The Kiwis take a unique approach to the automobile and roads in general. As the corrugation nation is also a driving nation, let’s let’s break down what’s going on.
Whereas most countries try to find direct routes for long distances and are less fussed over short distances, grid-planned cities and winding expressways linking them show the rogue and wreckless approach to transport planning across New Zealand. Fortunately, they’ve had the good sense to pop some mountains and lakes and rivers along the way, which turns the average road trip into a trip through Middle Earth. But it also takes roughly the same time as watching the shenanigans of Frodo and the gang.
The only thing missing on the new and potholeless roads is cars themselves. A quick game of spot the car on the main expressway East makes Where’s Wally look like a picnic.
However, there is a huge market for visitors and tourists to choose from; cars, cars with beds in, vans, vans with beds in, coupes, people carriers, cars with toilets in, vans with sinks in, coupes with gas cookers in, trucks and trailers, trailers with sinks and toilets in pulled by a coupe, sinks with cars in… Well, you get the picture. Most are imported from Japan as the Japanese are taxed highly for owning a car for more than 3 years. So they run well, and for years. Bravo Japan. Also more original than Asian neighbours, China.
Therefore, there are new cars, second-hand cars, old second-hand ones and to get a second-hand one post-2006 is a bit of a coup, with some still ticking over from the 1990s!
Buying a car itself is possible to do in a morning, even if you have a lie in and full cooked breakfast.
Buying a car can seem like investing in a new emotional connection, because when buying a car, you buy its problems as well. If “the car” has outstanding speeding fines or parking tickets from a previous owner, those problems are suddenly yours to deal with. Like moving in with a new housemate who has 17 cats and a relaxed attitude to showering which you didn’t know about, it’s your fault for not checking beforehand…!
Nevertheless, some vehicles handily come equipped for camping, with self-contained and non-self contained options, which determine where you are allowed to set up for the night. Effectively, self-contained have toilet facilities and means that there is more freedom to roam, avoiding a scenes where tourists and weekenders keep popping up from behind bushes all over the country. Official Crashingabike advice is to discourage a “s*** where you sleep” attitude- probably not the most profound wording ever seen, but it’s good advice for those on the fence. Those with an unhealthy relationship with their own ‘matter’, ‘self-contained’ status can be granted for set-ups which are every bit as advanced as effectively a car-based chamber pot. Liberating to some, no doubt, but pass for me, thanks.
However, more nonsense is found in the fact that cars in New Zealand don’t actually need be insured, which is about as smart as asking Mohammed Ali what his problem is, or juggling rods of uranium #campainfornucleardisarmament – it’s asking for trouble. Perhaps it’s something to do with the empty roads? Time to spend the week dodging uninsured drivers and snap more roady scenes like the below. Until next time!
Crashing A Bike In New Zealand 