Many moons ago, Barry Moyle’s Drury property was considered rural. Now, the paddocks next door are being turned into suburbs. So it’s time to move.
Problem is, over four decades he’s built a few sheds and filled them with cars. “I’m selling up so some of these cars will have to go. The hard bit is deciding which ones.”
He lets us poke around his sheds for the morning.
While Barry is a hot rodder at heart, he has a thing for the Ford Thunderbird. “I went to the States in 1990 and saw this beaten up ‘62 Thunderbird at the Long Beach swap meet.
It was only $800 but it was drivable. By the time I’d shipped it home it owed me $10,000 as I’d bought a few bits and pieces for it. It just did everything for me in terms of looking great and driving well. I was hooked.”
Barry was one of the first members of the Thunderbird Owner’s Club in NZ, and over the years has had 15 all told.
Barry’s most prized ‘Bird is his 1963 M code. This hi-po engine option gave the 390 FE V8 three two-barrel carbs to breathe through, making the most of hi-flow heads and a bump in compression.
The Thunderbird M code option was introduced in 62, but phased out early in 1963.
“I got this car about 20 years ago and I’ve spent a bit of money on it, gone right through sorting it out. The carbs are tricky to tune. It’s not running right at the moment and it burns through the gas. But when running right it’s awesome, it smokes the tyres. This one certainly isn’t going anywhere. It’s my special car.”
A convertible sitting on a hoist in another shed is also an M code (MMM63). “I’ve got this going on a four-barrel carb and it runs perfectly. Those are the proper carbs over there,” says Barry pointing to a box on the floor.
“I bought this off eBay. Being an M code it had lots of bids on it. As the auction was closing, I thought what do I want to pay for it? So I put in a big bid and won it. But it wasn’t as good a car as I’d hoped. We’ve done a bit to it.”
Barry has a third M code in a state of repair in yet another shed at the back of his property. “There’s shit everywhere,” he says laconically.
Another proud piece is his 2005 50th anniversary car (TBRRD). “This is the retro Bird. I bought it off a guy in the States who has a ’57 but he wasn’t allowed to drive this new one to club events, so he sold it. It’s got a hard top too. It looks good with its porthole window but it creaks too much.”
This is Barry’s go-to when he has miles to cover. “We’ll take this if we have to go to Wellington or wherever. Its got a 3.9 V8 so it’s smooth and quick enough.
My wife says she wants it when I’m dead, so this one’s definitely not going anywhere”.
The 79 Thunderbird (EWE42) is huge, 5.5m long, though this seventh-generation model is smaller than the sixth-gen, believe it or not.
And lighter too thanks to having a small block 351 V8 under its elongated hood. “I love driving this one, it’s comfortable and sounds like a V8 should with its twin pipes. The convertible isn’t so nice to drive.”
The drop top sitting next to it is a conversion, carried out by a third party manufacturer for Ford, one of 100 made that year.
Another is the ninth-gen model from 1985 (GTC419). It was a departure from the boxiness of the 70s designs, and referred to as the ‘aero bird’. “It’s based on the Fox platform, it has a 302 with throttle body injection and four-speed auto. It’s a lot smaller than the others and quite economical.”
Barry had a special edition 1986 model that was damaged in a crash so he brought this one to help with repairs. “When it got here, it was too nice to chop up, so it became my everyday car.”
You might be wondering where the original 55 is? Barry has one, but it’s undergoing compliance. “I’ve got the last one, so I thought I might as well have the first one as well.”
Barry finds the compliance procedure has become ever more pedantic. “Cars that I have since sold would never get compiled now. The 55 has been in compliance all year.”
Thunderbirds aren’t the only things filling his sheds. A ‘79 Ford Ranchero takes up a bit of space.
“That’s the last of the big ones. It’s one of 800 in this colour with the vinyl roof. It has a little 302 rather than the usual 351, and because of the diff ratio it’s quite economical. I thought it would be better than buying a Holden ute like everyone else had. It’s a comfy old girl and handles surprisingly well.”
The 1979 Lincoln Mark V (BAART) is equally huge, all 5.8 metres of it. That’s as long as a new Silverado. “I just fancied one of these. It’s running a 400 M series V8, it has plenty of grunt, it’s effortless. It’s like a big arm chair on wheels. You have to make sure you slow down for the corners, but it has good brakes.”
This is one of the Emilio Pucci Designer Series cars with special moondust paint, white leather trim and a blue vinyl roof.
The 1981 Cadillac seems out of place amongst the Fords. “I bought it to fill a container I was bringing back from the States. It’s a bit unique in that it is a custom built convertible by Hess and Eisenhardt.
It was an Eldorado, before they sliced the roof off. This was from a limited run of cars (one of just 20 made) as Cadillac wasn’t making convertibles at that point.
It’s too slow though so it needs a new home with someone that will show it some love.”
Barry is a hot rodder from way back, so there are a few rods in his sheds. A red 37 Ford Standard he’s owned for 45 years. “It was considered an ugly car; that’s why I got into it. It’s the only four door I have.”
It was running a 400 cube Chev but it died recently. “I have a couple of other motors over there,” pointing in the corner, “but I might build something new out of a good 350 block I’ve found. I’m always buying bits and pieces. I don’t know why but it’s good to know you have things if you need them.”
Barry explains Chev V8s are generally easier to fit in old engine bays as they are shorter than Ford V8s, with the sump towards the rear, helping them clear the font axle and sit lower.
“This was a 12-second car. My kids grew up with it, the family travelled the country in it. She’s got a lot of history for me.”
Barry says he’s rebuilt the car twice, including putting it back together having bought it from the insurance company after it was written off. “There’s lots of bits everywhere; there’s probably enough parts to build another 37 up on those shelves. Shit everywhere,” as he says.
The chopped 47 Coupe he bought when he crashed his 37.
“I needed a hot rod while I was repairing the old one, so I bought this. It was originally built in the South Island but over the years I’ve changed all sorts of things on it. It’s now running a 400 cube small block, a 350 turbo auto and a nine-inch diff. It has lots of different bits on it. That’s what hot rodding is about, changing stuff all the time. It’s like a hammer on its sixth handle.”
Amongst the bits is an old girl Barry has had for fifty years (top left). “This could be NZ’s oldest hot rod. It’s 1924 Colonial T coupe, running a ’27 four-cylinder Chev. It was cab and chassis but its owner handbuilt the coupe body on to it.”
Another is the yellow 37 Ford Coupe, a rod that Barry built.
“I bought the body and chassis and then took ten years to build it. It’s all steel. I chopped the roof and channelled the rear over the chassis to get it sitting lower. She went on the road in 1977 and towed my caravan around the South Island. We’d pull into a town and people would soon turn up for a chat.”
It has a 429 big block Ford in it, a C6 trans and a nine-inch diff. “It gets a bit hot in traffic, but this motor sounds good. I get a buzz out of starting it up.”
And sure enough it’s soon rumbling away with a lump to the idle and the smell of unburnt hydrocarbons in the air.
The last car on the tour is Barry’s Ford Bonus (XL3600). “I was building it with a friend, and he bailed so I took it over. I gave it to my daughter, she pranged it, we fixed it and then it’s just been here ever since.”
It’s running a 350 Chev and it has a Series III Jag independent front end with power steering. “I was going to drop a bigger engine in but it’s just too hard with the certification process now.”
Barry also has to find time to get them warranted. “This one needs a warrant, as does the Ranchero, and the 05 needs one as well. I want to use the convertible over Christmas so there’s four I need to get done soon, and time’s running out.”
The joys of running a fleet.
This article first appeared in the December/January 2025 issue of NZ Autocar magazine.
