Australia’s Sandown and Bathurst double is well known, with the Gold Coast added later on, but New Zealand also had its season of endurance.
On the Repco Garage the long history of the Pukekohe endurance race has been covered, but the addition of Wellington event in 1985 created a series.
Held on back-to-back weekends generally, the Pukekohe and Wellington attracted not only the best Australian contenders, but some surprise international competitors during its history.
Held early in the year prior to the start of the Australian and European seasons, Wellington started off the tour before heading to Pukekohe.
Dubbed the Nissan-Mobil Series, the series was a mainstay of the Group A era starting with the inaugural Wellington street race in 1985 attracting the likes of Peter Brock, Larry Perkins, Dick Johnson, Tom Walkinshaw, Frank Sytner, Bob Holden in addition to winners Robbie Francevic and Michel Delcourt in a Volvo flown in days before the event.
It marked Holden’s Group A debut and Johnson raced a rare Ford Falcon XE in the international formula.
The next week at Pukekohe, Neville Crichton and Wayne Wilkinson combined in a JPS BMW 635 CSi to take the win from Tom Walkinshaw paired with Aussie Ron Dickson in a Rover Vitesse.
As Group A grew, so did the Nissan-Mobil Series as Peter Brock and Allan Moffat got their new partnership off to the perfect start in Wellington, while HDT teammates John Harvey and Neal Lowe took the flag in Pukekohe.
For 1987, there were two Wellingtons positioned at the start and near the end of the season due to the arrival of the World Touring Car Championship.
It was a HDT benefit in February as the two entries finished 1-2, with the New Zealand trip coming before the disastrous Holden divorce a mere fortnight away.
Larry Perkins and Denny Hulme completed a Holden sweep in New Zealand to start the season.
When the WTCC arrived for its penultimate round in October, Klaus Ludwig and Klaus Niedzwiedz took the win in the Texaco Ford Sierra Cosworth RS500.
Forming part of the short-lived Asia Pacific Touring Car Championship in 1988, the two New Zealand races in a move to the latter part of the season.
BMW grew to dominate Wellington as Emanuele Pirro and Roberto Ravaglia shared victory for Schnitzer, while the international flavour followed at Pukekohe as Steve Soper joined Australian privateer Andrew Miedecke to take victory.
A refreshed circuit in Wellington due to redevelopment works displeased Ravaglia, but he again took victory with Pirro.
Johnson now in a Sierra took victory with John Bowe at Pukekohe defeating Peter Brock partnered by New Zealand Young gun Paul Radisich also in a Ford.
BMW proved unstoppable in Wellington as Pirro was joined by Johnny Cecotto to complete a hat-trick of victories around the ports.
Brock and Miedecke took the win at Pukekohe in what was a small field.
Pirro continued his unbeatable run to snag a fourth Wellington victory with Joachim Winkelhock on the trot as Tony Longhurst experienced a scary incident where his helmet hit the concrete wall during a sizeable incident lapping a backmarker.
The Gibson Motorsport Nissan Skyline R32 GT-R nicknamed ‘Godzilla’ made up for its troubled debut the previous year to win at Pukekohe in the hands of Jim Richards and Mark Skaife.
The Group A formula was coming to an end and production cars were starting bolster the low touring car fields.
Pirro and Winkelhock continued BMW’s hot streak by winning both New Zealander events.
It spelled the end for endurance touring car racing of internationals statue in New Zealand as Wellington ran sprint races before being redeveloped and Pukekohe closed last year after hosting the majority of Repco Supercars Championship rounds since 2001.