After the Black Caps struggled against the powerful South Africans in the Twenty20 and one-day internationals, there is little expectation the three-test series will be any different.
If the Proteas win all three, they will become the top-ranked test team in the world.
But Vettori, with 108 test caps, said his return alongside veteran paceman Chris Martin (65 tests) and captain Ross Taylor (34 tests) would boost the home side enough to make the game a contest.
"I don't think spirits need lifting - it's bringing experience back into the side," he told reporters ahead of the match starting at University Oval on Wednesday.
"It makes a difference bringing in close to 200 tests (of experience). It's got to help."
The New Zealanders would have to play at their best to compete with the second-ranked South Africans, but Vettori said he had had some success against the Proteas.
The Black Caps also beat Australia in Hobart in December when they were written off and, if the hosts could bring a similar mindset into this match, they would compete, he said.
It was an old adage, he said, but they had to play cricket and not think about the big names facing them - such as Jacques Kallis, Dale Steyn and Graeme Smith.
Vettori, who boasts 356 wickets and 4389 runs in tests, said that not being captain meant he was no longer involved in discussions about what the pitch might do, but he believed the overhead conditions would play a big part.
The New Zealand team's swing and seam attack, in the right conditions, could be just as effective as the visitors' pace barrage, he said.
