About the event

The International Rally of Whangarei

The FIA Asia Pacific Rally Championship (APRC) is one of the premier regional championships in world rallying and is contested by teams from New Zealand, Australia, Japan, Malaysia, India, and New Caledonia running primarily Group N, or production, rally cars.   

In 2012 for the fifth time the FIA Pacific Cup is running alongside the APRC at Rounds 1, 2 & 3.  The Pacific Cup is intended as a stepping stone to full APRC competition.  An Asian Cup runs at other APRC Rounds.

In 2012 the APRC comprises six rounds:

1. International Rally of Whangarei (New Zealand) - 31 March-01 April
2. Rallye de Nouvelle Caledonie - 28-29 April
3. International Rally of Queensland (Australia) - 26-27 May
4. Malaysia Rally - 14-15 July
5. Rally Hokkaido (Japan) - 15-16 September
6. China Rally - 03-04 November

The International Rally of Whangarei incorporates the first round of the MotorSport New Zealand-sanctioned New Zealand Rally Championship (NZRC) where local teams who use Group N cars compete internally for NZRC points and against international competitors for the overall event title. A subsidiary event for NZRC Open, Kiwi 2 and Historic Class competitors and Clubmans competitors runs in conjunction with the main international event. Kiwi 2 is a New Zealand-only class allowing development competitors to compete in the full NZRC without the cost of the top class. The Clubmans event gives competitors with lower specification or older cars a way to compete in their own overall and class battles and be part of an international event without the cost of full international competition. 

The event commences with an opening ceremony commencing on Friday 31 March with the following two days comprising over 280 km of competitive gravel stages in the Whangarei and Kaipara districts to the south of Whangarei.

The International Rally of Whangarei is run by Rally New Zealand.

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