Driven by the past – Auckland man’s mission to save 80s car culture

While most 80s cars have already disappeared through scrapping and recycling, one Auckland man is racing to save the vehicles from total extinction.

The average age of cars when scrapped in New Zealand is almost 20 years, so majority from the 1980s disappeared by the 2000s and 2010s.

Twenty-one-year-old car lover Samuel Graham is fascinated with all things of the past.

Ever since he got his first car, a 1986 Toyota Corolla, he has spent the past few years photographing and documenting every 80s car he sees, uploading them to his social media.

Graham spends much of his time under the hood of old cars, fixing, restoring and preserving relics of the past, vehicles which most would overlook as scrap.

“A lot of people try and modify them, but what I’m interested in is bringing them back to their former glory,” he says.

Vintage cars are typically of interest to older generations, making Graham’s passion slightly unusual for his age.

“They’re sort of nostalgic... not as much as people who lived through the 80’s but it’s still there for me.

“It’s something that feels familiar, but people my age never really experienced it properly,” he says.

Graham's passion is not only driven by nostalgia, but also by accessibility, as 80’s cars offer an affordable entry point into classic car culture.

“You can still pick them up for $3000 or less – it's a gateway into classic cars.”

Auckland-based mechanic Jai Lee says that restoring cars from the 1980’s and earlier is becoming increasingly difficult.

“Finding parts can be like trying to find a needle in a haystack.”

He says proper restorations typically require extensive work rather than minor fixes.

“If you want to do it properly, you’re basically redoing the whole car.”

For Graham, these challenges are what makes his unique passion worthwhile.

He continues to document his discoveries through a social media page, dedicated to capturing 1980s cars he spots across Aotearoa and overseas.

“I post them to show people these cars are still around – and that they’re still cool,” he says.

Beyond fascination, Graham's dedication to his passion is helping preserve a fading part of Aotearoa's automotive history, using modern technology and platforms to showcase vehicles of the past.

“I think people take for granted the things we lose to the past – you don't want to lose parts of our history.”

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Our journalists sometimes use AI tools which are checked by humans for accuracy

AI was used to transcribe audio from this interview.