Company plans to build car

Press, Volume CXI, Issue 32568, 30 March 1971, Page 1

Company plans to build car

(.New Zealand Press Association? AUCKLAND, March 29. Mass production of a New Zea-land-made car with an imported motor and transmission is planned by a new company which will be floated soon.

“We plan to be in production at the end of the first 15-month period,” the promoter of the company, Mr R. J. Crowther, said today.

“In the first 12 months of production we plan to make 500 vehicles. From then on we expect that production will increase by a minimum of 1000 units annually.” He said he expected the car would sell for about $2OOO. Mr Crowther, who will be managing director of the company, said it would seek stock exchange listing, and expected to float to the public on April 30. Authorised capital would be $2 million, but the public initially would be asked to subscribe $1,225,000. He said the other directors would be Mr K. R. Mosheim, an industrial design engineer and Mr G. R. Turner, both of Auckland. The board would be enlarged when the company reached the stage of mass production. As managing director of Rotarymotive Developments, Ltd, Mr Crowther was associated with the development of a prototype New Zealandmade car which was intended to use the New Zealanddesigned Hamilton Walker rotary engine. Development of the Hamilton Walker engine is being continued by a company formed by Rotarymotive Developments and U.E.B. Industries, Ltd. Mr Crowther is still a shareholder, but no longer a director.

Mr Crowther said negotiations had been going on for 10 months to obtain the over-

seas motor and transmission for the car his new company planned to produce. The car would have a minimum of 70 per cent New Zealand content He said the company had an option on 85 acres of land at South Auckland for its assembly plant.