As many of you will know, especially those who follow AUSmotive on twitter and Facebook, I have been away for Targa Tasmania this past week. I was working as service crew for some friends of mine who were going really well. Indeed, they were flying, setting personal best times stage after stage.

Alas, as the photo above shows, seeing the team’s MINI John Cooper Works on a trailer rather than at the finish line in Hobart would tend to indicate that all didn’t end well.

So, while we were basking in the glow that Robbo and Tom were heading for a best ever finish—leading their category and racing towards a top 10 placing in the Modern outright classifications—fate dealt a cruel blow, with only two stages to go.

Robbo’s MINI broke a belt which meant a number of things went wrong, chief among them being no more alternator and the car was overheating. It couldn’t be driven through the final stages without causing terminal engine failure and there was no time to fix the car before the next stage.

And that, as they say, is motor racing.

Jason and John White have overcome final day electrical gremlins to claim their third Targa Tasmania title today (2005, 2010, 2012)—their second at the wheel of a Lamborghini Gallardo.

The Whites started the day losing ground to Tony Quinn (Nissan GT-R) in the morning’s opening two stages and saw almost half of their 2 minute 25 second advantage disappear.

Some quick repairs to the Lambo’s electrics before the epic Mt Arrowsmith stage soon had the Whites back on the charge. Sensing a need to respond Jason White put in an astonishing drive to ‘clean’ the 58.55km Mt Arrowsmith stage, the longest in the rally, and regain virtually all of the time lost.

In the end they went on to win by a relatively comfortable 2 minutes 27 seconds from Quinn. Targa legend Jim Richards (Porsche 911 GT2 RS) snuck into third place after mechanical dramas ended Brendan Reeves’ (Mazda RX8-SP) podium hopes.

You’ll recall the White’s blew an engine, with only 120km on the clock, during the media day immediately before Targa Tasmania began, so today’s win will go some way to ease the financial pain felt after fitting a new motor.

For the sixth year in a row Rex Broadbent (1974 Porsche 911 Carrera RS) won the Classic outright category. Although a spin on Mt Arrowmsith would have caused him a few moments of concern. Jon Siddons (1970 Datsun 240Z) finished just over 1 minute behind. John Ireland (1977 Porsche 911 Carrera) came home in third, a long way behind the leading pair.

Simon Evans (Mazda3 MPS) won the 2WD Showroom category, while local Jamie Vandenburg (Mitsubishi Lancer Evo IX) won the 4WD class.

For access to final Targa Tasmania results click here: ausm.tv/tt2012

With thanks to Tasmania’s Southern Cross TV we can bring you this excellent in-car comparison from Targa Tasmania. On top of screen is Jason White in a Lamborghini Gallardo, below is Matt Close in an Audi TT RS. At the time, White was leading the event in Modern outright and Close was in third place.

The tarmac covered is TS19 Castra from Day 3 (click here to access a map of the stage). The Lambo was five seconds quicker over the 7.73km stage and it’s interesting to see where it was able to build its lead.

As we type the Targa Tasmania crews will be tackling the final day of competition, including the monster 58.55km Mt Arrowsmith stage. We bring you three videos to show what happened on Day 4.

Well, mostly. Matt Close crashed his Audi TT RS on the Riana stage and injured his back. According to the official Targa Tasmania update driver Matt Close was taken to Burnie Hospital for observation, while navigator Casey Close was okay. So far we’ve not seen any footage of the crash, but wish Matt a speedy recovery.

Jason White (Lamborghini Gallardo) led the event at the end of Day 4, with a 2 minute 25 second margin over Tony Quinn (Nissan GT-R). Following the retirement of the Closes, Brendan Reeves (Mazda RX8-SP) moved into third place, 4 minutes 4 seconds behind White.

The top two placings in the Classic outright class remain the same, Rex Broadbent (1974 Porsche 911 Carrera RS) holds a 3 minute 12 second lead over Jon Siddin (1970 Datsun 240Z). While former third placeholder Donn Todd has struck trouble and dropped down the field. John Ireland (1977 Porsche 911 Carrera) is now third in Classic, almost 15 minutes off the lead.

For access to full Targa Tasmania results click here: ausm.tv/tt2012

As Targa Tasmania enters its fourth day here’s an update of what happened on Day 3. Mostly it was a good day for the leaders of the two main categories, with both Jason White (Lamborghini Gallardo) and Rex Broadbent (1974 Porsche 911 Carrera RS) extending their leads in the Modern and Classic outright classes respectively.

