1984 James Hardie 1000
The 1984 James Hardie 1000 was the 25th running of the Bathurst 1000 touring car race. It was held on 30 September 1984 at the Mount Panorama Circuit just outside Bathurst in New South Wales, Australia and was Round 4 of the 1984 Australian Endurance Championship. This race was celebrated as 'The Last of the Big Bangers', in reference to the Group C touring cars, which were competing at Bathurst for the last time.
The race was won by Peter Brock and Larry Perkins driving a Holden VK Commodore for the Holden Dealer Team, the third consecutive victory for Brock, Perkins and the HDT. It was the most dominant team performance for the HDT in the history of the race as the team claimed a 1-2 finish with John Harvey and David Parsons backing up their team leaders by finishing second. Third place was taken by the Mazda RX-7 of Allan Moffat and Gregg Hansford. Moffat privately disputed the Harvey/Parsons Commodore finishing second as it had spent almost 3 laps in the pits mid-race with a gearbox problem, but saw little value in protesting as it would not win him the race so decided to settle for third.
The race also saw the first appearance of the international Group A cars at Bathurst. The Group A class was won by the TWR Mobil Rover Vitesse V8 of race rookies Jeff Allam from England and Armin Hahne from West Germany who finished 12th outright. Second in class and 15th outright was the JPS Team BMW 635 CSi of Formula One World Champion Denny Hulme and Bavarian Prince Leopold von Bayern. Third in Group A and 20th outright was the Barry Seton / Don Smith V8 Ford Mustang. For Seton, who had won the race outright in 1965, it would be his final start at Bathurst as he quietly retired from race driving at the end of 1984. Dick Johnson Racing, who started 4th on the grid with their Group C Ford XE Falcon, also entered a Mustang in the Group A category and although 1984 Australian Touring Car Champion Dick Johnson qualified the underpowered car in 48th, it was only there as insurance should there be a repeat of 1983 where he destroyed his Falcon in a famous Hardies Heroes crash and the Mustang, which Johnson had purchased from the German Zakspeed team, was officially withdrawn the day before the race.
Class structure
Group C
This was the last Bathurst 1000 to include Group C Touring Cars, which had first contested the Bathurst 1000 in 1973. While a production based category, continual parity adjustments to keep the leading vehicles roughly at the same pace had seen the cars become wildly over-specified. The led to a decision by the Confederation of Australian Motor Sport in mid-1983 that Australian touring car racing would abandon its locally developed Group C rules and would be run under regulations based on the FIA's international Group A rules from 1 January 1985.The major contenders in Group C were the V8-engined Ford Falcons and Holden Commodores, the lone V12 Jaguar XJ-S and 6 cylinder BMW 635 CSi, the rotary Mazda RX-7's, and the Nissan Bluebird turbos. Also running in Group C were the now outdated Chevrolet Camaro Z28s.
It would be the final Bathurst appearance for the Bluebird turbo which would be replaced in Group A in 1986 by the Nissan Skyline DR30 RS. After the car made its debut in the inaugural 500-mile race at Phillip Island in 1960, it would be the final Bathurst 1000 for the Ford Falcon until 1992. The Commodore, Jaguar, BMW and Mazda all saw action during the Group A years in Australia.
Group A
The international Group A formula was allowed to enter for the first time as a prelude to their adoption for Bathurst and the Australian Touring Car Championship in 1985. The Group A cars were closer to pure bred racing cars in concept, but without the extensive performance modifications allowed for Group C. Without the performance upgrades, aerodynamic aids and larger tyres of the Group C cars, the Group A cars were much slower, and thus formed their own class. The low slung V8 Rovers did prove to be sensationally quick in a straight line though, with both cars being regularly recorded at over on Conrod Straight, putting them on par with many of the lower ranked privateer Commodore's, Falcons and RX-7's. The Rover's main Group A challenger would be the BMW 635 CSi run by JPS Team BMW.The other contenders in the Group A class included the Ford Mustang, Ford Capri Mk.III, Alfa Romeo GTV6, Toyota Sprinter AE86, Mitsubishi Starion, Audi 5+5, and Toyota Celica Supra.
