The 1978 Hardie-Ferodo 1000 was the 19th running of the Bathurst 1000 touring car race. It was held on 1 October 1978, at the Mount Panorama Circuit just outside Bathurst. The race was open to cars eligible to the locally developed CAMS Group C touring car regulations with three engine capacity based classes.

The race was won by Peter Brock, his third win, and Sports Sedan racer Jim Richards, his first. The pair drove a Holden Dealer Team Holden Torana to a single lap victory over another Torana, that of Allan Grice and Formula 5000 driver John Leffler. Third was the first of the Ford Falcons, that of veteran Murray Carter and New Zealand open wheel great Graeme Lawrence. Richards became the first New Zealander to win the race and it was the Holden Dealer Teams third win.

Class structure

Class A The 3001 - 6000cc class consisted entirely of compact muscle cars including V8 Holden Toranas and Ford Falcons.

Class B The 2001 – 3000cc class featured Mazda RX-3, Ford Capri, and BMW 3.0Si.

Class C The Up to 2000cc class saw a mix of Alfa Romeo Alfetta and GTV 2000, Ford Escort RS2000, Holden Gemini, Toyota Celica, Triumph Dolomite and VW Golf.

Hardies Heroes 1978 saw the introduction of the Hardies Heroes Top 10 runoff (now referred as the Top Ten Shootout) for pole position, devised by race broadcaster Channel 7 and the Australian Racing Drivers Club (ARDC) for extra television time on the day before the race. With official qualifying now held on the Friday (previously held on the Saturday before the race from 1963-1977), the runoff was held on the Saturday morning with Seven showing half-hour highlights around Australia later in the afternoon. Drivers drew the order in which they would run out of a hat with the order being Allan Grice, Peter Brock, Jack Brabham, Dick Johnson, Derek Bell, Bob Morris, Garth Wigston, Colin Bond, John French and lucky last Allan Moffat. Each driver had two, one lap runs to set a quick time, though the second lap was optional.

Morning showers meant that the track was damp during the first run and with most cars on wet weather tyres, times reflected this with Grice recording a first up 2:38.2 and Brock a 2:35.6. No other driver was then able to lap better than 2:27 until Allan Moffat went out and ignoring the puddles (plus a little help from team members on top of the mountain who radioed in that the track was now dry enough for slicks), ran a 2:21.59 lap while hitting on Conrod Straight. Moffat's time in his 5.8 L V8 powered Ford Falcon Cobra was some 6 seconds faster than anyone else had managed and 4.8 seconds under his own Group C Touring Car lap record set in 1977.1978 Bathurst 1000 Hardies Heroes Allan Moffat Taking Moffat's cue that the track was now dry enough for quick times, Brock then ran a 2:20.006 in his HDT Torana which was enough to give him his second Bathurst pole in succession and his third overall (his pole time would not be beaten until 1982). Moffat's team mate Colin Bond then joined Brock on the front row with a 2:20.871 lap (0.865 slower than Brock),1978 Bathurst 1000 Hardies Heroes Colin Bond and while Moffat then tried to respond, he had to settle for the inside of the second row with a time of 2:21.597. Bob Morris, the fastest in official qualifying with a 2:21.7 would start in fourth after equaling his time in the runoff, with his team mate Derek Bell rounding out the top 5, though he was some 2.8 seconds slower than Morris. John French in the second Bryan Byrt Ford Falcon was the slowest in the runoff, his time some 10.2 seconds slower than Brock's pole time and 4.6 seconds slower than team mate Dick Johnson.

Pos No Team Driver Car Time Pole 05 Marlboro Holden Dealer Team Peter Brock Holden LX Torana SS A9X Hatchback 2:20.006 2 2 Moffat Ford Dealers Colin Bond Ford XC Falcon Cobra 2:20.871 3 1 Moffat Ford Dealers Allan Moffat Ford XC Falcon Cobra 2:21.597 4 7 Ron Hodgson Channel 7 Racing Bob Morris Holden LX Torana SS A9X Hatchback 2:21.766 5 27 Ron Hodgson Channel 7 Racing Derek Bell Holden LX Torana SS A9X Hatchback 2:24.602 6 17 Bryan Byrt Ford Dick Johnson Ford XC Falcon GS500 Hardtop 2:25.632 7 6 Craven Mild Racing Allan Grice Holden LX Torana SS A9X Hatchback 2:25.950 8 8 Jack Brabham Holdings Pty Ltd Jack Brabham Holden LX Torana SS A9X 4 Door 2:25.988 9 20 Roadways / Gown-Hindhaugh Garth Wigston Holden LX Torana SS A9X Hatchback 2:26.144 10 32 Bryan Byrt Ford John French Ford XC Falcon GS500 Hardtop 2:30.244

