E28 Charger 1971 Bathurst Geoghegan/Brown #43D

Chrysler desperately wanted a win at Bathurst and believed the new E49 Charger would do just that.The leading car manufacturers believed that “The car that wins on Sunday Sells on Monday”. Four dealer supported works E49 Chargers were entered. Six more Chargers owned privately, including the Doug Chivas/Damon Beck Charger (supported by the Country Chrysler Dealers) were also entered. Doug Chivas/Damon Beck were to help make the R/T E49 the most famous Charger ever produced.
Doug Chivas, a former Chrysler factory driver, was 50 when he drove the complete race at Bathurst. His experience and determination would prove invaluable in the race. Doug Chivas would come 3rd overall (second in D Class) in Australia’s most famous car race Hardie Ferodo 500 (now known as Bathurst).The Bathurst Enduro had never been run in the rain before.This would be a messy race.
The atmosphere was electric. This was the first time open exhausts were allowed, the noise was incredible. Rain fell steadily as the race commenced.The leaders were arriving at the tail end of the smaller Class A vehicles by lap 5. Poor visibility being a major problem for those involved. Chivas seemed to revel in these conditions that saw others spin off the slippery, wet track. By now, outright 5th Doug Chivas was doing well.The circuit had started to dry by lap 20, rain slowly easing.The track was still unpredictable, taking its toll on many drivers. The Chivas/Beck car was in second position, lap 38. The young Brock, a menacing Chivas and a wild French were fighting for the lead in lap 46. Lap 54, French overtook Chivas and a lap later overtook Brock. The race remained close however. One minute penalties for starting before refuelling was complete and for push starts were handed out to some of the teams whilst others experienced problems in the pits, brake problems or worse– serious accidents. All this meant that it was impossible to predict who would win Bathurst.
Due to the large capacity “Big Tank” fuel tank Chivas had decided only one pit stop at the halfway mark would be necessary. Chivas was overtaken on lap 64 by Moffat, but it wasn’t until lap 65 that Chivas had to make a fuel stop!
Skillful driving saw the Chivas/Beck car in third place in lap 90. A forced pit stop due to an oil pressure problem later in the race caused him to lose valuable time. However, that didn’t stop Chivas. He would complete the race taking out 3rd position, (2nd in D Class). His ability, stamina and faith in the performance of the car had pulled him through. He had at various stages got within a few car lengths of the outright lead.The Chivas/Beck car was clocked at doing 234 km/h down Conrod Straight in the rain. Chivas completed the race in 6 hours, 2 minutes and 43 seconds, the best result a Charger would achieve at Bathurst.

Item includes certificate with individual production number.