That gave Tom a lead in the Pro-Am class points standings which he held until the penultimate round in Christchurch as young Auckland drifter Vincent Langhorn - who went on to claim the 2013/14 Pro-Am class title - got into his winning stride.
Tom qualified seventh and Joe 12th in the final round, held under lights at Auckland's Mt Smart Stadium on May 24, the brothers sharing Tom's car after Joe found the new throttle body he had installed on the eve of the event in his car was sticking.
Tom then went on to finish second overall to class round winner Sam Smith from Pukekohe after multiple re-runs in which the judges couldn't separate the battling drivers (Tom and Aucklander Gareth Grove in the Top 4, then Tom and Sam Smith in the final). The result was that Tom ended up third overall in the Pro-Am class points standings while Joe finished fifth. Not bad for a couple of rookies from the Far North.
"Yeah, "says Joe," this season was all about seeing if we enjoyed it, and I think we are both surprised at how well we've gone. We've also had a lot of fun travelling around and seeing different parts of New Zealand, plus we've met some awesome people and made a lot of new friends."
The plan now is to give the cars a bit of love,' as Joe put it before making the step up to the D1 Pro class next season.
"Now that we've seen what the series is all about that's what we'd like to do," says Tom. "Definitely!"
2013/14 Cody's D1NZ National Drifting Championship Pro Am Final standings: Vincent Langhorn 467, Gareth Grove 463, Tom Marshall (Waipapa Northland, ATJ International Nissan S13) 453, Joel Hedges 433, Joe Marshall (Waipapa Northland, ATJ International Nissan 180SX) 402, Sam Smith 395.
Reporting by Ross McKay
Fast Company