THE COVER STAR! – FORGED RB26-FUELLED ROCKET BUNNY S15
If you look in the dictionary under ‘K24’ you’ll see Jayden Broad’s name alongside it. He’s the New Zealand K24 maestro and he’s back with a German chassis, K24 turbocharged machine!
Wanting a challenge this time around, though, Jayden decided to test his skills against an entirely new platform, one where the rear wheels do the talking, instead of the front and four-wheel drive Hondas he’s used to building. For those that remember his all-wheel drive K24 turbo Orthia, you’ll know the kind of madness we’re talking about. This time, though, it’s not a Honda — it’s a German icon: the BMW E30, with Jayden’s signature K24 twist.
THE SIXTH SENSE – 432KW SUPRA STREET MACHINE
Six Supras deep, Jason Ham tore through them like a kid rifling through Hot Wheels at The Warehouse, hunting for the perfect car — and this Supra’s finally the one that ticks every box
Yep, you read that right — six Supras. Meet Jason Ham, a full-time financial advisor and part-time Supra junkie from Christchurch. He’s got a killer street machine in his garage, and after cycling through Supras left, right, and centre, he’s finally satisfied his cravings with a build that proves to be the perfect all-rounder.
TOYOTA TRIPLE THREAT – WILD KE COROLLA TRIFECTA
There’s standing out from the crowd, and then there’s standing out from the crowd with a distinctively unique fleet — one perhaps, of retro Toyota Corollas. Meet Michael Reichenbach, and his home-brewed threesome of third-generation Toyota Corollas. But the theme of ‘three’ doesn’t just end there…
In any given neighbourhood, on any given evening, if you pop your head outside your front door and just listen, you might just hear the sounds of a dedicated Kiwi petrolhead, slaving away over a workbench or under a hoist, crafting their four-wheeled dream. The buzz of grinders, crackle of welding electrodes, and thud of hammers — sometimes punctuated with a bit of spicy vocabulary — are noises that typify the classic shed-built endeavour, a process held close to the car-enthusiasts’ heart among these shores.
DIVINE INSPIRATION – RB25-POWERED S15 BUILD TRIBUTE
Nathan Gower may have never got to see his dream build through to completion, but a good mate with the right skills and passion made it happen
Growing up sitting in the pits at race tracks around the country, talking car racing at family dinners, and hanging out in his parent’s workshop, Brandon Clarke’s future hobby was never in doubt. The now 26-year-old wouldn’t have it any other way though, and that’s not only because his motorsport-mad family would disown him, but also it’s what he knows and loves and has now turned into a career path. It would be easy to think all that trailering an S15 around the country had rubbed off on him, but that’s not the case. The RB25DET Neo-powered machine you see here belonged to a very close friend, Nathan Gower, who tragically decided to leave this world early.
COME ONE, COME ALL! – CARNIVAL 2024
CAR-nival: A thrilling conclusion to the Choice Events calendar
Picture this: a picturesque 11.8 hectares of Taupo Motorsport Park sitting there most days, a few rabbits here and there, magpies like a pack of guard dogs, maintenance teams making sure it’s ready for the next big event. On the 5th and 6th of October, the usually serene Taupo Motorsport Park was transformed into a haven for petrolheads and speed enthusiasts as CAR-nival roared to life.
IN THE CLUB – RNR PERFORMANCE
In this issue, we catch up with one of the longest-standing groups we know of. The beauty of this section is that we aim to let the clubs tell their story in their own words — that’s what makes up the fabric of the car scene.
BLAST FROM THE PAST – MADBAZ’S SUPRA SHOW CAR IS BACK!
You may not know who Mad Baz is, but there’s a chance if you’ve been around the scene for a while, you’ll be very familiar with his show-stopping Supra!
Rewind to the early 2000s and the import show car scene was in full swing filling trophy cabinets and emptying bank accounts around the country. The Australian-run AutoSalon series of events were the pinnacle of the scene, with shows taking place in Auckland, Wellington and Christchurch each year culminating in a ‘Final Battle’ back in Auckland. With points being awarded for changes made between rounds, you never knew how the cars would evolve between each showing, but you knew that the main players would have pushed themselves to the brink of financial ruin to get there.
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