Hardies Heroes
Conditions on Mount Panorama were bitterly cold for the 1984 edition of Hardies Heroes with snow having fallen at the top of the circuit early in the morning. This saw a number of cars, notably the lighter Mazda RX-7's struggle to get sufficient heat into their tyres.| Pos | No | Team | Driver | Car | HH | Qual |
| Pole | 15 | Nissan Motor Co. |  George Fury | Nissan Bluebird Turbo | 2:13.850 | 2:14.81 |
| 2 | 05 | Marlboro Holden Dealer Team | Peter Brock | Holden VK Commodore | 2:14.039 | 2:14.31 |
| 3 | 17 | Palmer Tube Mills | Dick Johnson | Ford XE Falcon | 2:14.710 | 2:15.07 |
| 4 | 6 | Roadways Racing | Allan Grice | Holden VK Commodore | 2:14.886 | 2:14.74 |
| 5 | 43 | Peter Stuyvesant International Racing |  Allan Moffat | Mazda RX-7 | 2:16.411 | 2:15.54 |
| 6 | 31 | JPS Team BMW |  Jim Richards | BMW 635 CSi | 2:16.795 | 2:16.49 |
| 7 | 2 | Masterton Homes Pty. Ltd. | Steve Masterton | Ford XE Falcon | 2:17.055 | 2:16.33 |
| 8 | 42 | Peter Stuyvesant International Racing | Gregg Hansford | Mazda RX-7 | 2:18.051 | 2:15.85 |
| 9 | 41 | Chequered Flag Magazine | Bob Morris | Mazda RX-7 | 2:18.107 | 2:16.05 |
| 10 | 12 | John Goss Racing Pty. Ltd. |  Tom Walkinshaw | Jaguar XJ-S | 2:18.960 | 2:16.09 |
- Nissan scored the first ever Bathurst 1000 Pole Position by a car fitted with a turbocharger when George Fury recorded a time of 2:13.85 in his Nissan Bluebird Turbo. Fury's time in the runoff would not be beaten until 1991, ironically by another Nissan, the R32 GT-R. As it was the last year of Group C, Fury's time remains the fastest ever at Mt Panorama by a Group C touring car. Early morning snow on the mountain and the cold conditions were thought to favour the turbo over the V8 powered cars. Almost 20 years later Fred Gibson, who was by 1986 the Nissan team manager, confirmed that the Bluebirds had a turbo boost adjuster on the dashboard, used to tune boost pressure once track conditions were better understood in order to preserve the turbocharger.
- It was the first time in the seven-year history of Hardies Heroes that a V8 powered car did not claim Pole Position at Bathurst, and the first time since qualifying first counted for grid positions in 1967 that a V8 had not been on pole. It would be the start of a run of 8 pole positions in 9 years for turbo powered cars at Bathurst and a V8 powered car would not sit on pole again at Bathurst until 1993.
- The 1984 Hardies Heroes holds the Top 10 shootout record for the most number of marques competing with six with Nissan, Holden, Ford, Mazda, BMW and Jaguar represented. The record was equaled in both Super Touring races in 1997 and 1998.
- With three Mazda RX-7's in Hardies Heroes, 1984 was the only time Mazda had the greatest representation of cars in the Top Ten runoff. Not surprisingly the factory backed Peter Stuyvesant RX-7 of Allan Moffat was the quickest of the trio ending up 5th on the grid.
