A FIVE-YEAR FIGHT THE ANZIEL NOVA —1967 TO 1970

The Nova was originally designed by Tom Karen of British design company Ogle, which designed the Reliant Scimitar

At one stage in the late ’60s, it seemed that the Anziel Nova was in the news media all the time, appearing in numerous newspapers and magazines. There were claims that it would be New Zealand’s first mass-produced car. There were even claims that it was designed here by a young man by the name of Alan Gibbs.

Alan would be remembered most for his later efforts to produce the Aquada, a car that could travel on land and water. Unlike the Aquada, which had a production run of 25 cars, there was only ever one Anziel Nova. And it was not produced by Alan. Instead, only one car, the prototype, was produced — by the Reliant Motor Company in England.

During the ’60s, New Zealand was screaming out for cars. On average, 65,000 cars were being imported