1979 Repco Reliability Trial - Division T (Darwin to Townsville)

Crews left Darwin on Monday morning, August 13th, 1979 for the run across Arnhem land, the Gulf and north Queensland. Short breaks were scheduled in Borroloola, Mount Isa and Cairns. The first car reached Townsville on Wednesday morning for a daytime break.

The route comprised 8 trial stages totalling 1,411.9 km and 13 transport stages totalling 1,835.5 km for a total division distance of 3,247.4 km of which 43% was competitive. The route is shown below.

The division included some fabulous stages and some incredibly beautiful scenery. However the organisers had either misjudged the capability of competitors or had surveyed the route in very bad conditions, because they set target times that were far too easy on all but one stage. The three Commodores as well as the Nalder Celica cleaned all but one stage. That stage was immediately after Mount Isa and Ferguson beat Brock by 4 minutes and took a one minute lead into Townsville. Cowan broke a drive shaft on the first stage out of Darwin and retired. Carr had further mechanical problems with the Cortina and dropped over 3 hours falling just behind Nalder into sixth place. Dunkerton broke the rear end on the Volvo after Mount Isa but recovered well, losing less than an hour and moving into fourth.

Darwin to Borroloola

The day’s run from Darwin through Arnhem land to Borroloola for dinner saw plenty of excitement but presented few problems for the leading Commodores who lost no time. However, the day saw the retirement of Cowan and problems for Carr, Dunkerton and Rowney.

T1 – Arnhem Transport

128.1 km in 1h 30m, First Car ETA 5:30 am Monday, Revised to 7:30 am

Despite the extra 2 hours added to the rest break, it was still an early start on Monday morning with the first car out of impound at 5.00 am and notionally departing Darwin at 6.00 am on the 128 km run down the Arnhem Highway towards Kakadu. With one and a half hours allowed, most crews would take some extra service time in Darwin figuring on making the transport in not much more than an hour. Among the leaders, Rowney and Jackson were each 11 minutes late on the transport, both apparently with engine problems. Carr also needed extra work, presumably on the suspension and/or engine mounts, and was 14 minutes late, as was Mizel. Portman made it by seconds. Losing time on the transport affected scores but perhaps more importantly, cost valuable road position that would put them back among slower cars in dusty conditions. Cowan had broken a drive shaft even before the start of the trial stage and it was not looking good for the Citroen crew.

Fury and Bond were certainly still running back in about 33rd and 34th position. Fury was certainly on time and Bond probably was also. Others were not so fortunate needing extra service time in Darwin. Roberts was 21 minutes late, Finlay 30 minutes, Miettutnen 36 minutes and Lockhart an hour and 14 minutes late. Many would not make it at all, cutting to Pine Creek, Borroloola or even Mt Isa.

Of the 104 cars classified in the results at Darwin (plus the Carter/Stephens/Draper Falcon):

27 were on time at Control T1.
25 were late at Control T1 while 1 car was early.
44 cars missed Control T1, requiring more service or rest time in Darwin. Some of the later arrivals were basically told by the organiser that they could only stay in the event if they took more rest time and then drove straight to Mt Isa.
3 cars seemingly did not leave Darwiun (Warmbold, Kuss and Haslam).
5 other cars are not shown in the results because they retired somewhere after Darwin and, because they did not hand in their Road Cards, scores were never recorded for them. This included Cowan, Bond and Mason.

T2 – Goodparla Trial Stage

201.2 km in 2h15m, First Car ETA 9:45 am Monday (Map)

This was a really nice stage that followed a good gravel road through undulating scrub country for 53 km before turning onto a narrow grotty track which was followed for 43 km to Goodparla Station. The ABC film crew were at Goodparla filming cars as they did a right turn through a gateway. The grotty track continued for about 20 km out to the main Pine Creek Road which was followed for 84 km to Pine Creek. This is now the sealed Kakadu Highway but in 1979 it was a very fast gravel road. The main hazards were wandering water buffalo and you certainly didn’t want to hit one of those monsters. The target time was set at 90 km/h which was too slow, and perhaps the organisers should have either set a tighter time or they might have been better to have stopped the stage where it emerged onto the Pine Creek Road. This was to become a pattern on the division to Townsville and would bring the event significant ridicule from those at the top, especially Aaltonen and Mehta that were banking on some tough stages to make up lost time.

So as cars set off into the Kakadu wilderness on a fine sunny day, the road order was Brock, Ferguson, Mehta, Cowan, Dunkerton, Portman, Nalder, Barth, Davis, Carr, Loader, Herrmann, Rowney, Watson and Hilton. Cowan tried to limp through the stage but the Citroen came to a stop once onto the grotty track and his rally came to a sad end. Reddiex had been counselling him to take it really easy but Cowan had not backed off sufficiently. Apparently when the front suspension went to full travel the drive shaft spline would pop out and destroy itself. Dunkerton appeared to take a wrong turn (certainly Nalder, two cars behind them on the road, did not see him stopped) and despite the Commodores, Carr, Portman and Nalder being more than 10 minutes early, Dunkerton actually lost 28 minutes on the stage and had a close encounter with an oncoming timber truck while passing the Giddings Datsun on the road down to Pine Creek. Tuckey suggested he had broken a rear trailing arm but that may be inaccurate as that certainly did happen after Mt Isa. In the end 29 cars cleaned, including all the leaders except Dunkerton. Fury made a strategic decision to book in 13 minutes early in order to preserve road position after no doubt passing quite a few cars. 52 cars completed the stage with Herdy taking a maximum penalty and Cowan retiring.

T3 – Katherine Transport

323.8 km plus 7.5 km to get fuel plus 50 km missing so real total 380 km in 3h30m, First Car ETA 1:15 pm Monday

Three and a half hours were allowed for the run down the highway through Katherine to Mataranka and then eastwards to Roper Bar, including 78 km of gravel road. At the end there was an optional refuel which required going 3.7 km past the control to the Roper Bar store and then returning to control. The total distance was listed as 324 km and seemed achievable with half an hour to spare, so most crews stopped in Katherine for fuel and some early lunch.

Rowney’s overheating problems had become much worse so they changed the head gasket, only to discover that the valve stem was cracked, but they persevered, eventually dropping almost 2 hours late on the transport, falling quickly from contention. Hilton also had dramas and was over two and half hours late.