Official results
| Pos | Class | No | Team | Drivers | Car | Laps | Qual Pos | Shootout Pos |
| 1 | C | 05 | Marlboro Holden Dealer Team | Peter Brock Larry Perkins | Holden VK Commodore | 163 | 1 | 2 |
| 2 | C | 25 | Marlboro Holden Dealer Team | John Harvey David Parsons | Holden VK Commodore | 161 | 12 | |
| 3 | C | 42 | Peter Stuyvesant International Racing | Gregg Hansford Allan Moffat | Mazda RX-7 | 161 | 6 | 8 |
| 4 | C | 8 | K-Mart Auto Racing | Warren Cullen Alan Jones | Holden VK Commodore | 161 | 13 | |
| 5 | C | 28 | Bayside Spare Parts | Barry Lawrence Alan Browne | Holden VH Commodore SS | 158 | 17 | |
| 6 | C | 10 | John Sands Racing | Rusty French Geoff Russell | Holden VH Commodore SS | 154 | 31 | |
| 7 | C | 47 | Brian Callaghan | Barry Graham Brian Callaghan | Ford XE Falcon | 154 | 21 | |
| 8 | C | 33 | Michael Burgmann | Mike Burgmann Bob Stevens | Mazda RX-7 | 153 | 39 | |
| 9 | C | 35 | Goodyear Car Owners Club | Ron Gillard Mark Gibbs | Mazda RX-7 | 153 | 19 | |
| 10 | C | 27 | Bryan Byrt Ford | Alf Grant Craig Harris | Ford XD Falcon | 153 | 42 | |
| 11 | C | 52 | Fred Geissler | Fred Geissler Ralph Radburn | Holden VH Commodore SS | 153 | 27 | |
| 12 | A | 61 | Mobil Rover Racing | Jeff Allam Armin Hahne | Rover Vitesse | 152 | 36 | |
| 13 | C | 19 | Ken Mathews Prestige Cars | Ken Mathews Greg Toepfer | Holden VH Commodore SS | 151 | 32 | |
| 14 | C | 21 | Lusty Engineering Pty. Ltd. | Graham Lusty John Lusty | Holden VH Commodore SS | 148 | 35 | |
| 15 | A | 62 | JPS Team BMW | Denny Hulme Leopold von Bayern | BMW 635 CSi | 148 | 49 | |
| 16 | C | 15 | Nissan Motor Co. | George Fury Gary Scott | Nissan Bluebird Turbo | 146 | 2 | 1 |
| 17 | C | 7 | Qld Highway Patrol Racing Team | Lester Smerdon Wayne Park | Holden VK Commodore | 145 | 53 | |
| 18 | C | 51 | Tokico | Tony Mulvihill Brian Nightingale | Mazda RX-7 | 140 | 44 | |
| 19 | C | 37 | Graham Stones | Graham Stones Ian Stones | Mazda RX-7 | 138 | 47 | |
| 20 | A | 69 | Nu-Truck Spares | Barry Seton Don Smith | Ford Mustang | 136 | 56 | |
| 21 | A | 65 | Hulcraft Autos | John Craft Les Grose | Ford Capri Mk.III | 135 | 60 | |
| 22 | A | 67 | Ray Gulson | Ray Gulson Grant O'Donnell | Alfa Romeo GTV6 | 131 | 58 | |
| 23 | C | 24 | Scotty Taylor Holden | Alan Taylor Kevin Kennedy | Holden VH Commodore SS | 130 | 33 | |
| 24 | C | 45 | James Keogh | Bernie Stack Wayne Clift Terry Shiel | Holden VH Commodore SS | 130 | 23 | |
| 25 | C | 38 | Bayswater Auto Wreckers Pty. Ltd. | Colin Campbell John Faulkner | Holden VH Commodore SS | 130 | 23 | |
| 26 | A | 73 | Racing Car News | Bob Holden Alexandra Surplice | Toyota Sprinter AE86 | 125 | 63 | |
| 27 | C | 32 | Berklee Exhausts | Chris Clearihan David Grose | Mazda RX-7 | 123 | 50 | |
| 28 | A | 63 | Chris Heyer's Kingswood Import Centre | Chris Heyer Gerard Murphy | Audi 5+5 | 117 | 64 | |
| 29 | A | 60 | Mobil Rover Racing | Steve Soper Ron Dickson | Rover Vitesse | 116 | 38 | |
| DNF | C | 13 | Bruce Keith Smith | Bruce Smith Graeme Waswo | Holden VH Commodore SS | 123 | 37 | |
| NC | C | 49 | Kenmar Agency Pty. Ltd. | John Donnelly Simon Harrex | Ford XD Falcon | 122 | 55 | |
| DNF | C | 22 | P.F. Motor Racing | Bryan Thomson John Mann | Chevrolet Camaro Z28 | 121 | 45 | |
| DNF | A | 75 | Laurie Hazelton | Laurie Hazelton Jerry Strauberg | Ford Capri Mk.III | 119 | 62 | |
