Vintage Cars Roll Up At Spencer On Byron

Vintage Cars Roll Up For a Rest At Spencer On Byron

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Spencer on Byron in Takapuna is offering a welcome stop and “refuel” for members of the Horseless Carriage Club, drivers of vintage cars who are this week re-enacting the ‘1917 Parliamentary Tour of the North’.

Leaving on Sunday from Palmerston North, a group of drivers with vintage cars, all manufactured prior to 1919, made their way to Wellington to collect a document from Parliament, before heading up the country and arriving in Takapuna.

The Spencer on Byron provides a welcome respite to these weary drivers who have battled the elements all week, travelling without any of the modern vehicle comforts that we have come to take for granted. Several days of the trip were spent with rain pouring into the cars from every angle and poor lights meant only 20 metre visibility for some stages of their adventure.

It has been slow going for these by now, soggy drivers, who have encountered challenges even on just the drive to Auckland from Hamilton. Gravel roads through Pukekohe saw them hitting numerous potholes, after which one of the cars lights broke off.

Not only do the drivers get a chance to recharge, with constant maintenance needing to be done on the vehicles, the Spencer on Byron is providing a haven where the cars can be tended to also, with a light needing welding and much more work to be done.

Led by John Callesen, owner of a 1918 Cadillac and passionate vintage car buff since the age of 17, members of the Horseless Carriage Club will leave the Spencer on Byron to embark on the Northern leg of their journey.

Spencer on Byron director of sales and marketing, Graham Hill says that it has been “great fun being part of this tour and the cars have proved very popular with hotel guests.”

ENDS

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