As crews were motoring leisurely south from Katherine they had an instruction at 144 km saying “MATARANKA” then 0.3 km to a 60 km/h sign then about 7 km to the turn left to go to Roper Bar. Well there was just blank highway. It was Marree all over again but this time there was 50 km missing from the route chart. The leading two Commodores appeared to realise the error pretty quickly. Strangely, Mehta and Carr turned around and went the wrong way as if not believing their own eyes. Nalder, with Boyd driving and Richards checking the maps, planted the foot, soon realising that they needed to average at least 140 km/h to make it on time, and they needed to refuel. Portman took longer to realise the error and the Celica zoomed past him.

Mehta ended up getting fuel from George Shepheard who was at the start control. The Celica made it with seconds to spare after the 7.5 km return trip to get fuel at the Roper Bar Store. Portman needed fuel and was 10 minutes late at the start of the stage and dropped about 4 positions on the road. Davis reckoned on having enough fuel so he slotted in behind the Nalder Celica who was now fourth on the road behind the three Commodores. Carr had fortunately not stopped in Katherine long and had more time so made the transport on time and slotted in behind Davis, then came the Barth Porsche (also on time) and Portman. Herrmann only dropped a minute and probably slotted in next on the road. Loader and Watson may have been next with Watson dropping 9 minutes. Dunkerton would have been a bit later after his Goodparla dramas, but also dropped 6 minutes on the transport. Roberts was, somewhat surprisingly, 6 minutes early and regained some road position after their late departure from Darwin while Jackson was half an hour late and falling down the road order. Fury was on time and would have been in the next group of cars on the road which may have included Jensen, Hurrey and Giddings.

T4 – Alligator Trial Stage

346.3 km in 6h00m First Car ETA 7:15 pm Monday (Map)

Surely it should have been called “Crocodile Trial Stage” as we don’t have alligators in Australia, but we sure do have crocodiles and this was all crocodile country. The notes for this stage made it sound daunting – 346 km across the south-west corner of the Gulf Country with bull dust and many difficult river crossings with sand, rocks and some deep water. The 6 hours allowed was only a 57 km/h average but no-one knew whether that would be easy or impossible so had to push hard from the outset. It turned out to be very easy with the leading crews about an hour early. This was again the story for most of this division. Why the organisers set such easy times is a mystery but a hint can be found in the Media Guide to the event which said “Ivor Stanelis believes this section is the hardest in the event”. One might have reasonably concluded that Stanelis had set much of this division and that he had grossly under-estimated the standard of top competitors. It was a terrible shame as it almost spoilt the event.

Initially the stage meandered along the south side of the Roper River on a fairly fast and wide road but with patches of bulldust (or fesh fesh in Dakar terminology). At 88 km the stage turned further south and became a narrow track through scrub. Interestingly, this whole road has now been upgraded and forms part of the Savannah Way tourist route. The first river crossing at 116 km, a tributary of the Towns River, was short and sharp with deep water and a very steep exit. The three Commodores had gotten through OK albeit with some assistance from the practice Commodore which George Shepheard had directed into the stage to shadow and assist the cars if necessary. Nalder’s Celica got stuck briefly on the exit and they had to winch for a few minutes. The following cars, Davis, Carr, Barth and Portman, all arrived and looked for ways through, Barth somehow fairing best, but everyone was still behind the Celica.

A couple of kilometres later Barth passed the Celica when it became briefly stuck in a washaway. The main Towns River crossing was a further 3 km ahead and was wide, rocky and with a sandy exit. The Porsche got stuck on the exit so the Celica stopped to survey the scene allowing Portman to pass but he also got stuck behind the Porsche. Davis drove around them all without getting stuck, followed by the Celica. The Celica punctured soon after but no-one went past – the other’s were still winching. What happened to Carr remains a mystery but according to Tuckey he had broken another engine mount as well as damaging the radiator. Tuckey even suggested he had been lost but that seems very unlikely.

Further back Dunkerton had become bogged in the first deep creek but had left the winch in Darwin. They presumably got help from someone else since the road was essentially blocked. Dunkerton also got stuck in the sand at the Towns River together with Fury. Dunkerton apparently let the tyres down but did not have a pump to re-inflate them, and according to the Challenge book, he thought about giving up! However, he got help from a local. Both Dunkerton and Fury eventually cleaned the stage.

The next river crossing was the Cox River at 158 km but it was no great drama being short and rocky. It was becoming obvious by now that the conditions were not going to get any worse and that everyone would be pretty early. Brock backed off and stopped at the Cox River to freshen up in the nice cool water. Meanwhile, Gil Davis had passed Mehta and Ferguson and arrived to find Brock stopped. Brock, being a true competitor, jumped back into the Commodore and chased Davis, passing him, until he was told to cool it and let Davis past again. Davis would arrive at the end of the stage first but for no gain as all the leaders (except Carr) were on time. Back at the Cox River, Mehta was stopped with no spare tyres and had to wait for the practice car to catch up. The Celica passed Mehta, and Portman, who having caught up, passed the Celica! It was all splendid fun! According to Tuckey, Herrman passed Mehta and then with Aaltonen driving, they had to nudge the Porsche out of the way in order to repass them and make the stage on time.

At 192 km the stage passed the Nathan River Homestead where the ABC film crew had flown in – what a shame they had not been able to access one of the river crossings! After that the track improved into a well graded station track which improved into a reasonable gravel road by the end. According to the Challenge book it was somewhere here that Carr had struck a rock and done some damage to the front end (but he must have also had problems earlier). Bond had supposedly hit the same rock and effectively retired on this stage, eventually getting a tow from Tholstrup into Borroloola.

It was just dark as the first cars reached the end of the stage with some being up to an hour early and in all, 15 or 16 cars cleaned the stage. Of the leaders, Carr after apparently hitting a rock, dropped 8 minutes, and required an extra 45 minutes service time in Borroloola. Hilton had dropped 8 minutes also and needed more than an hour of extra service time in Borroloola.

A total of 36 cars completed the stage under a maximum 4 hours penalty. A further 4 cars (Lockhart, Finlay, Nicholson and Travis) took a 4 hour maximum, which probably meant they went around the long way through Daly Waters, taking a wrong direction of entry at the end. Certainly an additional 20 cars made it to the end of the stage but did not go to the start at Roper Bar. Some of these nipped into the end of the stage from the correct direction as well.