White holds a lead of 1 minute 48 seconds over Tony Quinn (Nissan GT-R), with Matt Close (Audi TT RS) 2 minutes 16 seconds behind the leader.

Broadbent extended his lead on a tricky third day to a comfortable 3 minutes 7 seconds, with Jon Siddons (1970 Datusn 240Z) holding on to to second place. Siddons has a 1 minute 41 second buffer over Donn Todd (1971 Ford Capri Perana).

Simon Evans (Mazda3 MPS) leads the 2WD showroom class from Gavin James (Renault Megans RS 250), while Jamie Vandenburg (Mitsubishi Lancer Evo IX) currently tops the 4WD showroom category  ahead of Dean Evans (Mitsubishi Lancer Evo X).

For access to full Targa Tasmania results click here: ausm.tv/tt2012

Wet weather greeted the field in Targa Tasmania on Day 2 of competition. Sadly, that meant a fair bit of bent metal, as you’ll see in the videos below.

Jason White continues to lead the Modern outright class in his Lambo. He enjoys a 48 second buffer to defending champ Tony Quinn in a Nissan GT-R. The big mover was Matt Close in the Audi TT RS,moving from sixth place into third, an even one minute behind White.

In the Classic outright competition things are a bit tighter, Rex Broadbent has his 1974 Porsche Carrera RS 14 seconds ahead of the awesome sounding 1970 Datsun 240Z driven by Jon Siddons. In third place, only 29 seconds behind the Porsche is Donn Todd in his 1971 Ford Capri Perana.

For quick access to Targa Tasmania stage results click here: ausm.tv/tt2012

UPDATE 21 April: New Day 2 highlights clip added below.

Targa Tasmania began in earnest yesterday. As you can see Matt Rickards didn’t make the best of starts having a minor off in his Mazda RX8-SP in the early part of the day.

At the end of the day Jason White (Lamborghini Gallardo) held a 13 second lead in the Modern outright category over Tony Quinn (Nissan GT-R), while Brendan Reeves (Mazda RX8-SP) was 48 seconds behind in third.

Leading the Classic outright category was the seemingly unstoppable Rex Broadbent (1974 Porsche 911 Carrera RS), a slender eight seconds ahead of Jon Siddons (1970 Datsun 240Z). Donn Todd (1971 Ford Capri Perana) was 23 seconds behind Broadbent.

For quick access to Targa Tasmania stage results click here: ausm.tv/tt2012

If you’ve not been paying attention you’ll have missed that Targa Tasmania started earlier in the week. We’ve not helped the cause by being a bit lax with our updates. To help make up there’s a selection of videos after the break showing the action from Day 0, otherwise known as Prologue day. It’s a pretty informal day of ‘competition’ where the results only count to the daily starting order for the rally proper.

Previous winner Jason White got off to a poor start when he blew an engine in his Lamborghini Gallardo on the media day. Thankfully he was able to put things right before the prologue. So much so that he posted the fastest time in the Modern outright category on the George Town stage.

Five-time Classic outright winner Rex Broadbent was back on form in his 1974 Porsche 911 Carrera RS, too; quickest in George Town by 2.8 seconds from Jon Siddons in his 1970 Datson 240Z.

For quick access to Targa Tasmania stage results click here: ausm.tv/tt2012

Mazda has announced they will be entering three cars in this year’s Targa Tasmania, which starts next week.

Driving two specially prepared turbocharged Mazda RX-8 SPs (pictured above during last year’s prologue) will be young rally-ace Brendan Reeves and newcomer Matt Rickards. They will be guided by experienced navigators Rhiannon Smyth and Bernie Webb respectively.

The third Mazda Motorsports entry will be a Mazda3 MPS driven by husband and wife duo of Simon and Sue Evans.

Allan Horsley, Mazda Motorsport boss, says the team is keen to make its presence felt. “We’ve got a good mix of youth and experience with each of our drivers extremely capable behind the wheel,” he said.

“And with the long term forecast predicting that we’ll see some rain during Targa, this presents a great opportunity for the two-wheel Mazdas, which handle exceptionally well in the wet, to gain some time on our four-wheel-drive rivals.”

