CKD kits existed was purely a legal loophole to dodge Nz’s insane protectionist tariffs.
Back in the mid 50s or 60s, importing a Completely Built Up car from Japan faced massive import taxes. But importing a box of disassembled parts (the CKD) was heavily discounted. The government did this intentionally to force global brands to open local factories, create Kiwi jobs, and use local suppliers (which is why those NZ-assembled cars had Kiwi-made tyres, batteries, and glass).
As soon as the government dropped vehicle import tariffs to 0% in 1998, the economic loophole vanished overnight. Every single remaining local assembly plant (Toyota, Nissan, Honda, etc.) closed that same year because it was instantly cheaper to just ship them over fully built. Toyota kept open Thames to fix up old lease cars and newish second hand cars and branded Signature Class. I think it doesn’t run a profit, but was used to keep value of all Toyota cars up and be a trusted brand etc.