Times:

Brock, Ferguson, Mehta, Nalder, Davis, Barth, Portman, Herrmann, Dunkerton, Watson, Rowney, Jackson, Mizel, Fury, O’Donnell, probably Loader all clean
Roberts 1
Hurrey 5
Hilton, Carr 8
Lahiff 10
Miettunen 16
Jensen 20
Johnson (having rejoined in Darwin) 27
Taylor, Penny 30
Boys 38
Tholstrup 39
Darby 1.04
Turner 1.16
Foden 1.20
Giddings 1.37
Lloyd 1.44
Sheridan 2.08
Tattingham 2.22
Lance 2.49

T5 – Borroloola Transport

30.9 km in 1h00m, First Car ETA 8:15 pm Monday

It was 27.5 km into the the small settlement of Borroloola with 40 minutes allowed for refuelling and a bite to eat. There is a big indigenous community here and they were partying and drunk. The Borroloola General Store was not much more than a tin shed, but appeared to sell just about everything. A further 3 km took crews out of town over the Macarthur River causeway to the start of the next trial stage on a warm mostly still night.

Of the leaders, Mizel was 29 minutes late, Carr 46 minutes late with team mate Fury also dropping 29 minutes, and crucially, road position going into the next super dusty stage. Hilton’s dramas continued and the Celica was 1 hour 6 minutes late. Back in the field many others were licking their wounds and deciding whether to venture into the dusty night towards Burketown or to take the easy option of bitumen through to Mount Isa. The McCubbin Monaro was going well again until it hit a horse, destroying the windscreen, and they subsequently limped to Mt Isa for repairs, dropping 3 more controls.

The scores of the 16 cars that had visited all controls looked something like this, with Cowan dropping from the list and Rowney falling well behind:

Brock/Philip/Richards(Commodore) 2.09.06
Ferguson/Bell/Boddy (Commodore) 2.12.39
Mehta/Aaltonen/Lake (Commodore) 3.44.38
Carr/Morrow/Gocentas (Cortina) 6.44.41
Portman/Thompson/Hammond (Stanza) 7.02.55
Dunkerton/McKay/Jones (Volvo 244) 7.12.08
Nalder/Richards/Boyd (Celica) 8.02.02
Barth/Kushmaul (Porsche 924) 8.33.07
Davis/Eather/Toner (Datsun 180B) 9.16.17
Herrmann/Rainsford (Porsche 911) 9.28.40
Loader/Hill/Neale (Lancer) 9.31.28 (guess as no score in Results)
Watson/Harrowfield (Peugeot 504 Diesel) 9.51.23
Rowney/Wilson/Tyson (Datsun 180B) 9.59.03
Jackson/West/Jackson (Commodore) 13.28.38
Mizel/Hall/Fricker/Mortimer (Chevy Blazer) 14.58.38
Hilton/Bourke/Pattenden (Celica) 16.35.20

Borroloola to Mount Isa

The overnight run to Mount Isa was another case of plenty of excitement but not much time lost. Indeed the leading group of cars would not lose any time despite the massive dust hazard, masses of bull dust and wandering cattle. Others would lose time, such as Portman who craked the rear axle housing, and Carr, who was languishing down the field after time loss at Borroloola, and whose Cortina needed more work along the way.

T6 – Burketown Passport Trial Stage

50.9 km in 1h15m First Car ETA 4:00 am Tuesday

This stage was described as “50% good gravel, the remainder is a graded dirt bulldozer cut track. Bull dust hazard is extreme”. The organisers had set a 78 km/h in appreciation of the extreme dust hazard, and there was little doubt that the leading cars would make it on time. Interestingly, this road is now part of the Savannah Way tourist trail and is reasonably well maintained road with the Queensland side now being sealed. In 1979 the NT side was good gravel for about 200 km with a few sharp dips and creek crossings. After Calvert Hills Station it became a narrower dirt track meandering through some hilly country before emerging onto the plains again towards the Queensland border. Back in 1979 there were quite a few gates on the road, mostly closed, including the one at the border which had a small sign on it saying “Welcome to Qld”. Once over the border the track meandered through scrub country to Westmoreland Station then became quite challenging for 100 km or so, with criss-crossing bull dust (fesh fesh) filled tracks through scrub country. It then opened out into a fast run past Doomadgee and across both the Nicholson and Gregory Rivers.

The first car set off into this stage on time at 8.15 pm on a warm clear night. The order on the road was Brock, Ferguson, Mehta, Nalder, Barth then Davis, Portman, Dunkerton and Herrmann. Davis was pushing and passed Barth, perhaps when the Porsche punctured. Nalder had a dust free run with teh Commodores pulling away but then punctured but no-one came by.

After the border the bull dust ruts were so deep in places it was like mud, even though it was bone dry, and many cars would get bogged. Richards bogged the Nalder Celica briefly but allowed Davis through. Bull dust also creates an extreme dust hazard and on the warm night the dust would hang in the air for a very long time, much longer than the nominal 2 minutes between cars. Only Brock would have a clear run.

This section is where the Hells Gate Roadhouse now operates but it was not there in 1979! By Doomadgee Mission the road had improved into a good dirt track but the dust hazard remained extreme. Just past Doomadgee cars crossed the Nicholson River on an eerily narrow 500 metre long concrete causeway. In this region the Nalder Celica with Richards driving hit a cow but the damage was minimal. About 10 km from the end cars crossed the Gregory River but here there was water flowing over the narrow concrete causeway which formed a long right hand bend. Drivers needed to watch the lip where the water flowed off the edge to judge where to drive. Ferguson dropped a wheel off the edge and became stuck but a 4WD was there and pulled the Commodore out.

This stage was all about dust and bull dust. If you got a mostly dust free run you could certainly clean, as did six of the first seven cars on the road. Portman was slowed by a cracked rear axle housing, dropping 39 minutes, and would need work done at Burketown, but their service crew was not there so they’d have to wait for Mount Isa to make real repairs. Makeshift repairs were made in Burketown after they located a welder at 5 am! Carr lost time due to his road position and did well to only drop 9 minutes. The section of bull dust must have become very chopped up and many crews would have gotten stuck there for varying periods as the times reveal. Fury probably got bogged, dropping 55 minutes.

