The graves of F1 legend Bruce McLaren and his family have been vandalised with gold paint and toy cars in a distressing incident in Auckland, New Zealand.
McLaren’s daughter Amanda has been left “very upset” by the incident, with a spokesperson for the Bruce McLaren Trust “lost for words” after news of the desecration at the Waikumete Cemetery became public.
Pictures on social media show McLaren’s grave and that of his wife, parents, sister and brother-in-law sprayed with gold paint, while toy cars have been glued to the top of the McLaren founder’s stone.
Graves belonging Bruce McLaren and his family have been repeatedly vandalised
— Holiness (@F1BigData) November 5, 2025
[Stuff NZ] pic.twitter.com/1xWNcFf6zI
Yet a local volunteer told New Zealand outlet Stuff that the person responsible – who reportedly returned to the site on multiple occasions – could have been looking to restore the gravestones.
"It is with dismay that we need to inform our followers that the graves of Bruce, Patty, Ruth and Pop at Waikumete Cemetery in Auckland have recently been vandalised," a statement from the Bruce McLaren Trust read.
"They have been sprayed with gold paint and had toy cars stuck onto them. We are lost for words as to why anyone would do this.
"A very kind offer has been made by The Grave Guardians, a voluntary organisation that restores head stones to repair the damage, for which we are extremely grateful. While this work is being undertaken, the stones are wrapped and unable to be viewed."
Michael Clark, from the Trust, added that McLaren’s daughter Amanda had been left “very upset” by the damage, saying: “First and foremost, Bruce McLaren is Amanda’s dad and she is as upset as anyone would be if their parents’ grave had been disturbed in such a way.”
Kiwi legend McLaren, who died in a 1970 crash at Goodwood, founded the eponymous racing team in England in 1963 and the outfit have gone on to win 22 Formula One world championships in total. His wife, Patricia, passed away in 2016.
George Stewart-Dalzell, of Grave Guardians, said she was “devastated” by the “significant damage.”
She added: “Before we even got there, you could just see all of this gold paint all over the stones. I felt like I wanted to cry, I was just devastated.
“Someone has obviously decided that the graves are just in a sad state and that they know what they’re doing, and they have put gel bleach all over about 14 headstones and then they’ve had a crack at painting them.
“They’ve destroyed ceramic portraits, they’ve done significant damage to the stones themselves, and I believe it’s the same person because the paint is exactly the same.
“I like to think that they thought that they were going to be doing something good with the stones. And there is a very wide public perception that headstones are public property.”
Stewart-Dalzell is now looking to restore the headstones free of charge, but Clark wants to reward the Grave Guardians volunteer.
“These wonderful people that restore the graves refuse to take anything,” he said. “So we’re going to defy that. We’ve been trying to figure out how we’re going to defy it, but we’re going to give them something because they’re doing wonderful work for nothing.”
New Zealand Police have confirmed that a report has been filed in relation to the damage and have appealed for anyone with any information to come forward.
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