In Australian slang (particularly in Victoria), a Toorak tractor is a pejorative name for a Four-wheel drive. The reference to the affluent Melbourne suburb of Toorak alludes to the ownership and use of such vehicles as status symbols, rather for their designed off-road abilities. "Tractor" refers to the perceived lack of maneuverability of these vehicles and their owners' perceived willingness to drive roughshod over other road users.
Historically, the Toorak Tractor came to be in the mid 1990s with the Range RoverSUV.
Similarly in New Zealand 4-Wheel Drive Cars are often referred to as "Remuera Tractors" after an affluent suburb of Auckland. It implies that the vehicle is never driven off a sealed road and its main significance is as a status symbol.
A 4-Wheel Drive that is pristine and shiny clean is even more likely to attract the epithet.
The proud owner of 30, with some dating back to the beginning of last century, he stores his tractors – in various states of repair – on his Bay of Plenty property, which he shows off to Spectrum's David Steemson.
Tractor enthusiasts like Williams are this year celebrating the centenary of the arrival of the first tractor in New Zealand – in February 1904.
Festivities, such as those held in Gore earlier this year, commemorating 100 Years of Tractors in New Zealand, are going on around the country.
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