How many Bristol 409s are left in New Zealand?
Unicorn 1 in 4,674,872 on the road Built 1966 British
Updated from the NZTA Motor Vehicle Register, counted as at 31 August 2026. Recounted every month.
One of the Chrysler V8-powered Bristols, built in the mid-1960s. Bristol had swapped its own six for an American V8 and automatic gearbox with the 407 in 1961, and the 409 refined the recipe: a hand-built, aluminium-bodied four-seater that was fast, quiet and discreet.
Still on the road, by model year
1 from 1966.
What Unicorn means
Spotto grades every car by how many are still registered in New Zealand. With 1 still registered, the Bristol 409 is Unicorn: the grade for cars with fewer than 5 left.
By how many are left it ranks equal 6th of the 8 Bristol models and equal 2,668th of all 2,903 cars in Spotto's catalogue.
The six grades: Common, 8,000 or more · Uncommon, 1,200 to 7,999 · Scarce, 175 to 1,199 · Rare, 25 to 174 · Super rare, 5 to 24 · Unicorn, fewer than 5.
Seen one?
Spotto grades every car on New Zealand roads by how many are still registered, down to the generation and the badge. Log the ones you spot, build a collection, and see who else has found one.