Mazda Motorsport’s Triple Targa Tasmania Assault

Mazda Motorsport has today confirmed a three-pronged assault on next week’s Targa Tasmania rally, the final round of the Australian Targa Championship.

The team will field two RX-8 SPs and a Mazda3 MPS to attack the grueling tarmac event which covers 586 competitive kilometers over six action-packed days.

Australia’s best young rally duo, Brendan Reeves and Rhianon Smyth, will again be in control of Mazda’s turbo rotary RX-8 SP and hoping to follow on from their successful first outing in the car where they secured third place at January’s Targa Wrest Point rally.

Despite limited competitive time in the RX-8 SP, recent testing has strengthened the bond between car and crew and a podium place will be the goal for Reeves and Smyth.

Matt Rickards makes his competitive debut for Mazda Motorsport at Targa Tasmania after he impressed with a strong showing at Targa Wrest Point which saw him secure fourth spot outright ahead of eight-time Targa winner Jim Richards.

Returning for the fourth consecutive year with Mazda Motorsport, Bernie Webb brings his significant co-driving experience to the team and will be the perfect partner for Rickards as he attempts to pilot the RX-8 SP to victory.

Experienced husband and wife team and four-time Australian rally champions, Simon and Sue Evans, are also back for Targa Tasmania and with the showroom-spec Mazda3 MPS as their weapon they are hoping to add to outright showroom-class wins at Targa High Country and Targa Wrest Point that would see them secure the Australian Targa Championship in their first year with the team.

Mazda Motorsport boss Allan Horsley is confident in the team’s ability to mount a strong challenge. “We’ve got a good mix of youth and experience with each of our drivers extremely capable behind the wheel. And with the long term forecast predicting that we’ll see some rain during Targa, this presents a great opportunity for the two-wheel Mazdas, which handle exceptionally well in the wet, to gain some time on our four-wheel-drive rivals.”

It’s a tough gig being a navigator in a competitive rally. Especially if your driver misses a call. Thankfully, in this footage from Targa Tasmania, driver Kym Illman and navigator Kirrilee Gentleman were not injured and we can indulge a few lighthearted moments. Although, let’s hope Kirrilee is wearing a HANS device when she next straps herself into a rally car.

The accident happened on the Riana stage and full footage of that stage leading up to the 190km/h crash can also be seen after the break.

[via Motorcentral]

At this year’s Targa Tasmania rally Porsche was celebrating two anniversaries, the first being the 20th running of Tasmania’s ultimate tarmac rally, the second being the 60th anniversary of Porsche in Australia.

The Porsche Musuem shipped over at least four cars to Australia to run in the event, including the iconic 911 SC to be driven by Walter Röhrl and Christian Geistdörfer; just as they did at the 1981 San Remo rally. There was even a Carrera GT road car on the Apple Isle during Targa. Clearly then, Porsche was taking this event very seriously.

You get the sense they were hoping Röhrl would write a fairytale story by winning the classic outright category, with Jim Richards to join in the winning fun in modern outright at the wheel of his 911 GT2 RS. In the end a driveshaft problem for Röhrl and a blown hose for Richards put paid to those hopes.

However, Porsche did have cause to celebrate when Rex Broadbent piloted his 911 Carrera RS to a fifth consecutive classic outright Targa Tasmania title.

After the break you can see how the Porsche media team captured the event over the course of the rally, as well as downloading three bonus AUSmotive wallpaper-friendly images. Simply click on any of the pics to view them in 2000px sizing.

Tony Quinn and Naomi Tillett today held on to win their second Targa Tasmania rally in three years. In their Nissan GT-R the 2009 champs carried a comfortable lead into the final day and drove well to secure victory by 3 minutes and 39 seconds.

Wet weather on the last two days certainly provided tough conditions for all competitors and many found their limits. Yesterday, especially, claimed many competitors with the heavy rain in the afternoon.

Second in the modern outright placings was Dean Herridge (Subaru WRX STi), almost two minutes ahead of Matthew Sims (Nissan GT-R).

Winner in the classic outright category was Rex Broadbent (Porsche 911 Carrera 911 RS), from David Cooper (Holden Torana A9X) and Nick Ellis (Porsche 911 Carrera). This makes it five wins on the trot for Broadbent in the classic competition.

The 2WD showroom category was won by young rally charge Brendan Reeves (Mazda 3 MPS), a dominant 10:54 clear of his nearest rival. Second in the category was Mike Sinclair (Skoda Octavia RS), ahead of Adam Dodd (Mazda MX-5).

