 In 1924, work resumed at Christchurch's Addington Workshops after a local engineer, E. B. Buckhurst, was given approval to convert a regular passenger carriage into a railcar.A 88 was the carriage chosen for the task; it had been imported from the United States in 1878 and prior to its renovation, it provided seated accommodation for second class passengers.A 88 was fitted with a unique gearbox designed by Buckhurst.