Pit stops are a major part of racing, sometimes more so than others, but it’s not everyday that your office lunch hour is interrupted by a full pit stop in the middle of a busy business area. But that’s exactly what workers and shoppers in Australia witnessed as a complete pit stop was performed by a V8 Holden Commodore in the middle of a shopping area as part of a publicity video shoot last fall. Check it out in this “oldie but goodie” find above.

Images: BigPond Sport

It’s fairly common to witness pit stops during a road or endurance races but very rarely do you see anything of the sort in the middle of a busy business district. In fact, we’re pretty sure it almost never happens, but that didn’t stop the TeamVodafone Holden from performing the unexpected in the middle of Edward Street during lunch hour on Brisbane’s Queen Street Mall last October.

With police on hand to hold back the crowds of people from crossing busy intersections, TeamVodafone Holden’s driver, Jamie Whincup, weaved his way through the streets to his “pit area” where he met a full pit crew at the end of the Queen Street Mall to perform a full tire and driver change. While some onlookers may have been surprised by the sudden appearance of the V8 racecar, others probably caught on when Whincup’s co-driver, Andrew Thompson, appeared in full helmet and gear running through the Queen Street Mall to take his place in the driver’s seat.

The stunt was part of a publicity shoot meant to bring more awareness to the Armor All Gold Coast 600 race that took place the week following the lunch-hour interruption.

“The look on the faces on the people standing on the side of the streets was amazing,” Whinecup told BigPond Sport after the stunt. “I guess if I was sitting out in the sun eating my sandwich for lunch and a 700-horsepower Commodore came roaring past I would be a little surprised as well.”

While we’re sure the race the stunt was promoting was spectacular, we wouldn’t say no to seeing more pit stops on the streets like this in the future. In fact, something like this might actually make the work week a bit more exciting, upcoming race or not.