Duzgo - Whataroa

About this image

Description4wd TV
June 17 at 9:59 AM ·
Duzgo 1979 ish - Another NZ built oddity designed for mostly off road and farm use. Not a 4x4, more of a quad bike hybrid…. But extremely capable for the intended use.

They were light, low centre of gravity, large narrow wheels, plenty of flex and clearance. Built by a farming brothers to get around their property, ag bikes and landrovers were too expensive due to import taxes. They decided to built the Duzgo mostly from secondhand parts laying around. The first one had a kohler 5kW (7hp) then 7.5 kw (10 hp) motor, latter ones had Suzuki or Robin engines. Using multiple gear boxes these had crawler gears, 13 fwd and 4 reverse!
The local farmers put in orders for them and 10 were made. Orders for more flowed in but the Tax department demanded there share and closed it down in 1980.

And yes they were road registered… the land of the long white cloud had quite a cottage vehicle manufacturing industry! See lessMap^[1]A classic example of the "can do" approach to matters, but killed off by what was back then often referred to as the "Great Muldoon Clobbering Machine". Will we ever again see the likes of the Giles brothers and their father?
Last edited by: Alex Graham

Shown in this image

Location (city or town)WhataroaOrganisation (eg business)Duzgo

From Facebook

CommentsCraig Grundy
Saw that today, driving through Rangiora

Rob Elwood
Yes. I hitched a ride on one in the Waitangi River bed in 1979. The tray was stacked with possum carcasses. It one point it got hung up on a gravel mound and the three of us lifted it over the obstruction and carried on. A true work of genius & art.

Maurice O'Flaherty
Giles boy from Whataroa dirt floor garage

Kerry Molloy
built by Giles bros in whataroa.Kevin at one time was head mechanic at Ogilvies hokitika shop.Great man on chainsaws although never happy if you were foolish as i found out!!!!

Gaylene Wallace
Shame it was stymied at the point of becoming something big,great machine

Alistair Bird
Saw it parked up at Mitre 10 in Rangiora last week. It's quite a cool wee vehicle.

Colin Skeats
Still being used on the coast. A friend still has one and it's road legal.

Rob Elwood
I took our (new to us) XA Falcon station wagon to the Giles team for a chassis repair that today would have put it off the road. Three dozen high tensile bolts and a few metres of steel strapping and we were good for the next 8 years !

Kenny Williams
Excellent

Chris Munn
Kevin Oregan. I recall these guys from scrambling days. They had a bike with an Austin 7 engine.

Kevin Oregan
Chris Munn so true Chris. And their first homemade motorcycle they bought to Ruatapu first big scramble John Jones and I organized. Had a short length of 8 X 2 for a platform and an Austin gearbox. Alistair Sabiston begged for a go then he put it into reverse. All Canterbury riders laying on the ground wetting themselves. LOL and they rode it in a race for West Coast riders.

Judith Jones
Kevin Oregan Peter Jones and Kevin Giles had a head on at our farm in Kokatahi if my memory serves me right Kevin was on a home made bike Peter ended up with a broken back 20 January 1974

Chris Munn
Judith Jones yep. Peter was on his TM250. Everyone was super worried. He was found asleep in his hospital bed trying to milk his cows. Knew he’d be ok.

Kevin Oregan
Judith Jones remember that Judith but not the circumstances. Had thought Peter's accident happened in a meeting in Canterbury somewhere

Brent Jones
Kevin, Rodney and their Dad Bernie were brilliant innovators building their motor bikes and Duzgoes from scratch in their wrecking yard/saw mill.

Tania Newman
I remember riding in one at Whataroa way back. Bloody cool

Maye Dunn
Admin
There is one in Te Anau see it around town.

Arthur Dehn
I knew there Grandfather , Burnie Roy , and Rodney ( my best friend ) back in the 40s , Those were the days in Whataroa ?

Dorothy Wills
Remember the hype when this was first advertised, someone has had the foresight to keep one restored for posterity

Maurice O'Flaherty
been in there shed dirt floor

Aileen Thornley
They were great

Kevin O'Regan
Kevin and Rodney. Very clever guys.

Kev Rasmussen
Kevin O'Regan where are the boys now

Kevin O'Regan
Kev RasmussenRodney Rangiora and Kevin Holitika. Maybe other way around.

John Paget
Thet were my father in laws mechanics.

OCR Text Transcription Edit Edit +-Close

Editing is temporarily disabled

Cancel Edit

Start typing here to find a location	Latitude	Longitude	Zoom	Actions

loading google map....

Save Cancel

Menu

Duzgo - Whataroa

Editing is temporarily disabled