Fifty cars completed the stage but Foden, Tholstrup and Donoghue took maximum penalties. Times:

Brock, Ferguson, Mehta, Nalder, Barth, Davis, Dunkerton, Herrmann clean
Colless 3
Carr 9
Loader 10 (guess)
Jackson 12
Roberts 16
Clarke 21
Watson 31
Birrell 37
Portman 39
Lance 44
Jensen 46
Faulkner 48
O’Donnell 54
Fury 55
Hilton 1.00
Penny 1.02
Boys, Lahiff 1.05
Finlay 1.07
Taylor 1.17
Mizel 1.18
Hurrey, Travis 1.22
Nicholson 1.24
Molonoy 1.25
Rowney 1.29
Minett 1.30
Turner 1.36
Potter, Giddings 1.43
Richardson 1.44
Goldsborough 1.57
Kahler 2.01
Sheridan 2.06
Beveridge 2.11
Murray 2.18
Lloyd 2.24
Walker 2.42
Miettunen 3.06

T7 – Passport Transport Stage

358.9 km in 3h36m First car ETA 4:08 pm Tuesday

This stage was simply a run into Burketown and back, 25 km each way, on a fast, albeit dusty gravel road. Only 15 minutes was allowed for refuelling and time to grab some barramundi fish and chips. However time was allowed for the gimmick of the passport checkpoint established by the Burketown Shire Council to highlight the condition of the local roads. They charged a small fee for the passport but it included the fish and chips! It seemed that all the locals were out in force in Burketown (it was 4 am) and many looked like they’d been drinking all night!

Quite a few crews were late a few minutes, perhaps enjoying their fish and chips too much. Portman did well to get some welding done and only drop a minute. Some crews just took fuel and raced back to the control, booking in as much as 20 minutes early in order to regain precious late time. Watson supposedly had a run-in with the local costabulary who demanded the removal of the hub extensions on the rear wheels of the Peugeot that were part of an interesting winching arrangement.
Others lost a lot of time having to carry out work on their cars, generally without the assistance of service crews who were waiting in Mt Isa. The Giddings Datsun had hit a gatepost and needed work.

T8 – Gregory Downs Pub Transport

92.8 km in 55m First Car ETA 4:55 am Tuesday

After 28 km of gravel road into the sleepy town of Cue, crews drove up the lonely 100+ km of single strip bitumen to Meekatharra and the official refuel. The sun was just setting as the first cars started the first night trial stage 8 km north of Meekatharra.
Again, many cars needed extra service time and were late on this transport. Rowney was facing major issues with the 180B which was overheating badly and dropped 1 hour 20 minutes as they investigated the problem and flushing the cooling system. McCubbin needed repairs on the Monaro dropping 32 minutes. The Cortinas seemed to be under control with Bond and Fury dropping minimal time and Carr on time. Other leaders that were late were Herrmann (1 minute), Loader (2 minutes and fell behind Nalder on the road), Jackson and Mason (3 minutes each), Mehta (6 minutes after fixing the clutch problem, would have dropped behind Dunkerton on the road), Fury (also 6 minutes), Bond (7 minutes), Roberts (11 minutes), McCubbin (32 minutes).
Further back there were some crews needing plenty of work on their cars. Among them were Moloney/Vitnel/Daley (Leyland P76) who dropped almost 2 hours and Lloyd/Crockenberg/Dick (Colt) who lost more than an hour and a half after their previous encounter with the Rabbit Fence hole. Some crews would visit the start of the next stage, which was on the highway, but then proceed straight up the highway to Newman. After all, there was no easy retreat and the second of the two stages to Newman was billed as a “horror” stage.

T9 – Big Dipper Trial Stage

184.5 km in 1h51m First Car ETA 6:46 am Tuesday (Map)

The majority of this stage was the main road from Gregory Down to the Barkly Highway towards Camooweal, fast gravel through undulating country with many yumps, dips and grids. The last part turned off towards Mount Isa emerging onto the Barkly Highway at a place called Yelvertoft, but also on a pretty good road. It was a quick 100 km/h average, but certainly cleanable.

While dust continued to be a hazard, fatigue was probably a greater hazard for crews attempting the stage in that difficult few hours before dawn. While 12 cars cleaned, times started to stretch out down the field for reasons that were generally not recorded. For example, Watson’s 44 minutes suggests a problem with Gidding’s 49 minute loss may have been associated with the reported loss of a wheel when someone forgot to tighten the wheel nuts.

A total of 46 cars completed the stage with 4 cars that went to Burketown cutting and running along the bitumen from Gregory Downs to the Burke & Wills Roadhouse and then to Cloncurry and heading straight for Townsville. On the other hand, 32 cars visited the end control having not done the stage, but having cut and run from Borroloola or Darwin.

Times:

Brock, Ferguson, Mehta, Nalder, Dunkerton, Portman, Carr, Colless, Loader, Finlay, Rowney, Travis clean
Faulkner, Goldsborough 3
Herrmann, Fury 4
Barth, Mizel 5
Hilton 6
Boys 8
Davis, O’Donnell 9
Kahler 10
Roberts, Penny 12
Clarke 13
Jensen 14
Lance 16
Taylor, Miettunen 17
Birrell 18
Sheridan 19
Murray 20
Jackson 21
Moloney 22
Beveridge 23
Lloyd 24
Nicholson 25
Lahiff 27
Turner 28
Walker 35
Richardson 39
Watson 44
Giddings 49
Hurrey 58
Potter 2.20

T10 – Mount Isa Transport

118.4 km in 1h25m First Car ETA 8:11 am Tuesday, depart 8:41

It was an easy run along the Barkly Highway to Mount Isa for a scheduled one hour break that had been cut to a 30 minute break due to the late departure from Darwin. This was not a lot of time given that you needed to refuel and try to eat some breakfast! But it was welcome for those needing extra service time, since there was no impound.

Many cars booked in early to regain late time while a few were late by a few minutes. Hilton was 12 minutes late with continuing problems although most cars that needed extra work would lose time on the transport leaving Mount Isa. Portman would need a new rear axle change but lost no time. The Jacksons were changing the engine in their Commodore and would lose about 5 hours in total, mostly on the next section. Potter broke the diff housing on the Mazda on the highway and after effecting repairs in Mt Isa had to skip to Townsville.

