Dunedin's John Whelan was the first to have an off-road excursion in the second NZV8s race.
After a bad start, when he misjudged the timing of the rolling start lights, he went on to crash out when rounding the loop.
Whelan, who had dropped to the back after bogging down off the line, had been on the move through the field when disaster struck.
"I had just passed Christina [Orr] and I just overcooked it a bit," he said.
He hit the tyre wall, damaging his Cartridge World Falcon but not injuring himself.
"It's pretty bulletproof inside them," he said, referring to the V8 racers.
In Whelan's last reverse-grid race, his patched-up V8 had contact with Auckland's David Hopper - who received a drive through penalty - and he skidded off the track again.
Nelson's John McIntyre won the first and second race before having gearbox problems in the third.
He managed to notch enough points for a round win and retain his lead.
There was a positive note for Whelan, who held on to his qualifying position to finish 12th in the first race.
Queenstown's Grant Aitken was leading the reverse-grid third race in the production racing series when he and class rival Simon Sceats bumped each other around the loop and both spun off.
Auckland-based Sceats had been making a move around the outside when he and Aitken "touched once, touched twice", he said.
Although both returned to the track, Aitken received a drive-through penalty which dropped him to the back of the field.
However, he is still leading his class going into the fourth round at Levels Raceway in Timaru this weekend.
Managing to stay on the asphalt throughout all three races was Dunedin Porsche driver Allan Dippie's major achievement.
Making an appearance in the GT3 Cup racing series, he finished near the back of the field in each race but "loved it so much" he is entering the next round this weekend.
He said it was a privilege to race against top drivers such as Porsche round winner Melbourne's David Reynolds, second place-getter Matt Halliday and double championship contender Craig Baird.
Queensland-based Baird took third in the Porsches and second in the NZV8s for the round.
