Also, following are brief results of Rounds 2 and 3 of the series.
The Baypark round was the second round. The two Commodores of Bowkett/Wilkinson and Hulme/Smith both retired.
The Volvo led until 10 minutes from the end until Petch was overtaken by the Crowe/Longhurst BMW. The Volvo suffered from tyre wear on a circuit that was hard on tyres, and this tyre wear cost the team their second successive win.
| Rd 2: Baypark | | |
| Distance: | 2 1/2 hours | |
| Starters: | unknown (guess was around 30) | |
| Cars Eligible: | FIA Group A; NZ Assembled Standard Production 0-1300cc, 1301-1600cc, 1601-2000cc, over 2,000cc | |
| POLE: | Francevic/Petch* | Volvo 240 Turbo |
| RESULTS | | |
| 1st | Trevor Crowe/Tony Longhurst | BMW 635CSi |
| 2nd | Robbie Francevic/Mark Petch | Volvo 240 Turbo |
The results are incomplete I'm afraid. My only current source for the 1985 series is the Australian "Raceyear 1985" annual, which gives a synoposis of each round, but doesn't give full results.
I am assuming that the Volvo took pole, but that needs confirmation. The book doesn't say who finished third. And I cannot confirm if the Mazda 626i or the Mitsubishi Cordia Turbo was the winning car in NZ Production.
Round 3 was the six hour race at Pukekohe. There was additional interest in the appearance of the Dick Johnson Mustang, which he shared with Neville Crichton. I remember the car ran in John Andrew Ford colours in this race. John Andrew Ford was/is Auckland's largest Ford dealer, and at the time the dealership was owned by Crichton.
The race saw the Commodores hit problems again, but there was a great three-way dice between the Volvo, Johnson Mustang and Crowe BMW for the first three hours. The Volvo broke its diff at the three hour mark and the Mustang got stuck in gear causing Johnson to lose a lap. This allowed the Crowe/Longhurst BMW to cruise to the finish.
The little Corolla GT of Adams/Woolf finished third.
| Rd 3: Pukekohe | | |
| Distance: | 6 hours | |
| Starters: | around 40 | |
| Cars Eligible: | FIA Group A; NZ Assembled Standard Production 0-1300cc, 1301-1600cc, 1601-2000cc, over 2,000cc | |
| POLE | Francevic/Petch* | Volvo 240 Turbo |
| RESULTS | | |
| 1st | Trevor Crow/Tony Longhurst | BMW 635CSi |
| 2nd | Dick Johnson/Neville Crichton | Ford Mustang GT |
| 3rd | Paul Adams/Allan Woolf | Toyota Corolla GT |
Apologies for not having full results or confirmation of the grid for these races. If I have a chance to check through some of my NZ mags while visiting family next week I'll see what else I can find.