1966 Gallaher 500
The 1966 Gallaher 500 was an endurance motor race for production cars, held on 2 October 1966 at the Mount Panorama Circuit just outside Bathurst, New South Wales in Australia. It was the seventh running of the Bathurst 500 race[1] and the first time that the event had been staged under the Gallaher 500 name. 250 examples of a particular model had to be registered for a vehicle to be eligible for the race, up from the 100 examples required in previous years.[2]
The race was dominated by the Morris Cooper S. It was won by the BMC entered example of Finnish rally star Rauno Aaltonen and experienced Australian Mini racer Bob Holden a lap ahead of Fred Gibson and Bill Stanley, leading home a flotilla of Cooper Ss that filled the first nine outright race positions. The best non-Mini was a Chrysler Valiant, some six laps behind Aaltonen and Holden in tenth position.
Class structure
[edit]Cars competed in four classes based on the purchase price of the vehicle in Australian dollars.
Class A
[edit]The Up to $1,800 class was contested by Datsun 1300, Fiat 850, 1.2 litre Ford Cortina, Morris Mini De Luxe and Morris 850.
Class B
[edit]The $1,801 to $2,040 class featured 1.5 litre Ford Cortina, Hillman Minx, Isuzu Bellett, Morris Cooper, Prince Skyline, Renault R8 and Toyota Corona.
Class C
[edit]The $2,041 to $2,700 class entry list was dominated by the Morris Cooper S, but also included a Fiat 1500, and a Toyota Crown.
Class D
[edit]The $2,701 to $4,000 class featured Chrysler Valiant, Holden HD X2, Studebaker Lark, Triumph 2000 and Volvo 122S.
Results
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Statistics
[edit]- Fastest Lap - #21 Frank Matich - 3:10 (lap record)
- Average Speed - 112 km/h
- Race Time - 7:11:29.1
References
[edit]Further reading
[edit]- Greenhalgh, David; Thomas B. Floyd; Bill Tuckey (2000). "1966 The first international race". Australia's Greatest Motor Race 1960-1999 The first 40 years. Hornsby: Chevron Publishing Group Pty Limited. pp. 138–145 & 454. ISBN 1-875221-12-3.