The scores of the 16 cars that had not missed a control were as follows, with Portman dropping to 7th:

Brock/Philip/Richards(Commodore) 2.09.06
Ferguson/Bell/Boddy (Commodore) 2.12.39
Mehta/Aaltonen/Lake (Commodore) 3.44.38
Carr/Morrow/Gocentas (Cortina) 7.12.41
Dunkerton/McKay/Jones (Volvo 244) 7.13.08
Nalder/Richards/Boyd (Celica) 8.02.02
Portman/Thompson/Hammond (Stanza) 8.07.55
Barth/Kushmaul (Porsche 924) 8.38.07
Davis/Eather/Toner (Datsun 180B) 9.30.17
Herrmann/Rainsford (Porsche 911) 9.32.40
Loader/Hill/Neale (Lancer) 9.41.28 (guess as no score in Results)
Watson/Harrowfield (Peugeot 504 Diesel) 11.06.23
Rowney/Wilson/Tyson (Datsun 180B) 11.28.03
Jackson/West/Jackson (Commodore) 14.10.38
Mizel/Hall/Fricker/Mortimer (Chevy Blazer) 16.41.38
Hilton/Bourke/Pattenden (Celica) 18.14.20

Mount Isa to Cairns

The day and evening run from Mount Isa to Cairns comprised three competitive stages but only the Kajabbi Trial Stage immediately out of Mount Isa would take time penalties from the leading cars. That is not to say that the stage to Croydon was easy, since the wide sandy crossing of the Norman River would certainly delay most cars. The biggest challenge now was fatigue as crews started to pull into Cairns late on Tuesday night for barely an hour’s break before continuing southwards to Townsville.

T11 – Barkly Highway Transport

18.9 km in 29m First Car ETA 9:10 am Tuesday

The short run out the Barkly Highway east from Mount Isa effectively included time to refuel on the way out of town. Quite a few crews would lose time taking much needed service in Mount Isa, most obviously the Jacksons who changed the engine on their Commodore losing over 5 hours and putting them right at the back of the field. It was remarkable that after such a loss of time they were not only able to continue but to get all the way to the end of the event without missing a control. Other crews who lost more than 2 hours were Clyborne, Moloney, Taylor and Lahiff. Among the leaders Carr’s Cortina needed more work and was 1 hour 17 minutes late while Hilton lost a further 6 minutes.

T12 – Kajabbi Trial Stage

96.0 km in 1h00m First Car ETA 10:10 am Tuesday (Map)

The ranges to the east of Mount Isa are quite rugged, reminiscent of the Flinders Ranges traversed earlier in the event. The stage up to Kajabbi was quite tight in places, loose gravel, somewhat rough and included many rocky creek crossings. In fact the Leichhardt River was crossed twice, the second time close to the finish control where the ABC film crew were stationed. The route meandered off the main “through road” onto various mining tracks that were signposted “Private Haul Road”. They were rough, narrow and rocky.

The one hour allowed was unachievable but Wayne Bell pushed hard dropping only 3, passing Brock who reckoned he was pushing unnecessarily hard in the rough stuff. The Challenge Australia book also suggests that Brock may have had a spin. Mehta dropped 6 while Brock and Portman dropped 7. The Ferguson/Bell Commodore had not only taken first on the road but they had moved into the overall lead by a minute. Dunkerton broke something in the rear suspension of the Volvo and had to effect makeshift repairs at the stage end and then look for a welder on the next transport. The time losses for the majority of crews were in the range of 10 to 30 minutes but quite a few were even slower, with time losses stretching out to over 40 minutes. The road may have been quite corrugated and rutted in places for the later runners and Jackson, probably running close to the rear of the field, dropped almost an hour. Only Koch who dropped over 2 hours was slower.

64 cars completed the stage. Times:

Ferguson (Bell) 3
Mehta 6
Brock and Portman 7
Carr 8
Fury 9
Herrmann, Barth and Rowney 11
Hilton and Miettunen 12
Watson and Nalder 14
Davis 15
Johnson, Stockley, Loader (guess) 16
Dunkerton 18
Koseki 19
Mizel, Boys, Kahler 20
O’Donnell 21
Travis, Lahiff, Taylor, Farmer 22
Giddings, Faulkner, Goldsborough, Neilson 23
Penny, Roggenkamp, Clarke, Finlay 24
Wilson, Birrell 26
Roberts, Hurrey, Beveridge, O’Shanesy 27
McCubbin, Boaden, Heaton 28
Lloyd, Lance, McTigue 29
Jensen 30
Nicholson, Meehan 31
Ferrier 33
Murray, Sheridan, Richardson 34
Herdy, Turner 35
Rayner 37
Walker, Carter, Myers 42
Tattingham 44
Lunney 49
Jackson 57
Koch 2.16

T13 – Bang Bang Transport

205.3 km in 2h40m First Car ETA 12:50 pm Tuesday

This transport stage began with 42 km of gravel road out to the main Cloncurry to Normanton Road with the remainder on the tarmac. About midway through the stage was the Burke and Wills Roadhouse near the junction where the road to Gregory Downs heads west. The time allowed for the stage included 20 minutes stop for fuel and a bite to eat, but it was possible to take more. Despite having to locate a local cocky to weld up the rear suspension of the Volvo, Dunkerton still made the stage on time. Many crews forwent the break and booked in early, in Miettunen’s case 48 minutes early! Some needed extra time, such as the Lloyd Colt which was 54 minutes late and the Neilson HQ Holden over 2 hours late. Others, including the Taylor Rover, headed eastwards instead towards Townsville.

The start of the next stage was just past a prominent rocky outcrop known as Bang Bang Jumpup. The first car started the next stage just after one o’clock and it was perhaps the hottest day of the event, close to 40 degrees. The shade of the control official’s tent was a welcome relief although the sign hung from the control official’s car was quizzical: “Is your journey really necessary?” Another signed warned of deep sand at the Norman River and indicated that the pull out fee was $15. A third sign said that all the gates had to be closed!

T14 – Norman River Trial Stage

243.1 km in 3h00m First Car ETA 3:50 pm Tuesday (Map)

Once again it was unclear why the organisers had set an easy time for this trial stage to Croydon, requiring only a bit over an 80 km/h average. Much of the stage was over extremely fast station tracks across to Iffley Station where many cars would have been sitting on maximum speed for much of the time. On these roads the only reasons to slow down was the occasional sharp bend and gates of which there were 21 on the stage. Some distance after Iffley the route entered a narrow sandy track through scrub country and then crossed the dry sandy Norman River where the aforementioned 4WDs were offering their towing at $15 a pop.

The first two Commodores got through the river OK, not so sure about the Mehta car. Nalder’s Celica (Richards driving) got stuck briefly and was passed by the Barth Porsche who got through OK. After the river the track remained narrow and sandy for about 20 km including one particularly difficult to open bush gate where Mehta, Barth and Nalder all stopped together to work on opening the gate! Once the gate was open, Barth passed the Mehta Commodore (Aaltonen driving) also but everyone reached control early and were put back into the original running order. The road gradually improved towards Croydon although there was a nasty right hander over a crest into a creek quite close to the end and one of the leading cars went off but apparently without damage. Surprisingly, only 11 cars cleaned the stage.

