Ladies and gentlemen, start your engines.
The Pre 49 Street Rodders held a Pre 49 Nationals event in Oamaru last weekend.
Sixty-eight US-made cars built before 1949 made their way through the town for the event.
The Pre 49 Street Rodders is a hot rod club that has members spread from Oamaru, inland into Waitaki and Central Otago and down to Invercargill.
People from all over New Zealand attended the three-day event.
Event organiser Brian Ward said it was a great chance for the "tight knit" group of hot rod enthusiasts to get together.
"It is really about a big reunion of these people and they come from all over the place. It’s about the people.
"I’m 74 and I’ve known some of these people since I was 16 or 17."
They went on a "rod run" on Sunday in which they drove down to Moeraki.
All 68 cars were then on display on Monday afternoon and a good crowd of people wandered through, basking in the glory of the hot rods.
Among them was a car Mr Ward had given to his wife, Lynley, as a wedding present 35 years ago.
The 1936 Ford Roadster had a retractable roof put in and had a flamed paint job.
"I like flames. I’m known for it. I got a nickname on the back of [one of] my cars was flaming chops."
Mr Ward loves seeing people express themselves through their cars.
"They’re individual people. Virtually, none of these cars will be the same.
"You might think ‘well that’s an ugly car’ but to them it’s the most beautiful thing ever. They are sort of like artists."
Not all petrolheads feel the same way about the customisation though.
"A friend of mine walked past, he’s a restorer, and you could see him thinking ‘that was a good car, he just ruined that car’. They would call it wrecking a car but I think it’s enhancing a car."
Hosting the event in Oamaru was a hit among the participants as well, Mr Ward said.
"It’s a good place for us to run one."