| NC | C | 30 | Tony Kavich | Tony Kavich John Duggan | Mazda RX-7 | 117 | 43 | |
| DNF | C | 44 | Chequered Flag Magazine | Graham Moore Peter McKay | Mazda RX-7 | 116 | 30 | |
| NC | A | 70 | Network Alfa | Colin Bond Alfredo Costanzo | Alfa Romeo GTV6 | 111 | 52 | |
| DNF | C | 40 | King George Tavern | Joe Moore Bob Muir | Ford XE Falcon | 110 | 24 | |
| DNF | C | 3 | Cadbury Schweppes Pty. Ltd. | Peter Janson Garry Rogers | Holden VH Commodore SS | 109 | 16 | |
| DNF | C | 17 | Palmer Tube Mills | Dick Johnson John French | Ford XE Falcon | 107 | 3 | 3 |
| DNF | C | 26 | Everlast Battery Service | Bill O'Brien Gary Cooke | Ford XD Falcon | 104 | 28 | |
| DNF | A | 72 | Toyota Team Australia | John Smith Stephen Brook | Toyota Sprinter AE86 | 100 | 57 | |
| NC | C | 41 | Chequered Flag Magazine | Bob Morris Barry Jones | Mazda RX-7 | 97 | 7 | 9 |
| NC | A | 68 | Greville Arnel | Greville Arnel Lyndon Arnel | Mitsubishi Starion Turbo | 95 | 54 | |
| DNF | C | 29 | Freedom Fence | Paul Jones Peter Hopwood | Ford XE Falcon | 88 | 20 | |
| NC | C | 39 | John Bundy | John Bundy Norm Carr | Mazda RX-7 | 83 | 34 | |
| DNF | C | 16 | Nissan Motor Co. | Christine Gibson Glenn Seton | Nissan Pulsar EXA | 76 | 26 | |
| DNF | C | 6 | Roadways Racing | Allan Grice Steve Harrington | Holden VK Commodore | 70 | 2 | 4 |
| DNF | C | 9 | K-Mart Auto Racing | Andrew Harris Ron Harrop | Holden VH Commodore SS | 51 | 18 | |
| DNF | C | 4 | Terry Finnigan | Terry Finnigan Geoff Leeds | Holden VH Commodore SS | 48 | 14 | |
| DNF | C | 31 | JPS Team BMW | Jim Richards Tony Longhurst | BMW 635 CSi | 39 | 10 | 6 |
| DNF | C | 50 | Petrolon Slick 50 | Peter McLeod Graeme Bailey | Mazda RX-7 | 39 | 15 | |
| DNF | C | 11 | Magic Eleven | Garry Willmington Mike Griffin | Ford XD Falcon | 37 | 41 | |
| DNF | C | 14 | John English | John English Paul Gulson | Ford XD Falcon | 34 | 29 | |
| DNF | A | 66 | Equipe Sixty Six | Kevin Bartlett Peter Fitzgerald | Mitsubishi Starion Turbo | 27 | 61 | |
| DNF | C | 20 | Jim Keogh | Jim Keogh Terry Shiel | Holden VH Commodore SS | 17 | 25 | |
| DNF | C | 2 | Masterton Homes Pty. Ltd. | Steve Masterton Bruce Stewart | Ford XE Falcon | 16 | 9 | 7 |
| DNF | C | 43 | Peter Stuyvesant International Racing | Allan Moffat Gregg Hansford | Mazda RX-7 | 15 | 5 | 5 |
| DNF | C | 36 | Roadways Racing | Steve Harrington Allan Grice | Holden VH Commodore SS | 7 | 11 | |
| DNF | A | 64 | Capri Components | Lawrie Nelson Peter Jones | Ford Mustang | 1 | 59 | |
| DNF | C | 18 | Valentine Greetings | Murray Carter John Murdern | Mazda RX-7 | 0 | 22 | |
| DNF | C | 12 | John Goss Racing Pty. Ltd. | John Goss Tom Walkinshaw | Jaguar XJ-S | 0 | 8 | 10 |
| DNF | C | 34 | Pennant Hills Suspension Centre | John Tesoriero Bob Tindal | Chevrolet Camaro Z28 | 0 | 46 | |
| DNF | A | 77 | Peter Williamson Toyota | Peter Williamson Charlie O'Brien | Toyota Celica Supra | 0 | 51 | |
| DNS | A | 71 | Palmer Tube Mills | Dick Johnson John French | Ford Mustang | 48 |
Statistics
- Provisional Pole Position - #05 Peter Brock - 2:14.31
- Pole Position - #15 George Fury - 2:13.850
- Fastest Group A qualifier - #61 Jeff Allam - 2:23.41
- Fastest Lap - #05 Peter Brock - 2:15.13
- Fastest Lap - #60 - Steve Soper 2:24.87
- Winners average speed - 157.5 km/h
- Race Time - 6:23:13.06
- Number of Entrants - 64