Perhaps coping with dust, or perhaps bogged in the sand, Carr and Fury dropped 1 minute and 6 minutes respectively. Davis was not far behind the leading pack but dropped 29 minutes, as did Watson. Likewise Herrmann was not so far back but dropped 36 minutes. Rowney was much further back and dropped 31. The times are difficult to fathom and may have been influenced by the dust of cutting and running cars that had rejoined at Mount Isa. Hilton’s nightmare run continued, dropping 55 minutes.

Further back in the field it would have been dark through the sandy Norman River and apparently for some of the late runners the local 4WD recovery vehicles had departed the scene. Reportedly Jack Murray had to fetch help from the local station owner to get towed out of the sand, losing almost 3 hours. The Challenge book reports that the Turner P76 was there with Murray but the results suggest that they did not complete the stage within their late time limit. The “running under protest” Carter was also more than 3 hours late.

The results show that a total of 37 cars completed the stage, while 23 cars that had reached Bang Bang took the easy way around through Normanton, collecting a 4 hour maximum penalty for their wrong direction at Croydon (although it is possible that some of these did the stage and were more than 4 hours late).

Times:

Ferguson, Brock, Mehta, Nalder, Barth, Dunkerton, Portman, Meehan, Neilson, Sheridan, Travis clean
Carr 1
Fury 6
Kock 13
Mizel 16
Roberts 17
Johnson 22
Davis, Watson 29
McCubbin 30
Rowney 31
Jackson, Finlay 32
Herrmann 36
Kahler 43
Hurrey 46
Birrell 47
Farmer 51
Hilton 55
Lance 56
Penny 1.18
Roggenkamp 1.37
Giddings 1.44
Boys 2.12
McTigue 2.33
Murray 2.57
Carter 3.18

T15 – Mount Surprise Transport

256.3 km in 3h00m First car ETA 6:50 pm Tuesday

It was about four o’clock on a warm clear afteroon as the first cars pulled into sleepy Croydon where the population had been swelled by an influx of service crews. Cars were refuelled for the run to Cairns. The run east to Mount Surprise, about 100 km east of Georgetown (close to the Undara Lava Tubes), allowed crews only about 20 minutes to spare in Croydon. As dusk descended on the early cars the biggest hazard was kangaroos which were plentiful and very active at that time of day. It was well and truly dark by the time the first car started the next trial stage.

All the leaders were on time to Mount Surprise. Many other crews were booking in early to regain late time, while some were certainly late as a result of mechanical challenges, most notably Rowney who was over an hour late with continuing overheating problems.

T16 – Almaden Trial Stage

152.1 km in 2h00m First car ETA 8:50 pm Tuesday (Map)

The run up to Almaden used a fast gravel and dirt road with quite a few creek crossings and three crossings of the railway. Why the organisers had set such a slow time at a 76 km/h average is almost beyond belief and the faster cars would be at least half an hour early.

A total of 51 cars completed the stage and 34 of them cleaned it. A further 3 actually booked in early. Rowney was clearly struggling, with the car badly overheating, dropping a further 45 minutes and they were now getting close to their late time limit. Six cars elected to skip the stage and went from the start directly to Cairns or Townsville.

T17 – Cairns Transport

177.2 km in 2h15m First car ETA 11:05 pm Tuesday, Depart 12:05 am Wednesday

The late night drive into Cairns was mostly bitumen passing through Mareeba and Kuranda. The first cars arrived at the Cairns Civic Centre about 11 pm for about a one hour break. A surprisingly large crowd had gathered at Cairns to see the cars in the middle of the night and indeed such crowds were to become more common as the event headed down the populated east coast.

The transport stage was pretty tight and perversely, after so many cars had cleaned the Almaden Trial Stage, only 21 cars cleaned the stage into Cairns. Quite a few cars dropped a few minutes, indicating that the time was set poorly. These included Portman (3 minutes), Herrmann (6 minutes), Jackson (7 minutes), Watson (9 minutes), Mizel (10 minutes) and Davis (12 minutes). Some dropped even more time, suggesting more serious problems, including Rowney who was 52 minutes late into Cairns and on the edge of their late time limit. They had arranged with Howard Marsden to get spare vales and gaskets sent to Cairns but when they opened the pack they were the wrong size so they had to continue, regularly stopping to replenish coolant. After Cairns they would skip the next trial stage and drop their first and only control for the event.

The results of the 16 cars that had not missed a control were as follows. Obviously the top two positions had swapped, while Carr had fallen back behind Nalder and Portman:

Ferguson/Bell/Boddy (Commodore) 2.15.39
Brock/Philip/Richards(Commodore) 2.16.06
Mehta/Aaltonen/Lake (Commodore) 3.50.38
Dunkerton/McKay/Jones (Volvo 244) 7.31.08
Nalder/Richards/Boyd (Celica) 8.16.02
Portman/Thompson/Hammond (Stanza) 8.17.55
Carr/Morrow/Gocentas (Cortina) 8.38.41
Barth/Kushmaul (Porsche 924) 8.49.07
Loader/Hill/Neale (Lancer) 9.57.28 (guess as no score in Results)
Herrmann/Rainsford (Porsche 911) 10.25.40
Davis/Eather/Toner (Datsun 180B) 10.26.17
Watson/Harrowfield (Peugeot 504 Diesel) 11.58.23
Rowney/Wilson/Tyson (Datsun 180B) 11.48.03
Mizel/Hall/Fricker/Mortimer (Chevy Blazer) 18.29.38
Hilton/Bourke/Pattenden (Celica) 19.27.20
Jackson/West/Jackson (Commodore) 21.54.38

Cairns to Townsville

The late night run from Cairns down to Townsville was largely uneventful for the leading few cars although Portman and Jackson both lost quite a bit of time, and Rowney was forced to drop a control.

T18 – Cane Fields Transport

221.5 km in 3h15m First Car ETA 3:20 am Wednesday

The first car departed Cairns just after midnight and headed south on the Bruce Highway to Innisfail then up the twisty Palmerston Highway onto the Atherton Tableland at Millaa Millaa and westwards through Ravenshoe to Mount Garnet. Even at this time of night police were evident and crews now had to be even more cautious on transports but the time allowed for this stage was generous.

