# 1971 Hardie-Ferodo 500

The 1971 Hardie-Ferodo 500 was a motor race held on 3 October 1971 at the Mount Panorama Circuit just outside Bathurst in New South Wales, Australia. It was open to production vehicles competing in showroom condition, with the field divided into five classes based on the purchase price of the vehicle in Australian dollars. Although an outright winner was officially recognised, all other official awards were for class results only. The race was the 12th in a sequence of annual "Bathurst 500" production car races dating back to the 1960 Armstrong 500. The outright winner was Allan Moffat driving a Ford XY Falcon GT-HO Phase III.
The 1971 race is perhaps best remembered for Sydney driver Bill Brown's lucky escape after the biggest single car crash in the race's history. On lap 43, the right front tyre on Brown's Phase III GTHO Falcon burst at over 100 mph (161 km/h) on the approach to the daunting McPhillamy Park, which in 1971 had no runoff area on the outside of the track, just the earth bank and a fence made of railway sleepers on top. The Falcon barrel-rolled along the fence (with two marshals lucky to escape with their lives by only just scampering out of the way) and ended upside down after 3½ rolls. Brown was lucky because his seat broke in the first roll and he was lying flat in the car as it continued rolling. Amazingly his only injuries were a grazed shin and a black eye.
1971 will also be remembered as the year that Moffat had a stray cardboard Southwark Bitter carton attach itself to the front of his GTHO for a number of laps, blocking the car's radiator. Pit boards told him of the problem and the team attempted to call Moffat in for a quick stop to remove the carton, but Moffat, seeing no change to the engine temperature and no reduction in the car's performance, waved them off and remained on the track until his scheduled pit stop with the approval of Ford Works Team manager Howard Marsden.

## Class structure

Cars competed in five classes based on the purchase price of the vehicle in Australian dollars.

### Class A

Class A was for cars costing less than $2,150. It was contested by Datsun 1200, Mazda 1300 and Toyota Corolla.

### Class B

The $2,151 to $2,500 class had the smallest number of starters with just four cars: Datsun 1600 and Mazda Capella 1600.

### Class C

The $2,501 to $3,150 class saw a mix of Ford Cortina, Ford Escort, 2.8 litre Holden Torana GTR, Honda 1300, Mazda RX-2 and Morris Cooper S.

### Class D

The $3,151 to $4,350 class featured Alfa Romeo Giulia, the E38 version of the Chrysler Valiant Charger, Ford Falcon 500 and 3.0 litre Holden Torana GTR XU-1.

### Class E

For cars over $4,350. Apart from a single Fiat 124S, the class consisted only of Ford Falcon GT-HO Phase IIIs.

## Top 10 Qualifiers

| Pos | No | Team | Driver | Car | Qual |
| Pole | 65 | Ford Motor Co of Australia | Allan Moffat | Ford XY Falcon GTHO Phase III | 2:38.9 |
| 2 | 64 | Ford Motor Co of Australia | John French | Ford XY Falcon GTHO Phase III | 2:41.9 |
| 3 | 66 | Road & Track Auto Services | Fred Gibson | Ford XY Falcon GTHO Phase III | 2:43.3 |
| 4 | 57 | Finnie Ford Pty Ltd | David McKay | Ford XY Falcon GTHO Phase III | 2:44.4 |
| 5 | 63 | FF Newell & Son | Bill Brown | Ford XY Falcon GTHO Phase III | 2:44.7 |
| 6 | 62 | Byrt Ford Pty Ltd | Phil Barnes | Ford XY Falcon GTHO Phase III | 2:45.4 |
| 7 | 69 | Trevor Thiele Ford Pty Ltd | Trevor Meehan | Ford XY Falcon GTHO Phase III | 2:45.5 |
| 8 | 43 | Geoghegan's Sporty Cars | Leo Geoghegan | Chrysler VH Valiant Charger R/T E38 | 2:45.7 |
| 9 | 61 | Baldwin Ford Pty Ltd | Damon Beck | Ford XY Falcon GTHO Phase III | 2:46.6 |
| 10 | 45 | Reg Papps & Sons | Bob Beasley | Chrysler VH Valiant Charger R/T E38 | 2:46.3 |

