Figures obtained by the Otago Daily Times under the Official Information Act show more than 300 offenders in the Southern District have been convicted of illegal street racing offences between December 2008 and December last year.
Of those 307 convictions, the Invercargill District Court accounted for 132, Dunedin 79 and Oamaru 31.
Christchurch had the largest number of convictions in New Zealand with 366, followed by Manukau (214), Tauranga (164), and the North Shore (154).
The Land Transport (Enforcement Powers) Amendment Act and the Sentencing (Vehicle Confiscation) Amendment Act allow police to impound a vehicle for "unnecessary exhibition of speed" or "sustained loss of traction".
Proceeds from any sale were required to be applied to the following in order of priority: pay the cost of sale; any amount owed; pay fines/reparation costs; any surplus paid to offender.
However, when a person was convicted of a third offence within four years, the court has the discretion to order the confiscation and/or destruction of the vehicle involved.
As of December 31 last year, there were 3184 offenders who had been convicted on one occasion, 87 on two occasions, and two on three occasions.
One of those with three convictions was Karn Clarrie Forrest (18), who was stopped by police after performing two "doughnuts" in his car on State Highway 1, north of Milton, on September 29.
His car was the first ordered to be crushed after he appeared in the Gore District Court on his third offence.
However, police say the Toyota Corolla DX was the subject of a last-minute switch.
Mr Fisher said in relation to that confiscation and destruction order, "I understand that the vehicle is in the hands of authorities, but is yet to be destroyed by virtue of the fact that it is material to other matters before the court."
Last month, the first car crushed under the boy-racer legislation was flattened at a Lower Hutt scrap-metal yard after its male owner was convicted of his fourth driving offence.
"This offender has found out the hard way that the Government will not tolerate illegal street racing," Police Minister Anne Tolley said.
The law had been an effective deterrent since it was introduced in late 2009, with a total reduction in offences of 29.6% in 2010 and 2011, she said.
The minister and her counterpart Justice Minister Judith Collins announced 116 offenders were on two strikes at present, but the Ministry of Justice was only able to release to the ODT statistics for the year ending December 31 last year.
Mr Fisher said the figure was a one-off, to provide context around the first crushing of a car.