Both Jackson and Portman had problems to be resolved in Cairns so were late leaving. Jackson lost 45 minutes on the transport while Portman lost 1 hour 43 minutes, sliding several places down the leaderboard. The big loser was Rowney who faced with the risk of exeeding the late time limit, opted to skip the next trial stage, going directly to the end from Cairns so as to only drop a single control. It must have been a tough decision but the alternative, being excluded at Townsville, was not worth contemplating.

T19 – Mount Fox Trial Stage

235.9 km in 2h45m First Car ETA 6:05 am Wednesday (Map)

This stage started just west of Mount Garnet, heading southwards into undulating grazing country passing stations including Gunnawarra, Minnamoolka, Camel Creek, Wairuna and Lake Lucy. After an initial very sharp bend onto a bridge, the first 100 km was extremely fast on fairly good quality roads and dirt tracks. The middle part of the stage included a lot of narrow farm tracks, some black soil tracks that were damp and slippery, and a number of narrow log bridges. Towards the end the stage turned east and climbed into the ranges on a good quality gravel road ending more or less at the top of the range. Dawn was breaking as the first cars completed the stage just after 6 am.

Only the three MHDT Commodores, the two running Cortinas (Carr and Fury), Portman and Nalder (Richards driving) cleaned the stage. The results show 49 cars completing the stage. As a consequence of the delayed departure from Darwin, much of the field would have done this stage partially or fully in daylight and the last part had the potential to be dangerous, being along a fairly major public road.

Times:

Ferguson, Brock, Mehta, Nalder, Carr, Portman, Fury clean
Hilton 1
Dunkerton 2
Loader 4 (guess, not in results)
Jackson 6
Watson 8
Beveridge 9
Barth 10
Faulkner 12
Travis 13
Clarke, Finlay, McCubbin, Goldsborough 14
Kahler 15
Jensen, O’Donnell 16
Herrmann 18
Koseki, Moloney 20
Mizel, Roberts, Birrell 21
Penny, Davis 23
Lahiff 24
Miettunen 27
Hurrey 32
Farmer 36
Tattingham 42
Sheridan 43
Richardson, Stockley 45
Lance 48
Murray, Johnson 54
Carter, Herdy 58
Heaton 1.00
Lunney 1.47
O’Shanesy 2.00
Neilson 2.10
Ferrier 2.21

T20 – Townsville Transport

161.6 km in 2h 15m First Car ETA 8:20 am Wednesday

From the end of the trial stage cars descended steeply on a narrow twisty road onto the coastal plains and then out to Ingham where they joined the Bruce Highway for the run south to Townsville. A more than adequate time was allowed and Ferguson lead the field into the Townsville Showgrounds on a fine sunny Wednesday morning soon after 8 am. The lead crews would have a very welcome eight hour break in Townsville but later crews would, as usual, have their breaks squeezed.

Despite the adequate time, Dunkerton was a minute late and Hilton 14 minutes late. Behind the leading bunch, many crews would be both late and early, but of those who had actually visited the previous control at Mount Fox, 22 were late into impound, some several hours late, indicating that they were carrying out repairs before going into impound.

Division Results

By Townsville only 15 cars had done the entire route. Rowney missed a single control (did not do the last trial stage). Only Portman and Hilton would drop from from the list before the finish. The scores:

Ferguson/Bell/Boddy (Commodore) 2.15.39
Brock/Philip/Richards(Commodore) 2.16.06
Mehta/Aaltonen/Lake (Commodore) 3.50.38
Dunkerton/McKay/Jones (Volvo 244) 7.34.08
Nalder/Richards/Boyd (Celica) 8.16.02
Carr/Morrow/Gocentas (Cortina) 8.38.41
Barth/Kushmaul (Porsche 924) 8.59.07
Portman/Thompson/Hammond (Stanza) 10.00.55
Loader/Hill/Neale (Lancer) 10.01.28
Herrmann/Rainsford (Porsche 911) 10.43.40
Davis/Eather/Toner (Datsun 180B) 10.49.17
Watson/Harrowfield (Peugeot 504 Diesel) 12.06.23
Mizel/Hall/Fricker/Mortimer (Chevy Blazer) 18.57.38
Hilton/Bourke/Pattenden (Celica) 19.42.20
Jackson/West/Jackson (Commodore) 22.45.3

The results on the division from Darwin to Townsville reveal some strong performances by some crews that had previously missed controls. In all 25 cars completed Division T without missing a control. Scores (in hours and minutes):

Ferguson/Bell/Boddy (Commodore) 0.03
Mehta/Aaltonen/Lake (Commodore) 0.06
Brock/Philip/Richards(Commodore) 0.07
Nalder/Richards/Boyd (Celica) 0.14
Barth/Kushmaul (Porsche 924) 0.26
Loader/Hill/Neale (Lancer) 0.45
Dunkerton/McKay/Jones (Volvo 244) 0.56
Herrmann/Rainsford (Porsche 911) 1.16
Davis/Eather/Toner (Datsun 180B) 1.33
Roberts/Waterson/Carrol (Commodore) 2.18
Watson/Harrowfield (Peugeot 504 Diesel) 2.24
Fury/Bonhomme/Suffern (Cortina) 2.32
Carr/Morrow/Gocentas (Cortina) 3.02
Portman/Thompson/Hammond (Stanza) 3.08
Mizel/Hall/Fricker/Mortimer (Chevy Blazer) 4.59
Hurrey/Geddes (Celica) 6.01
O’Donnell/Geissler/Gibson (LX Torana) 6.44
Finlay/Sullivan/McLeod (Commodore) 6.52
Hilton/Bourke/Pattenden (Celica) 6.56
Jensen/Johnson/Wellington (Volvo 242) 7.30
Jackson/West/Jackson (Commodore) 10.00
Penny/Kennard/Brown (LH Torana) 10.08
McDiarmid/Phegan/Travis (Datsun 180B SSS) 10.53
Lahiff/Beath/Clarke (HR Holden) 11.08
Miettunen/Morgan/Suominen (Volvo 244) 11.26

Those only missing a single control on Division T were:

Rowney/Wilson/Tyson (Datsun 180B)
Faulkner/de Vaus/Bateson (Peugeot 504)
Clarke/Davis/Burge (Datsun 180B)
Lloyd/Crockenberg/Dick (Colt)
Goldsborough/Flanagan/Ground (Commodore)
Kahler/Partridge/Simeon (Mazda RX4)
Birrell/Smith/Nixon (Renault 16TS)
Richardson/Daniel/Fullerton (XD Falcon)
Lance/Craft/Robinson (Commodore)
Giddings/Jones/Seaman (Datsun 200B)

