‘‘We get lots of attention from it when we drive up the street. If I had a dollar for every photograph that someone has taken of it, I'd be a millionaire.
‘‘I'm the man with the cute ute. Its puts smiles on people's faces.''
Mr Heyward (71), of Clive, near Hastings, said he found the ute 25 years ago in a junk yard, destined to be turned to scrap metal.
He said the pick-up models were very rare, and recognising its value, he bought it, restored it, and has since put more than 135,000km on its odometer.
So why did he put the Austin J40 pedal car (manufactured some time between 1947 and 1972) on the roof rack?
‘‘Because I had nowhere else to put it. I put it up there to take it around some of the car shows, and it's been there ever since because it's too heavy to lift down.''
Mr Heyward said he had been collecting Austins for decades, and at one stage he had 10 Austins in various stages of restoration.
‘‘They are just something I grew up with - something that has always appealed to me. It's a very unique little English car.
‘‘I have been a collector, but I've downsized a wee bit lately.
‘‘I ran out of space to put them all, more or less. My family got tired of all these Austins lurking around the driveway.''
Mr Heyward takes the Austin out most weekends to rallies, and is in Dunedin this week for the 2016 International Festival of Historic Motoring (January 15-24).
Festival events include a photograph session of all entrants' vehicles at the Dunedin Railway Station today and tomorrow; an opening ceremony at the Edgar Centre (tomorrow evening); a train trip to Oamaru to explore the town's Victorian Precinct (Saturday); a Wings and Wheels open day with 600 historic vehicles, including planes, at the Taieri Airfield (Sunday); rally day 1 to Balclutha, Middlemarch, Lawrence or Portobello (Monday); a one-make day, where similar makes of cars do a short run together (Tuesday); a rally to Waikouaiti (Wednesday); rally day 2 to Lawrence, Balclutha, Middlemarch or Waihola (Thursday); a parade around Dunedin, starting at John Wilson Drive at 7pm (Friday); rally day 3 to Middlemarch, Lawrence, Balclutha, Port Chalmers (Saturday).