## Results

| Pos. | Class | No. | Entrant | Drivers | Car | Laps | Qual Pos. |
| 1 | E | 65 | Ford Motor Co of Australia | Allan Moffat | Ford XY Falcon GT-HO Phase III | 130 | 1 |
| 2 | E | 62 | Byrt Ford Pty Ltd | Phil Barnes Bob Skelton | Ford XY Falcon GT-HO Phase III | 129 | 6 |
| 3 | E | 57 | Finnie Ford Pty Ltd | David McKay | Ford XY Falcon GT-HO Phase III | 129 | 4 |
| 4 | D | 31 | Holden Dealer Team | Colin Bond | Holden LC Torana GTR XU-1 | 129 | 15 |
| 5 | E | 64 | Ford Motor Co of Australia | John French | Ford XY Falcon GT-HO Phase III | 129 | 2 |
| 6 | E | 60 | McLeod Ford Pty Ltd | John Goss Barry Sharp | Ford XY Falcon GT-HO Phase III | 129 | 17 |
| 7 | D | 43 | Geoghegan's Sporty Cars | Leo Geoghegan Peter Brown | Chrysler VH Valiant Charger R/T E38 | 129 | 8 |
| 8 | D | 32 | Holden Dealer Team | Peter Brock | Holden LC Torana GTR XU-1 | 129 | 11 |
| 9 | D | 30 | Max Wright Motors | Brian Foley Don Holland | Holden LC Torana GTR XU-1 | 129 | 22 |
| 10 | D | 45 | Reg Papps & Sons | Bob Beasley | Chrysler VH Valiant Charger R/T E38 | 129 | 10 |
| 11 | E | 59 | J Harding | Murray Carter | Ford XY Falcon GT-HO Phase III | 127 | 21 |
| 12 | D | 41 | Shell Racing | Norm Beechey Jim McKeown | Chrysler VH Valiant Charger R/T E38 | 127 | 19 |
| 13 | D | 28 | Suttons Motors (Petersham) | Bruce McPhee | Holden LC Torana GTR XU-1 | 127 | 32 |
| 14 | E | 55 | Sinclair Ford Pty Ltd | Kevin Bartlett | Ford XY Falcon GT-HO Phase III | 126 | 30 |
| 15 | D | 40 | Harvey Drew Pty Ltd | Joe Butta Geoff Hunter | Chrysler VH Valiant Charger R/T E38 | 126 | 24 |
| 16 | D | 49 | Courtesy Motors | Martin Chenery | Chrysler VH Valiant Charger R/T E38 | 125 | 18 |
| 17 | D | 29 | Dusting & Co Pty Ltd | Tony Roberts | Holden LC Torana GTR XU-1 | 125 | 36 |
| 18 | D | 39 | City State Racing Team | Johnnie Walker Malcolm Ramsay | Holden LC Torana GTR XU-1 | 124 | 28 |
| 19 | D | 42 | Liverpool Chrysler | Doug Chivas Graham Moore | Chrysler VH Valiant Charger R/T E38 | 124 | 16 |
| 20 | E | 67 | Wright Ford Motors Pty Ltd | Des West | Ford XY Falcon GT-HO Phase III | 123 | 12 |
| 21 | D | 47 | John McNicol Pty Ltd | Gerry Lister David Seldon | Ford XY Falcon 500 | 122 | 34 |
| 22 | D | 37 | M Brown | Mick Brown | Holden LC Torana GTR XU-1 | 121 | 33 |
| 23 | D | 34 | The Commonwealth Ind. Gases | Geoff Leeds Digby Cooke | Holden LC Torana GTR XU-1 | 120 | 23 |
| 24 | E | 54 | Zanardo & Rodriguez Sales & Services Pty Ltd | Ron Kearns | Fiat 124 Sport | 118 | 35 |
| 25 | D | 38 | L Seaton | Brian Reed Graham Ritter | Chrysler VH Valiant Charger R/T E38 | 118 | 26 |
| 26 | C | 17 | G Cooke | Gary Cooke Garry Holmes | Mazda RX-2 | 117 | 39 |
| 27 | C | 27 | Victorian Police Motor Sports Club | Geoff Wade Geoff Perry | Holden LC Torana GTR | 117 | 40 |
| 28 | D | 44 | Blue Point Motors (Management) Pty Ltd | Graham Ryan | Chrysler VH Valiant Charger R/T E38 | 116 | 27 |
| 29 | C | 51 | D&P Traders Pty Ltd | Pat Peck Jan Holland | Holden LC Torana GTR XU-1 | 115 | 61 |
| 30 | C | 19 | Chas Tierney Pty Ltd | Mal Brewster Ray Strong | Holden LC Torana GTR | 115 | 42 |
| 31 | C | 16 | John Hile Ford Pty Ltd | Ross Hewison Brian Hones | Ford Escort Twin Cam Mk.I | 110 | 45 |
| 32 | C | 22 | Mazda Racing Team | Wayne Rogerson Alan Mayne | Mazda RX-2 | 113 | 37 |
| 33 | C | 25 | Marque Motors | Bob Cracknell Bob Wedd | Morris Cooper S | 111 | 47 |
| 34 | C | 24 | H Vines | Herb Vines Chris Batger | Ford Escort Twin Cam Mk.I | 110 | 45 |
