Kiwi man rebuilds sports car he made as teen
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In 1957, Clarrie Ranby of New Zealand and three friends decided to build their own sports cars, working in a converted henhouse. Clarrie built the chassis of his car while his friend Alan Watson worked on the bodies, and they sourced parts from wreckers’ yards. They completed the cars by 1960, with Clarrie naming his the ‘F10 Sporty’ to meet legal requirements.
Clarrie drove his car, with tartan upholstery, on his honeymoon in 1962 but sold it in 1963 when he and his wife, Maureen, began to grow their family. Years later, Clarrie’s cousin saw Alan’s car in a magazine, sparking a search for the others. Clarrie eventually located his own car in a garden, still displaying his army number plate.
His family secretly purchased it for his birthday and restored it over ten years, updating the upholstery while keeping much of the original design. Clarrie and Maureen later drove the restored car to a car show in 2013. To commemorate the original project, Clarrie also made fibreglass replicas of the cars for each of his friends, giving one to a seriously ill friend before he passed away.
Now living at Summerset at Karaka, Clarrie enjoys woodturning and spending time with friends including Rona, the wife of his late friend Ron. He recently experienced driving a modern McLaren GT at 224km/h.
