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Motoring services guide to North East Victoria and the Southern Riverina. Car reviews, news stories, great drives of the region, useful tourist information

Car reviews, news, motoring services guide to North East Victoria and the Southern Riverina region of New South Wales, drives, tourist help guide

14/03/2026

SOME years ago, the editor of much-missed magazine Australian Classic Cars asked PAUL Murrell to find and write about a Ferrari Daytona (365 GTB). He wasn’t sure he’d be able to find one locally but finally tracked down an owner who had not one, but two! And it doesn’t end there. THE term ‘dickey seat’ stemmed from horse-drawn carriages of a century ago and were occupied by guards of the mail coaches. The earliest cars were essentially just motorised carriages and the dicky seats, as they were called by the Oxford English Dictionary in 1801, became quite popular. BILL Buys has the story. ORGANISERS of this year’s 49th Historic Winton, to be held on the weekend of May 30/31, say there is still room for more volunteers. Interested? Email [email protected]. (Photo: Andrew Day). These yarns, and more at, thecountrydriver.com

06/03/2026

IT’S impossible to compare F1 champs from different eras, but with 105 wins, Briton Lewis Hamilton has won more Formula 1 Grands Prix than any other driver. However, the most successful driver by percentage of wins to race starts is Argentinian Juan-Manuel Fangio. PAUL Murrell has more. IT was the dawn of a new era: space travel was becoming a possibility and jet-age automotive styling was all the rage, says BILL Buys. That’s when Chrysler engineers began to explore turbine power as an alternative to piston engines and after some 30 years the iconic 1963 Chrysler Turbine was unveiled. More on these two yarns at thecountrydriver.com

27/02/2026

WHO, in the world of motoring, has not heard of the Beast of Turin? Everyone at the annual Goodwood Festival of Speed in recent years will certainly never forget the deafening bellow from its flame-spitting 28.4-litre engine, nor forget the sight of the tall, bull-nosed Italian beauty of 1911. BILL Buys takes up the story. SCIENTIST James Watt defined one horsepower as ‘the amount of work required from a horse to pull 150 pounds out of a hole 220 feet deep’ (and PAUL Murrell is sure most people reading his yarn are comfortable with the imperial measurements). These stories, plus DARRYL Starr’s top four North East Victoria regional drives at, thecountrydriver.com

20/02/2026

FOR a couple of weeks towards the end of last year, I had to drive the aging Audi, since press cars were a little hard to come by. To be honest, it was something of a relief to be in a car that wasn’t constantly monitoring my driving, binging and bonging at me as if I couldn’t see out of the windscreen. PAUL Murrell has more. BILL Buys writes that American car enthusiast David Anderson had been a hot rod fan for most of his life. Then he bought a 1934 Graham, got hooked on the brand – and fell in love. “Grahams are so rare, you wouldn’t dare hot rod them,” he said. “That’s how I became an ‘original car’ guy.” These yarns, plus more at, thecountrydriver.com

13/02/2026

THE Mazda Motor Corporation began in 1920 as the Toyo Cork Kogyo Company, producing cork for gaskets, insulation and cushioning material. In 1931, it produced a three-wheel truck and in 1960, its first passenger car, the R360 coupe. But how did the name – and badge – come about? PAUL Murrell has the answer. THE wheels may have fallen off Graham-Paige, one of the most respected American car companies of the 1920s and 1930s, but unlike many of its contemporaries which simply disappeared during the Depression years, Graham-Paige ended up changing its name and direction. To what, and where? BILL Buys has the story. THE 49th Historic Winton anniversary list has been released. Check out the classics to see if you have something in your garage to suit! – All this, and more at, thecountrydriver.com

06/02/2026

WHEN Rover boss Maurice Wilkes wanted a replacement for his WWII Jeep farm runabout in 1948, the Land Rover soon evolved as an alternative to small farm tractors. It was designed to plough and harrow, power other farming implements and cross the roughest terrain, as well as convey its owner to the local pub for a pint. The rest, says PAUL Murrell, is history. THERE’S nothing like being in the right place at the right time. Just ask Bob Wagner, who was driving through a town in Wisconsin in 1973 when he spotted a good-looking and shiny old classic parked at the kerb. BILL Buys takes up the story. THE 49th Historic Winton aims to see 40 anniversaries celebrated, with displays at Winton Motor Raceway alongside historic motorsport races on May 30/31. Event organisers are calling for owners of marques with anniversaries celebrating 120 years all the way through to 50 years to display their vehicle(s) (Neil Hammond photo). A list of these vehicles, plus read these yarns at, thecountrydriver.com

