With Gymkhana becoming a growing sport in New Zealand, Auckland Motorsport held a gymkhana/track day at Hampton Downs. Hampton Downs is the new track on the block just at the start of the mighty Waikato. Built on a swamp it offers a track and skid pan with more sections being added gradually.

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Auckland Motorsport runs a Cannonball style run also, with drivers racing from one side of Auckland to another side of NZ.

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I arrived at Hampton Downs quite early. As I waited for the day to begin, this 135i arrived. A giant spoiler on the back, roll cage and two Racetech seats shows this car means business. Even as a stock car these are crazy. Small car + big engine = lots of fun.

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I like seeing more matte black cars. With vinyl being a cheap way to ‘repaint’ the car, many see it as a god option to change colours and preserve the original paint.

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Taryn, the chick behind IHeartStance had her Miata there. Pink Watanabe’s and awesome stance basically shows what her blog’s about. 

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I also love sticker bombing. Good job with the dash. Maybe chuck a FW sticker on it someday? 

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I’m still waiting for the Verossa trend to kick off in NZ. It seems that only a few people have caught onto these cars. Under the hood they pack plenty of power.

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I edited this shot for the era. This VK Commodore was out on the skid pan giving it a good go whilst making the engine roar.

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You’d be surprised what cars went out on the track. This H1 Hummer did a few laps to showcase Tankboy. Check those guys out!

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More Holdens! This VL Commodore has been modified a tad more than stock. Spot the differences…

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These Lotus 7 style cars were out going nuts. They have an amazing power to weight ratio that puts them with the likes of supercars.

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Our friend Cam was out in the Sheep Shagga Racing R32! I was told he later burst his radiator hose doing burnouts. Quite sad I missed that.

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This Civic was out going well. This car in particular is known for running some amazing 1/4 mile times. Look out for it at Meremere.

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Such a classic car. This Celica GT FOUR was looking great by itself. The car is quite rare in NZ, with many modifying standard ones to look like the GT FOUR model.

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Mazda 808 anyone? We have quite a culture for classic Mazda’s in NZ.

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We also have an amazing S-Chassis following in NZ. 

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Look out for Auckland Motorsport’s track days and Cannonball style runs throughout  the year!

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More photos on Facebook. Tag them!

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-Chris