Tauranga driver Phil Campbell has made a return to the Brian Green Property Group New Zealand Rally Championship taking on the fourth round at the Mahindra Goldrush Rally Coromandel.

Phil and his team ranked in fourth place at this weekend's event which saw teams leave the Mercury Bay Sports Park from 7am on Saturday.

Teams took on 125 km of special stages over the Coromandel Peninsula before returning to the finish in Whitianga's Blacksmith Lane at 5pm.

The Coromandel event saw Phil campaign The Roofing Store Mitsubishi Evo 9 he took to a breakthrough NZRC round win at the event in 2014.

After recent success that saw a runner up result at the Rally of the North in June, Phil says he was able to enjoy the Coromandel event along with his new co-driver Rocky Hudson.

Since that event Phil has also tested at a hill climb in the Hawkes Bay and is confident that the car is working well.

'We've been a little light on events of late but the runs we have had certainly have given me a bit of confidence back in my driving which has to be a good thing,” says Campbell.

'The Coromandel event is one that has been pretty good to us.”

Phil and his team have skipped the South Island based rounds of the 2017 season as they continue the build of their Ford Fiesta AP4 car for the 2018 season.