There were 96 cars classified as still in the event at Townsville, plus Carter/Stephens/Draper (XC Falcon) running under protest (they had missed 8 controls on Division T). The 81 cars that had missed controls were as follows:

Missed 1 control:
Rowney/Wilson/Tyson (Datsun 180B)
Roberts/Waterson/Carrol (Commodore)
Missed 2 controls:
Jensen/Johnson/Wellington (Volvo 242)
Missed 3 controls:
Finlay/Sullivan/McLeod (Commodore)
Clarke/Davis/Burge (Datsun 180B)
Missed 5 controls:
Hurrey/Geddes (Celica)
Miettunen/Morgan/Suominen (Volvo 244)
Beveridge/Heaney/Jarman (Volvo 244)
Murray/D’Albora/Murray (Commodore)
Missed 7 controls:
McCubbin/Kelly/Guyatt (Monaro GTS)
Giddings/Jones/Seaman (Datsun 200B)
Missed 8 controls:
Faulkner/de Vaus/Bateson (Peugeot 504)
Missed 9 controls:
Fury/Bonhomme/Suffern (Cortina)
Missed 10 controls:
Birrell/Smith/Nixon (Renault 16TS)
McDiarmid/Phegan/Travis (Datsun 180B SSS)
Missed 11 controls:
O’Donnell/Geissler/Gibson (LX Torana)
Missed 12 controls:
Johnson/Vanderbyl (Volvo 242)
Missed 13 controls:
Lloyd/Crockenberg/Dick (Colt)
Moloney/Vitnel/Daley (Leyland P76)
Missed 14 controls:
Sheridan/Reid (Datsun 1600)
Missed 16 controls:
Lahiff/Beath/Clarke (HR Holden)
Goldsborough/Flanagan/Ground (Commodore)
Tattingham/Geue/Kemp (EH Holden)
Missed 17 controls:
Lockhart/Dunstan/Finlayson (Commodore)
Penny/Kennard/Brown (LH Torana)
Missed 18 controls:
Boys/Vonthien (Ford F100)
Koseki/Takaoka (Subaru Leone)
Missed 20 controls:
Lance/Craft/Robinson (Commodore)
Nicholson/Crawford (Lancer)
Wilson/Baker/Freeze (Mercedes 280S)
Missed 22 controls:
Richardson/Daniel/Fullerton (XD Falcon)
Heaton/Shepherd/Mann (HJ Holden Panel Van)
Foden/Baker/Young (Leyland P76)
Missed 24 controls:
Farmer/Farmer/Fraser (Leyland P76)
Turner/Donohue/Sparrow (Leyland P76)
Missed 25 controls:
Herdy/O’Kane/Gramenz (Peugeot 504)
Missed 27 controls:
Kahler/Partridge/Simeon (Mazda RX4)
Missed 28 controls:
Walker/McCann (Renault 12)
Caudle/Drew/Elsden (Datsun 1600)
Missed 29 controls:
Taylor/Hunt (Rover 3500)
Missed 30 controls:
O’Shanesy/Dean/O’Shanesy (Fiat 131)
Potter/Bain (Mazda RX3)
Ingerson/Wilson/MacCulloch (Peugeot 404)
Missed 31 controls:
Stockley/O’Neill (Porsche 911E)
Minett/Chapple/Watson (Datsun 1600)
Missed 32 controls:
Meehan/Gifford/Gardiner (Monaro GTS)
Missed 33 controls:
Neilson/Stewart/Tyre (HQ Holden)
Boaden/Pritchard/Atkin (Mazda RX4)
Missed 35 controls:
Easton/Rayner/Bell (Datson 1600)
Caddey/Mulach/Hanrahan (Fairmont)
Missed 36 controls:
Myers/Myers/Sinfield (Peugeot 504)
Colless/Johnston/McCoy (Datsun 1600)
Missed 38 controls:
Roggenkamp/Adair/Eakin (Escort)
Hayden/Phillis/Hogan (Mazda RX2)
Missed 39 controls:
Bray/McMahon/Smith (Valiant Charger 770)
Missed 40 controls:
Rayner/Campbell/Loader (HT Holden)
Clyborne/Hayes (Ford Pickup)
Missed 42 controls:
Koch/Darling/Koch (Commodore)
Donoghue/Logan/Grace (Celica)
Gough/Hutton/Bishop (LJ Torana)
Missed 43 controls:
Darby/Clark/Stewart (HR Holden)
Missed 44 controls:
Bolch/Keane/Owen (Monaro HJ GTS)
Jones/Jones/Webber (Riley)
Missed 45 controls:
Tholstrup/Perry (Chevvy Pickup)
Lunney/Tyler/Tyler (Peugeot 504)
Missed 46 controls:
Glover/Burke/Hather (VW)
Missed 47 controls:
Ferrier/Smith (Honda Civic)
Moore/Sethna (VW Beetle)
Missed 50 controls:
Garner/Madden/Corban (Torana)
Missed 51 controls:
McArthur/McArthur/McArthur (XY Falcon)
Missed 55 controls:
Spanbroek/Compton/Plywright (Datsun 240K)
Reinders/Lewis (FJ Holden)
Missed 56 controls:
Bird/McKinnon (Corolla)
Missed 59 controls:
Cafe/Gurney/Dawson (Mazda RX4)
Fullagher/Fullagher/Fullagher/Fullagher (Monaro GTS)
Missed 61 controls:
Webster/Jolly/McIntyre (FJ Holden)
Missed 63 controls:
Hall/Smith/Lott (Escort)
Missed 66 controls:
Sparkes/Clayton (Ford Fairmont)
Missed 70 controls:
Bryson/Cable-Cumming (Escort)
Missed 71 controls:
McTigue/Sheridan/Wilson (HQ Holden Panel Van)
Missed 78 controls:
Parsons/Parsons (Mazda 323)

Retirements on Division T were as follows:

Cowan/Reddiex/Beaumont (Citroen CX) – broken drive shaft on Goodparla stage
Bond/Riley/Dawson-Damer (Cortina) – broken engine near Nathan River
Pittaway/Boston (XY Ford Ute) – broken oil pump, location not known
Mason/Hicks/Horley (Commodore) – no details
Walsh/Whitby/Wunderlich (Ford ‘Grey Ghost’) – broken crank, Challenge Australia suggest near Newcastle but there were no results after Darwin

Next: Division Q

Back to the 1979 Repco Reliability Trial