Richard is a long-time petrol-head with an eclectic collection of road and race cars. He is currently competing in the Flemings Trofeo Italian intermarque series, for which his company is the series sponsor, running a 2009 Fiat Abarth Assetto Corse turbo and a Fiat 128 Rally. He has always wanted a New Zealand special, as he has been fascinated with the creativity and ingenuity of the backyard builders around the world and especially those based in New Zealand for a long time.

Richard Warfield - 1961 Cole-Baker Special

Richard is a long-time petrol-head with an eclectic collection of road and race cars. He is currently competing in the Flemings Trofeo Italian intermarque series, for which his company is the series sponsor, running a 2009 Fiat Abarth Assetto Corse turbo and a Fiat 128 Rally. He has always wanted a New Zealand special, as he has been fascinated with the creativity and ingenuity of the backyard builders around the world and especially those based in New Zealand for a long time.

1961 Cole-Baker Special:

Constructed by Dan Cole-Baker, who when serving abroad during the 1950s, saw a Ferrari 250 and decided with kiwi ingenuity to create his own. The aluminium body was hand-beaten and attached to a ladder frame chassis. This was unusual for a special, being built as a coupe, as most are constructed without doors or a roof to avoid the complexity. Originally it had a 1500 Vanguard engine, which was subsequently upgraded decades ago with an aluminium V8, running Quad webers. This special was used in early 1960s hill climbs/sprints. After languishing for some time, it was rescued from the scrapheap and rebuilt. Recently it has had success in Targa New Zealand and hill climbs.