Speed kings who ruled until revolution of factory racers

Leo Leonard became a motorsport legend driving a PDL Mustang. Photo / Supplied

Besides their exploits in long-distance racing, Timaru duo Ernie Sprague and Leo Leonard are associated with three of New Zealand's greatest racing saloon cars.

For the late Ernie Sprague, the car was a Ford Mark 3 Zephyr Six. The dark green car was the scourge of NZ saloon car racing in the early to mid-1960s. It was in the true tradition of Kiwi racing specials, built and fettled by Sprague in his Timaru workshop.

It ran trick cylinder heads, including one by noted British tuner Raymond Mays, triple Italian Weber carburettors, a grille-mounted oil cooler and had an exhaust bark that still echoes in enthusiasts' ears. The arrival of factory racers like the Lotus Cortina spelt the end of the car's competitiveness.

Leonard's legendary race cars were two Ford Mustangs, both backed by Christchurch industrialist Sir Robertson Stewart. Named after Stewart's company, the PDL Mustangs wrote themselves into NZ motorsport history in the 1970s. Leonard was astonishingly fast in the first car, a KK Boss 429 Mustang fastback imported originally by Paul Fahey in 1970 and subsequently sold to PDL.

PDL Racing built the second car, arguably the more famous one, in its Christchurch workshop. It was based on the Mustang 2 and was built to American IMSA-style (International Motor Sports Association) specifications.

The PDL Mustang 2 was powered by a 6-litre V8 and was sensationally fast, Leonard setting saloon car lap records at racetracks countrywide.