* Bob Morris was fastest qualifier going into Hardies Heroes in his Holden LX Torana SS A9X Hatchback with a 2:21.7 lap, and although he equalled this time in the shootout, he fell to 4th on the grid.* Dick Johnson made the first of 20 consecutive starts in the Top 10 runoff at Bathurst. He finished the shootout in 6th position in his Ford XC Falcon GS500 Hardtop.* Peter Brock's pole time of 2:20.006 would stand as the fastest pole time at Bathurst until Allan Grice recorded a 2:17.501 to claim pole in a Holden VH Commodore SS in 1982. Brock's 5.0L, 308 cui V8 Torana was timed at on Conrod Straight, only slower than the big 5.8L, 351 cui V8 Ford Falcon Cobra of rival Allan Moffat.* Triple Formula One World Champion Jack Brabham qualified for his only top 10 shootout at Bathurst in a 4-Door version of the A9X Torana, finishing in 8th position. The Brabham name would not appear in another Bathurst Top 10 runoff until his son David qualified 8th in 1993 in a Holden VP Commodore.* The top 10 consisted of 6 Holden Toranas and 4 Ford Falcons. While the Toranas were spread over 5 different teams, the Falcons only came from Moffat Ford Dealers and Bryan Byrt Ford.

Results

Pos Class No Team Drivers Car Laps QualPos ShootoutPos 1 A 05 Marlboro Holden Dealer Team Peter Brock Jim Richards Holden LX Torana SS A9X Hatchback 163 1 2 A 6 Craven Mild Racing Allan Grice John Leffler Holden LX Torana SS A9X Hatchback 162 7 3 A 18 Brian Wood Ford Murray Carter Graeme Lawrence Ford XC Falcon GS500 Hardtop 160 31 4 A 11 Citizens Watches Australia Pty Ltd Gary Cooke Doug Chivas Holden LX Torana SLR5000 A9X 4 Door 158 27 5 A 17 Bryan Byrt Ford Dick Johnson Vern Schuppan Ford XC Falcon GS500 Hardtop 153 6 6 A 8 Jack Brabham Holdings Pty Ltd Jack Brabham Brian Muir Holden LX Torana SLR5000 A9X 4 Door 153 8 7 A 23 Settlement Road Motor Wreckers Warren Cullen Johnnie Walker Holden LX Torana SS A9X Hatchback 152 13 8 A 33 Amco Pty Ltd Barry Seton Don Smith Holden LX Torana SS A9X Hatchback 152 15 9 C 69 Brian Wood Ford Rod Stevens Bill Evans Ford Escort RS2000 Mk.I 149 38 10 B 52 Amco Pty Ltd Steve Masterton Phil Lucas Ford Capri Mk.I 149 40 11 C 70 Peter Williamson Pty Ltd Peter Williamson Mike Quinn Toyota Celica 149 36 12 B 41 B&J Tyre Co Pty Ltd Terry Shiel Ross Burbidge Mazda RX-3 148 37 13 B 42 Fury Ford Pty Ltd Terry Daly Eric Boord Ford Capri Mk.I 148 30 14 B 37 Shell Sport Peter Hopwood Jim Davidson Ford Capri Mk.II 147 35 15 B 35 Amco Pty Ltd Don Holland Lawrie Nelson Ford Capri Mk.II 145 29 16 C 62 Greater Pacific Finance Co Ray Gulson Paul Gulson Alfa Romeo GTV 2000 143 55 17 B 48 James Mason Pty Ltd Barry Jones Brian Potts Mazda RX-3 142 63 18 C 57 Thomson Ford Bill Stanley Ian Messner Ford Escort RS2000 Mk.II 142 52 19 A 15 Marlboro Holden Dealer Team John Harvey Charlie O'Brien Holden LX Torana SS A9X Hatchback 139 11 20 B 51 JD Duggan John Duggan Brian Wheeler Mazda RX-3 137 45 21 B 36 Arthur Hardwick Arthur Hardwick Greg McCombie Mazda RX-3 136 34 22 A 10 Garry & Warren Smith Pty Ltd Bob Forbes Kevin Bartlett Holden LX Torana SS A9X Hatchback 136 12 23 A 29 Garry Willmington Garry Willmington Jeff Barnes Ford XC Falcon GS500 Hardtop 136 23 24 A 19 Bonds Coates Patons Graham Ryan Phillip Arnull Holden LX Torana SS A9X Hatchback 135 20 25 C 73 B&G Myers Leyland Terry Wade John Myers Triumph Dolomite Sprint 134 47 26 C 60 Peter Brown Peter Brown Graham Ritter Alfa Romeo GTV 2000 133 41 27 B 43 Gough Motors Mazda Nick Louis Stephen Stockdale Mazda RX-3 132 43 28 C 54 Bruce T Hodgson Bruce Hodgson Dave Morrow Ford Escort RS2000 Mk.II 130 46 29 C 66 Brian