLaren has just had another dose of Covid, but not affecting him badly. Louise Fleming was to have a visit in hospital, but her appointment has been put back. Best wishes to all.
Apologies
Our Spark editor, who is a complete numty with computers, has been having a few problems with “Windows 11”. So you will see a few strange things in this edition, like photos not aligned, or in some cases not even visible. So it is being delivered even later than usual this month, but I have had a technician help to sort it out.
Cover Picture
Fetching in the firewood for next winter.
A very big thank you to all who have helped the club in some way over the past year. A lot of help is needed in putting on events such as rallies, shows, building maintenance, etc. There is a change of give-away books on the table, so help yourself. The Christmas dinner was filling and up to the usual excellent standard: not sure about the Father Christmas though. Keep an eye out for things that are going to take place next year. All the best for the season. Robin and Diane Strachan
CHRISTMAS PARADE AT LEVIN
Garage Raid on 12th November. We visited the collection of John Camm, a new member of our club. Retired now, he spent many years importing and restoring cars from America, specialising in Ford Mustangs.
November 2025
Safe motoring everyone.
Callum
KAPITI M-W REPORT NOVEMBER 2025 This was our last mid-week event for the year. Approximately 28 people, half in classic cars and half in modern cars, arrived at the Lavender farm in Te Horo at 10am. Suzie (who has been running the farm for 25 years) introduced herself and explained how the Lavender farm worked. Their Lavender oil has won many awards all around the world and she puts it down to the way the farm was first set up. The lavender flowers are put through a steaming process at exactly the right temperature. Suzie also showed us the unique way they harvest the oil with a contraption invented by a local man. We enjoyed a coffee, tea and a piece of lavender shortbread at the farm. Suzie has a lovely shop full of lavender gifts, calendars, soap and, of course all types of oil. I bought some oil (apparently it is meant to make you sleep better – so I will have to experiment a bit more before I can say it works). After the visit we all came to our home in Ohau for a picnic lunch. A tour of the house and garden, picnic lunch and a look at a Riley or two. Jenny and John Jackson Lavender already in flower
Bruce and Joce Scott’s Austin
Picnic lunch
Kapiti Mid-Week Run February 25th Details to be advised
CHRISTMAS LUNCH AT THE CLUBROOMS
BIG CARS - SMALL PEOPLE
MEREDITH ELECTRICAL LIMITED For all your electrical requirements including: New Homes, Dairy farms, Maintenance, Repairs and all general electrical work.
Give Richard a ring on 027 4415464
Answer later in this issue of Spark
CHRISTMAS PARADE AT SHANNON
PARKING
VCC Banners
These fabric windscreen banners in blue with white lettering are again available. These can be used when displaying your car at shows or rallies. New stocks now at $15 each. Order from Robin Strachan. Library Merchandise
HVCC Dashboard Stickers Iron on fabric badges HVCC blue and white caps Name Badges (fill out form)
$4 $3 $10 $12.50
THE SWAP MEET You will all be keen to help with the Swap Meet in March. Richard Salt - phone 021 1289211 has taken on the role of main organiser, with able assistance from John White - phone 022 1601189 Rex williams - phone 022 5114084 who have been organisers for the past several years. Let any of them know that you are able to help, and advise of any particular job(s) you would prefer.
ROVER P6 V8 for sale Year: 1975, has had full body restoration and complete motor rebuild. Upholstery in very good condition. Current WoF, registration and VCC VIC. Price: $28000. Contact Kevin Fleming on 0211837701.
TAIL LIGHTS
CALENDAR of COMING EVENTS 1st January 26 16th January 26 17-19 January 26 18th January 26 17-18 January 26 23-25 January 26
Gumboot Rally, Taihape Monte Carlo Rally to Whanganui, Wellington Vintage Weekend, Whanganui Burma Rally, Whanganui AP & I Show, Levin – Grand Parade on 17th Biennial Motorcycle Rally, Wellington VCC
1st February 26 1st February 26 4th February 26 8th February 26 11th February 26 15th February 26 19-22 February 24 Feb – 1 Mar 22nd February 26 25th February 26
American Cars – Trentham Memorial Park Wheels with Attitude - Dannevirke Club Night, HVCC. Restoration of the Year British & European Cars – Trentham Mem. Park Garage Raid, HVCC Shannon Car Show on the domain Art Deco Weekend – Napier Ford Model T National Rally, Pukekohe Ted Green Memorial Motorcycle Rally, HVCC Kapiti Mid-week Run
4th March 11th March 14th March 15-21 March 21st March 25th March
Club Night, HVCC Garage Raid, HVCC Neighbours’ Day, Levin Adventure Park Vero International Rally SWAP MEET, Horowhenua VCC Kapiti Mid-week Run
Answer to “What Am I?” On 3rd of September, 1967 in Sweden, drivers changed from driving on the left hand side of the road to the right hand side. This is the moment when the whistle blew and everybody crossed over.
ISSN
the print bureau 06 367 9330