James Holvey Mk3
Hi
my name is James Holvey. This is my story of Mark Three Zephyrs in my life, I’m
only 31 so it’s a fairly short story but hopefully some will find it
interesting!
I
fell for mk3s the day I saw George Kerstin’s in my home town of Invercargill,
in 1995; a MK3 zephyr original duck egg blue paint with moon and clay smith
stickers adorning the glass, a set of vintage Hustler wheels, finned alloy
everywhere in the engine bay and a low-down stance which resurfaced our gravel
driveway nicely…………a love affair was born. The small custom touches along the
way made it a one off, de-badging the whole car made it simpler but seemed to
pull more attention to the stance and clean lines.
I
saw the car frequently after that, I loved the ‘magic carpet’ glide it had when
it was speeding past, and he was a true hot rodder – a Mk3 as a daily driver
and a ‘32 deuce coup as a project at home.
I
sold my PC Vauxhall Cresta as soon as I could and went looking for Mk3s,
finally finding one in Gore near Invercargill. It had a lot of miles on it but
was basically tidy, the 23 owners in its past were no deterrent! Most were for
under a week; guess the wives didn’t like it!
She
never missed a beat even when I was so poor I couldn’t afford oil changes or
spark plugs, for 3 years while at Otago University!
It
provided solid cruising and evoked all sorts of emotions from people, many just
wanted to tell you a yarn of their times in Zephyrs (good and bad), it made me
feel good to think I was stimulating these peoples memories of a car that
basically changed this wee island nation of ours.
Until
one stormy night heading back to Dunedin it ran a bearing and stopped just
outside of Balclutha, it sat there in a guy’s backyard for 3 months while I
saved for some new bearings and rings. My girlfriend at the times father was an
ace diesel mechanic that had owned a few mk3s in his time and offered to help
with the rebuild, it was completed in no time and we were back on the road. A
huge debt of gratitude goes out to Harry for those long nights in the garage,
thanks mate. The next year Harry’s son purchased a very nice mk3 in Dunedin,
I’m still not sure what the expression on his face was, despair or adulation?
Dan has since sold the car for a move to Australia, I sold it for him online
and its now in the North Island being V8’ed.
Mine
ran like a dream for another 2 years until it was sadly stolen by a carload of
idiots from Balclutha, one of them had a MK3 and needed parts so decided to
steal mine to supply them, they towed it home because they couldn’t figure out
how to start it.
It
was recovered a few months later dismantled, the thieves were caught and made
to pay reparations, so I could afford another mk3.
I
found a nice tidy example in Dunedin a friend of mine was selling so handed
over the cash and never looked back. I got dribs and drabs of my car back, but
it felt so sad to think of all the great times we had together in pieces.
The
new zed was lowered, I did all the hydraulics for the brakes, and my boss and I
reconditioned the gearbox, I fitted some Hustlers for a while and then scored
the Cragar SS wheels I have now, I’ve only wanted a set for about 20 years!
The
current car has been great, I’m a qualified mechanic now therefore I can afford
to look after it the way it deserves and it has treated me very well. Its been
an effortless car to own, the six is still working very well even after 5 years
of constant abuse, the car is driven daily for work duties and its never missed
a beat – I still cant fathom how a 42 year old car that sees a set of points
and an oil change every 6 months can keep running so well, I will half of the
cars I repair at work were this easy to keep maintained!
I
had toyed with the idea of V8’s and whatnot, but having scored a mint recon
2553cc six which is now resting in my shed – I may continue with the sixes for
a while yet, the Mk3 Ute I own will be V8’ed so that can be the ‘toy’.
After
all cruising is what its all about – just wish I had a 5 speed behind the six,
I feel awful looking at the rev counter wobbling around 3200rpm at 65mph!
MK3s
will always hold a special place in my heart, my brothers drove them in their
early years and my father was a policeman in the UK in the 60s so got to spend
a lot of time in zed cars. He has a grin as wide as the zephyrs when we go out
searching for old cars in the weekends, a great past time I’ve always had a
passion for. Mum and Dad frequently remind me of my first words "old car,
old car”, I could spot a fleck of chrome driving past a hedge at 75 mph no
worries!
My
late brother also owned Mk3’s, probably a big reason I wont get out of them –
they hold a certain nostalgia with our family and will hopefully always be a
part of it.
Over
the years I’ve been lucky to have met some great people with the same passion,
and always help with parts when I can.
Hope
you have enjoyed my story. I’m now married to Catherine and live in
Christchurch, with one MK3 daily driver a MK3 Ute project, a 'rough and ready'
Mk3 sedan for mates to borrow, and a Subaru WRX, for the wife’s shopping duties
ha ha.
Cheers
and long may the 5 star cars continue! James