In the all-paw showroom grouping Scott Millar (Mitsubishi Lancer Evo X) finished 8:32 ahead of Ralph Norton (Subaru WRX STi). Tony Warren (Mitsubishi Lancer Evo X) was a further 27 seconds behind in third.

For AUSmotive our experience as service crew ended on a high note with Andrew Robinson and Dennis Neagle piloting their MINI John Cooper Works home safely to earn their Targa plates. It was a big effort by the guys as the car was well down on its true potential after losing all turbo boost halfway through Day 2. We capped off the rally with a tidy win at Tas Keno, as well.

Video sourced via the Southern Cross TV YouTube channel has been added below. A full list of results for all categories is available HERE.

After another dramatic day on Tasmania’s roads it now appears as though the 2011 Targa Tasmania title is Tony Quinn’s to lose. At the wheel of his Nissan GT-R, the 2009 Targa winner has extended his lead in the modern outright category to over two minutes.

The Audi TT RS of Matt Close remains in second place, while Matthew Sims in a Nissan GT-R has held on to his third place. More fancied competitors such as Steve Glenney (Mazda RX8 SP) and Kevin Weeks (Lamborghini Gallardo) suffered accident and mechanical problems that put them out of the race.

It was a pleasant surprise to see the Porsche 911 SC of Walter Röhrl at the Silverdome this morning and he rejoined the action with a 20 minute time penalty following yesterday’s issues.

Andrew Miedecke (Ford Perana) is leading classic outright by 53 seconds. Brendan Reeves continues his stranglehold on the 2WD showroom category enjoying a lead of more than five minutes.

It was a better day for AUSmotive’s team leader Andrew Robinson too. While the MINI John Cooper Works is still failing to make boost Robbo was able to negotiate an otherwise trouble-free day. Importantly, all times were met to maintain eligibility for Targa plates and that now remains the goal for the next two days.

Televsion highlights from Southern Cross TV can be seen after the break. This includes footage the Alfa Romeo GTV accident shown above.

Targa Tasmania claimed some big scalps today, enabling Tony Quinn (Nissan GT-R) to extend his lead in the Modern outright category to healthy 1 minute 32 seconds. Quinn’s closest rivals, Jason White (Lamborghini Gallardo) and  Steve Glenney (Mazda RX8 SP), both suffered dramas today and sit outside of the top 10.

Matt Close (Audi TT RS) now sits in second place, with Matthew Sims (Nissan GT-R) in third a further one second behind.

Unfortunately for rally organisers, international drawcard Walter Röhrl was forced to retire from the event today after his Porsche 911 SC succumbed to mechanical gremlins.

Meanwhile, AUSmotive’s fortunes also took a dive with Andrew Robinson’s MINI John Cooper Works having boost issues for the latter part of the day. During our afternoon service checks we also discovered some suspension damage that needed urgent attention. The car is ready to race again tomorrow, but the boost problem was not resolved and the MINI will be running more like a standard Cooper.

Televsion highlights from Southern Cross TV can be seen after the break.

Tony Quinn leads Targa Tasmania after Day 1 of the island rally. Negotiating his Nissan GT-R successfully through the opening day the 2009 Targa Tasmania winner holds a narrow three second lead in the modern outright category. In second place is yesterday’s Prologue winner Jason White. Sitting nicely in third, 27 seconds behind the leader, is 2008 Targa champion Steve Glenney in his Mazda RX8 SP.

Brendan Reeves, driving a Mazda 3 MPS, leads the 2WD showroom category by a comfortable 65 seconds from Mike Sinclair, who is at the wheel of a Skoda Ovtavia RS wagon.

In classic outright a Torana A9X driven by David Cooper is 12 seconds in front of Andrew Miedecke, who is at the wheel of a Ford Perana. Two-time world rally champion Walter Röhrl sits in equal fifth place just over one minute behind Cooper.

Closer to AUSmotive’s immediate interests, Andrew Robinson is leading his class (9MSB) in his MINI John Cooper Works and sits in sixth in category. He had a good day overall, with just a minor off causing damage to the front-left rim. With a spare wheel fitted “Robbo” is now all set for a big Day 2 in Tasmania’s north east.

Televsion highlights from Southern Cross TV can be seen after the break.