Hilton Toyota Jeff Harris Doug Clark Toyota Celica 128 58 30 A 28 Rod Donovan Rod Donovan Craig McAllister Ford XC Falcon GS500 Hardtop 125 24 31 C 61 Consolidated Pneumatic Tools Co (Aust) Pty Ltd Ian Sonneman John English Ford Escort RS2000 Mk.I 121 50 DNF A 26 Craven Mild Racing Ralph Radburn Robyn Hamilton Holden LX Torana SLR5000 A9X 4 Door 148 21 DNF B 49 ABE Copiers Pty Ltd Sue Ransom Bill Brown Ford Capri Mk.I 144 33 DNF A 31 Norm G Smith Racing Leo Leonard Gary Sprague Ford XC Falcon GS500 Hardtop 119 18 DNF A 20 Roadways / Gown-Hindhaugh Garth Wigston Wayne Negus Holden LX Torana SS A9X Hatchback 118 9 DNF C 65 LR Morris Rod Morris Terry Finnigan Ford Escort RS2000 Mk.II 115 56 DNF A 9 ReCar Racing / Cadbury - Schweppes Peter Janson Phil Brock Holden LX Torana SS A9X Hatchback 110 14 DNF C 59 Kevin Dennis Motors (Sunshine) Pty Ltd Allan Gough Kel Gough Holden Gemini 109 59 DNF A 14 Thomson Ford Ron Dickson John McCormack Ford XC Falcon GS500 Hardtop 100 16 DNF C 56 Paul-Francois Berthier Paul Berthier Bob Wootton Triumph Dolomite Sprint 95 49 DNF C 63 Bob Holden / Shell Sport Bob Holden Lyndon Arnel Ford Escort RS2000 Mk.II 93 48 DNF A 34 Tim Slako Tim Slako Colin Hall Holden LX Torana SS A9X Hatchback 92 26 DNF B 50 ATP Australia Pty Ltd Alan Cant Bruce Stewart Ford Capri Mk.I 91 61 DNF A 4 John Goss Pty Ltd Rusty French Graham Moore Ford XC Falcon GS500 Hardtop 90 25 DNF C 64 Bob Holden / Shell Sport Greville Arnel Greg Toepfer Ford Escort RS2000 Mk.II 89 51 DNF B 39 Citizens Watches Australia Pty Ltd Barry Lee David Clement Mazda RX-3 82 44 DNF A 1 Moffat Ford Dealers Allan Moffat Jacky Ickx Ford XC Falcon Cobra 81 3 DNF A 24 Hendersons Federal Spring Works / Shell Sport Jim Keogh Grant Walker Ford XC Falcon GS500 Hardtop 74 19 DNF A 7 Ron Hodgson Channel 7 Racing Bob Morris John Fitzpatrick Holden LX Torana SS A9X Hatchback 73 4 DNF A 13 Scotty Taylor Holden Alan "Scotty" Taylor Kevin Kennedy Holden LX Torana SS A9X Hatchback 68 22 DNF A 3 John Goss Pty Ltd John Goss Henri Pescarolo Ford XC Falcon GS500 Hardtop 67 28 DNF B 46 Brian Wood Ford Ray Farrar Gerry Wittenden Ford Capri Mk.I 66 62 DNF B 47 Selby's Steering & Suspension Service Pty Ltd Dean Gall Allan Bryant Mazda RX-3 61 54 DNF A 2 Moffat Ford Dealers Colin Bond Fred Gibson Ford XC Falcon Cobra 59 2 DNF A 32 Bryan Byrt Ford John French Warwick Brown Ford XC Falcon GS500 Hardtop 57 10 DNF C 53 Lennox Motors Chris Heyer Rudi Dahlhauser Volkswagen Golf GTi 35 60 DNF B 44 Geoff Leeds Cam Worner Geoff Leeds Ford Capri Mk.I 29 32 DNF A 12 Bob Jane T-Marts Ian Geoghegan Garry Rogers Holden LX Torana SS A9X Hatchback 29 17 DNF B 45 Robert Darley Jim Hunter Barry Lake BMW 530iAustralia's Greatest Motor Race, 1960-1989, page 308 27 53 DNF B 40 Phil McDonell Phil McDonnell Lynn Brown BMW 3.0Si 21 39 DNF C 72 Alf Grant Alf Grant Geoff Russell Alfa Romeo GTV 2000 21 57 DNF A 27 Ron Hodgson Channel 7 Racing Derek Bell Dieter Quester Holden LX Torana SS A9X Hatchback 5 5 DNF C 71 Brian Foley Pty Ltd Garry Leggatt Patrick Nève Alfa Romeo Alfetta GTV 3 42 DNS A 30 Everlast Battery Service Bill O'Brien Ray Winter Ford XB Falcon GT Hardtop DNS C 74 Rejon Industries Pty Ltd Bernie McClure David Langman Holden Gemini

Statistics Provisional Pole Position - #7 Bob Morris - 2:21.7 Pole Position - #05 Peter Brock - 2:20.006 Fastest Lap - #1 Allan Moffat - 2:22.0 (lap record) Average Speed - 149 km/h Race Time - 6:45:53.9

References

External links CAMS Manual reference to Australian titles www.touringcarracing.net race results Autopics Bathurst images Official Programme, 1978 Hardie-Ferodo 1000