Words and pictures By Peter Simpson
I
t’s a Sunday morning in early March and I’m driving a bright red XK8 convertible along the north coast. The roof has been lowered since the engine was first fired and I’m cruising along in shirt sleeves. Sitting alongside me is an attractive lady who had taken little persuasion to accompany me for the day and, as I glance over she is watching the sunlight coruscate off a lazy ocean, soaking up the warmth of a glorious morning. As we glide to a halt there are twenty Jaguars awaiting our arrival, with an invitation to join them on a tour through the stunning scenery stretched out before our eyes . . .
By now you will have guessed this is not
March amidst the wilds of John O’Groats but the more exotic location of Tasman Bay on New Zealand’s South Island and the XK8 is not mine, it’s hired. My charming companion is the wife of a friend and the fleet of Jaguars belong to the Nelson Jaguar
Remote: The landscapes surrounding Lake Hawea
Weather intere and an XK8 that
Drivers Club, who had invited us to join them on a drive out to the local Moutere Hills Winery for lunch. But sometimes reality is just as good! I had long nurtured ambitions to visit friends in New Zealand who moved out there well over 20 years ago. The vagaries of life and business pressures continually scuppered my planned intentions but eventually an opportunity arose, resulting in a generous three week stay on the country’s South Island.
I aimed to incorporate a week long solo
tour through the dramatic Southern Alps in my itinerary and for this I would, of course, require a rental vehicle. I prearranged a car to collect on arrival at Christchurch Airport to employ during the full duration of my stay and at the pleasingly paltry cost of only £16 a day. But a thought nagged in my mind as I envisaged my road trip, cruising through stupendous mountain grandeur in a wheezing Hyundai Getz. Hardly an inspiring prospect!
So I looked for a way to improve the experience and my solution was to
14 GROWLER SEPTEMBER 2016
investigate whether there were any classic car hire companies in the area who could provide a more appropriate vehicle in which to take this special tour.
It was with surprise and delight that I discovered in the City of Nelson, the very place where my friends lived, was a company called Rentaclassic NZ. The cars on offer were not all strictly’ classics’ and included a Saab 9-3 convertible, an MGB GT, an Alfa Spider and a Mercedes SLK, most of them convertibles due the abundant sunshine in the district.
To hire any of these would naturally be a step up from the Hyundai but they also had one more motor on their books – a 1996 XK8 convertible. Suddenly there was no contest despite this being by far the most expensive rental on the fleet and a week’s hire costing the equivalent of my return air fare from the UK. My wife must never know was my first thought, but as I owned one myself back home this was clearly destined and still rather cheaper than shipping out my own car!
I picked up the XK8 with great interest as
“A WEEK’S HIRE COSTING MUST NEVER KNOW”
“A WEEK’S HIRE COSTING THE EQUIVALENT OF MY RETURN AIR FARE FROM THE UK . . . MY WIFE MUST NEVER KNOW”
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