Wayne Nicol (left) and Levi Nicol, 16, of Mosgiel, sit back in a 1948 Ford Model A Roadster at the Otago Community Hospice Charity Cruise & Car Show held at Hancock Park yesterday. PHOTOS: GERARD O’BRIEN As a car painter and upholsterer by trade, Wayne Nicol says it is not normally in his nature to paint something as "ratty" as his 1948 Ford Model A Roadster. After about a year and a-half of hard work, he had recently finished building the vehicle "to make it look old". "I’ve got some other cars that are nice and shiny and I didn’t want a shiny one. "All the chassis and all that’s been built to the latest specifications, but I just wanted it looking a bit ratty." The roadster was among hundreds of cars on display at Hancock Park in Dunedin yesterday for the Otago Community Hospice’s Charity Cruise & Car Show. Mr Nicol said he originally bought it as just a bare body shell and had wanted something that looked "old school". He applied an activator to the base coat of paint and began hosing it down until it started to rust. "It’s hard for a car painter to paint something to look terrible. It’s just not in your nature." He had been working on the car "constantly" at weekends for the past 18 months. The engine — a Chevrolet 509 "big block", just under 8.5 litres — had dictated the build; admittedly "a little bit overkill". You could tell a lot about someone’s personality by what they were driving, Mr Nicol said. "That’s why I always do things a little bit different to everyone else. "It’s a little bit different with a wee bit of an attitude going on, obviously, with the engine." Vehicles line up for the event. Organiser Ken Schumacher said the event was "just next level from other years". He was "really pleased how the Dunedin public have got in behind it to make some good money for our hospice". At least $8000 had been received in cash donations alone. He estimated 350 vehicles were on display, but to pick a standout or two would be favouritism. There was a greater variety of vehicles this year. "There was one car I’ve never even seen before." That car, a "strange little blue car", possibly a Fiat, even went on to win an award, he said. You could tell people were passionate about how the cars were put together and it was pleasing to have so many of them in the open and out of people’s sheds. "Good car community camaraderie."