| 35 | C | 20 | Kloster Pty Ltd | Geoff Westbury Jim Sullivan | Ford TC Cortina 2000L | 110 | 49 |
| 36 | B | 12 | WH Motors Pty Ltd | Bruce Stewart | Datsun 1600 | 109 | 51 |
| 37 | A | 6 | John Palmer Motors | John Leffler | Mazda 1300 | 108 | 53 |
| 38 | A | 8 | Mazda Racing Team | Les Carne Peter Cray | Mazda 1300 | 107 | 57 |
| 39 | A | 5 | AMI Racing Team | Barry Arentz | Toyota Corolla 1200 | 106 | 59 |
| 40 | A | 7 | C Kennedy | Carl Kennedy Bill Slattery | Mazda 1300 | 105 | 60 |
| 41 | C | 21 | Bennett Honda Pty Ltd | Ken Brian Noel Riley | Honda 1300-S | 104 | 56 |
| 42 | C | 15 | Marque Motors | Bill Stanley Mike Kable | Morris Cooper S | 102 | 44 |
| 43 | A | 1 | Datsun Racing Team | Doug Whiteford | Datsun 1200 | 100 | 52 |
| 44 | B | 14 | Mazda Racing Team | George Garth John Hall | Mazda Capella 1600 | 99 | 46 |
| 45 | B | 11 | WH Motors Pty Ltd | Don Smith | Datsun 1600 | 97 | 48 |
| DNF | E | 61 | Baldwin Ford Pty Ltd | Damon Beck Garry Rush | Ford XY Falcon GT-HO Phase III | 117 | 9 |
| DNF | A | 4 | AMI Racing Team | Brian Sampson | Toyota Corolla 1200 | 102 | 58 |
| DNF | D | 50 | R Lanyon | Tom Naughton Lawrie Nelson | Chrysler VH Valiant Charger R/T E38 | 98 | 25 |
| DNF | D | 48 | B Thomson | Bryan Thomson John Mann | Alfa Romeo 1600 Giulia Super | 80 | 43 |
| DNF | E | 58 | Mark IV Car Air Conditioning | Bob Morris Ray Morris | Ford XY Falcon GT-HO Phase III | 80 | 14 |
| DNF | E | 69 | Trevor Thiele Ford Pty Ltd | Trevor Meehan | Ford XY Falcon GT-HO Phase III | 55 | 7 |
| DNF | D | 33 | Bob Jane Racing Team | Bob Jane John Harvey | Holden LC Torana GTR XU-1 | 50 | 29 |
| DNF | D | 46 | Bardahl International Oil Corp | Bob Forbes John Millyard | Chrysler VH Valiant Charger R/T E38 | 46 | 13 |
| DNF | E | 63 | FF Newell & Son | Bill Brown | Ford XY Falcon GT-HO Phase III | 43 | 5 |
| DNF | E | 66 | Road & Track Auto Services | Fred Gibson Barry Seton | Ford XY Falcon GT-HO Phase III | 32 | 3 |
| DNF | A | 9 | Mazda Racing Team | Bernie Haehnle Ray Kaleda | Mazda 1300 | 17 | 54 |
| DNF | D | 36 | BS NcNaughton | Scott McNaughton Geoff Harvey | Holden LC Torana GTR XU-1 | 7 | 20 |
| DSQ | C | 23 | Sinclair Ford Pty Ltd | Alan Cant Herb Taylor | Ford Escort Twin Cam Mk.I | 115 | 41 |
| DSQ | B | 10 | Datsun Racing Team | John Roxburgh Jon Leighton | Datsun 1600 | 111 | 50 |
| DSQ | A | 2 | Datsun Racing Team | Jim Laing-Peach | Datsun 1200 | 109 | 55 |
| DNS | A | 3 | AMI Racing Team | Bill Evans | Toyota Corolla 1200 | | |
| DNS | B | 13 | Harry Gapps Ford Pty Ltd | Harry Gapps Frank Hann | Ford Cortina 1600L | | |
| DNS | C | 18 | Waterloo High Performance Tuning Centre | Warren Gracie Ron Gillard | Holden LC Torana GTR | | |
| DNS | C | 26 | Harry Gapps Ford Pty Ltd | R Kramer | Ford Escort Twin Cam | | |
| DNS | D | 35 | L Grose | Les Grose Lakis Manticas | Holden LC Torana GTR XU-1 | | 31 |
| DNS | D | 52 | R Lanyon | Lawrie Nelson Tony Farrell | Chrysler VH Valiant Charger R/T E38 | | |
| DNS | D | 53 | Formula 1 International Motoring Pty Ltd | Tony Allen Len Searle | Chrysler VH Valiant Charger R/T E38 | | |
| DNS | E | 56 | McCluskey Ford Pty Ltd | Ian Geoghegan Brian Michelmore | Ford XY Falcon GT-HO Phase III | | |
| DNS | E | 68 | G Ward | Graham Ward | Volvo 164 | | |
| DNS | E | 70 | HG Fenton | H Fenton F Ure | Ford XW Falcon GT-HO Phase II | | |

## Statistics

* Pole Position - #65 Allan Moffat - 2:38.9
* Fastest Lap - #58 Bob Morris - 2:40 (lap record)
* Average Speed - 130 km/h
* Race Time of winning car - 6:09:49.5