Sexy red, dark and grunty and old but classy - a gathering of the Bay's vintage cars offered a rare sight for keen car fans in Mount Maunganui at the weekend.
The Bay of Plenty Vintage Car Club showcased more than 50 old time classics on Prince Ave to a keen crowd viewing the display yesterday.
Club member Paul Beck said the gathering of the unique cars was a great opportunity for people to view cars from a bygone era.
The display also provided a chance to appreciate the work put into making such old cars look so good, he said.
Mr Peck's silver 1963 Humber Super Snipe Series IV was one of the cars on display, parked alongside a mostly original 1967 Valiant, never repainted.
Mr Peck said such a car was rare because most vintage car enthusiasts spent years refurbishing their vehicles.
"A lot of cars are restored from a basket case really and somehow put together," he said.
"It's the number of man hours that go into restoring a car, you never get your money out of it but it's a real hobby.
"We all take great pride in them."
Other vintage beauties included a Model A Ford, Studebaker, sexy red Corvette and a 1965 Chrysler Valiant that had been stored in a family sheep farm shed for about 40 years.
The Valiant, also known as a Dodge Dart, was originally from Zambia.
Its owner Kerry Williamson left it in the care of Mary Winteringham while at the show.
Ms Winteringham said: "Years ago it had just arrived from Zambia. A couple left for New Zealand in a hurry and when they arrived, they sold it. He liked it so he bought it."
The car had been kept in Mr Williamson's father's shed in Fielding until about four years ago when a death in the family brought the car to the Bay.
Ms Winteringham said the car didn't have a special name "but it's definitely female".
"He always talks about her as a 'she'. He uses it at least once a week.
"If he doesn't he has withdrawal symptoms."
The cars were parked in the middle and sides of the street, which was blocked off to traffic.
The display was an event for Mount Mainstreet and also a promotion for the Bay of Plenty Vintage Car Club.
Car facts
A vintage car is, in the most general sense, an old automobile dated from the period of 1919 to 1930. Car enthusiasts have categorisation schemes for ages of cars that enforce distinctions between antique cars, vintage cars, classic cars and so on.