1993. Alastair takes the newly named Cucaracha to the Carerra Panamerica.

For a laugh I decided do the Carrera Panamerica with a totally unsuitable vehicle. It’s a high-speed stage-rally with crash helmets and guys racing million-dollar cars. They really spent big.

I entered La Cucaracha. I’d been in the rally the year before and done quite well. The car broke and I dropped out for a couple of days but finished sixth overall so they thought that I was a serious contender. They didn’t know what an Austin A35 was 'but it must be quicker than an AC Aceca,' so they gave it number 3.

Instead of turning up the week before to settle in and drive the first four stages I just turned up on the morning of the rally . Nobody had seen me before and the organisers didn’t even think I was coming. I turned up and they were all servicing their cars and there was no space for me but the top team, with Roger Ward, managed to make some space for me. There was huge excitement and amusement over my car as it sat alongside their million-dollar cars. They worked out that my engine was as big as one of their cylinders.

The organisers were not pleased at all, they thought I was taking the mickey and they wouldn’t speak to me. But I started third and the crowd cheered as soon as they saw the car, which was an instant hit.

• 1943 Alastair's early years
• 1955 Licence to drive
• 1957 Alastair's High School years
• 1959 Evading the police
• 1960 Becoming a mechanic
• 1966 The Tasman series
• 1966 Leaving New Zealand
• 1967 Joining McLaren
• 1967 CanAm Door Catches
• 1967 Monza
• 1968 South Africa
• 1968 CanAm
• 1969 Driving the Formula 1 Cars
• 1973 Fittipaldi joins McLaren
• 1973 McLaren Team manager
• 1974 Montezemolo
• 1975 Hunt replaces Fittipaldi
• 1975 Hunt gets paid little
• 1976 Inventing the Air-Starter
• 1976 Six-speed Gear Boxes
• 1976 Misbehaving in Canada
• 1976 Japan
• 1977 Adidas Uniforms
• 1977 Changing Tyres
• 1977 Leaving McLaren
• 1979 Nelson Piquet
• 1980 Skirts on Formula 1 Cars
• 1981 Leaving Formula 1
• 1982 Making Lists
• 1982 Signing on
• 1982 Creating Space Station
• 1991 Highland Fling
• 1991 Classic Marathon
• 1992 Getting the Austin A35
• 1992 El Salvador
• 1993 Carerra Panamerica
• 1993 Centre of attention
• 1993 Nicest car in rally
• 1993 LeJog
• 2000 London to Sydney
• 2000 Porsche Racing
• 2000 Porsche Crashing
• 2001 Ferrari
• 2001 Inca Trail
• 2004 Berlin - Moscow - Berlin
• 2005 World Cup Rally
• 2007 Norway
• 2008 Liège-Brescia-Liège
• 2008 An Icelandic Odyssey
• 2008 North & West Africa
• 2009 West Coast America
• 2009 London to Casablanca
• 2010 New Zealand Festival of motor racing
• 2010 New Zealand Big Sky Adventure