30/01/2026

GORDON Murray’s supercar company GMA is headed for bigger business - thanks to a surprise nine-figure investment. A ‘mystery Moroccan’ who bought Murray’s McLaren-inspired S1 LM at Monterey recently for a whopping AU$31.2m, plus the remaining four which are yet to be built, has announced a cash injection of US$120m (AU$181.5m) in Murray’s company for ‘a variety of strategic growth opportunities.’ BILL Buys takes up the story. PAUL Murrell says ‘caveat emptor’ has always been the get-out clause in any private sale, but over the years, consumer protectionism has evolved to better protect the buyer’s rights. TICKETS are now on sale for this year’s 49th Historic Winton, to be held on May 30/31. Click onto ticketebo.com.au for both entry and camping tickets. All this, and more at, thecountrydriver.com

23/01/2026

POLICE in the Czech Republic finally caught up with a would-be F1 driver they’ve been hunting - for the past five years! Decked out in a red racing suit and wearing a helmet, the chap behind the wheel had been seen by many other motorists, many of whom called police to report seeing the ‘Formula 1 Ferrari’ driving along the D4 freeway. BILL Buys takes up the story. PAUL Murrell says, that in 2004, the FIA announced that it would supply paperwork to cars that had been ‘built up’ for racing. For years, historic racing was regulated by identity papers issued by the FIA, or agencies appointed by it. Along the way, chassis numbers in different countries were duplicated, leading to multiple cars with claims to the same identity. These two yarns, plus the latest on this year’s 49th Historic Winton classic, visit thecountrydriver.com

16/01/2026

THE 2025 Las Vegas Formula 1 Grand Prix was a major event, but a bigger eye-popper was the sale of the first GMA S1 LM chassis at a special RM Sotheby’s auction in the same city, with the hammer falling at $20.63m. BILL Buys has the story. EARLY Bird ticket sales for this year's 49th Historic Winton, which offer a $5 discount per ticket on the usual discounted online rate, close on January 31. The Ticketebo ticket site also lets you book camping at the same time. Catch up with the latest Winton news. PAUL Murrell tells us that in car restoration and maintenance, many of us subscribe to the theory that New Old Stock (original, unused factory parts) is the Holy Grail. But they’re not always the best. Many require very particular storage conditions and may not have had them. These yarns, and more at, thecountrydriver.com

09/01/2026

BILL Buys asks the question: ARE there any Clan cars in Australia, or New Zealand? The Clan Owners Club, formed in 1978, says it is ‘hosting over 150 members in the UK, Europe, New Zealand, Canada and Australia’ and it has a page too – but its last entry was in mid-2014. The lithe little vehicle could and should have been one of the stars of British sports cars of the mid-1960s. IT seems hard to credit today, but Honda’s first international success on four wheels was with the tiny S600 on the 14.2-mile (22.9km) Nürburgring in 1964. It was just five weeks after the first Honda Formula 1 car had debuted on the same circuit in the German Grand Prix. PAUL Murrell has the story at thecountrydriver.com

02/01/2026

THE mighty Sunbeam 1000 HP, the first car to achieve a land speed record of 200 mph (320km/h), has been asleep for more than 90 years. But restorers at the National Motor Museum in Beaulieu, England, are in the process of gently waking this giant. BILL Buys takes up the story. ESTABLISHED in 1944, Kia is South Korea’s oldest car maker, initially producing Mazda models under licence. PAUL Murrell tells what Kia means and how its badge came about. THIS year’s 49th Historic Winton (photo: Geoff Colson) will be held at Winton Motor Raceway on May 30/31. Read the latest news at, thecountrydriver.com

22/12/2025

WITH the Christmas/New Year holiday season upon us, have you planned your regional adventures, especially if your stay is North East Victoria or the Southern Riverina region of New South Wales?
If your plans include taking a half day, one day, two day, or fun day drive, thecountrydriver.com has got it covered courtesy of four of our favourite scenic drives either side of the border.
Thousands of kilometres of uncrowded touring routes and interesting back roads criss-cross this popular tourist destination and over the past 60 years thecountrydriver’s Darryl Starr has driven (almost) all of them.
His hand-picked four favourites are listed on our website.
Driving is a great way to experience the most breathtaking places north and south of the border, with ever-changing scenery, plenty of breathtaking views, picturesque cities and towns, quaint villages, historic sites, and scenic routes, all the while enjoying a tranquil country ambiance.
It’s no surprise that the region is known as Australia’s premier inland playground, thanks to its abundance of outdoor activities.
Join the experienced thecountrydriver.com team for a drive of a lifetime around the best little corner of the country.
Enjoy your stay but please drive carefully as the only statistics we want to read about are visitor numbers - the team at thecountrydriver.com

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Our Story

thecountrydriver.com is different to your usual motoring website as it introduces you to not only some desirable vehicles you might like to own, but also explores great roads and places around North-East Victoria and the Southern Riverina region of New South Wales, our test track and Australia's premier inland playground, 'where you get to choose your own adventure'. We drive where you drive - or would like to drive. We have even listed 14 great adventures you might like to try yourself. We update daily with the latest automotive news in brief, while our innovative services guides and dealer locator takes the stress out of finding a local motoring or emergency service in a hurry. These amenities are generated by a dedicated and enthusiastic team which has been creating stories and editorial services for local motoring enthusiasts and visitors to the region for over 50 years.