1968 Bathurst – The Story of Car 14D
Car 14D was entered as a privateer entry in the 1968 Bathurst race, driven by Des West and Ron Marks. The car immediately showed strong pace during qualifying, securing second position on the grid, just 0.2 seconds behind pole sitter Bruce McPhee.
At the start of the race, the 14D Monaro quickly demonstrated its competitiveness. After an intense opening period, West managed to establish a solid lead. The car only relinquished first position when it came in for its initial fuel stop. Once back on track, 14D regained the lead, with the Gibson/Seaton Ford Falcon chasing closely behind.
There was some confusion during the race regarding the official running order. Ford lap charts initially indicated that the Falcon had taken the lead, however a mechanical failure caused by a broken piston soon ended that challenge. Further investigation into the lap scoring later revealed that Bruce McPhee had actually been leading ahead of the 14D car. McPhee and co-driver Mulholland in car 13D ultimately crossed the finish line in first place, with West and Marks finishing second in car 14D.
Following the race, scrutineers discovered that the inlet valves fitted to the engine did not match the original 327 specifications, leading to the disqualification of car 14D. During engine preparation the team had previously identified a faulty valve and sourced a replacement cylinder head from a Holden dealership. The replacement head featured slightly larger valves than the original component. After consulting with Holden, the team confirmed it was the correct replacement part for the engine.
A formal protest was lodged on the basis that the replacement valves were the only genuine components available through Holden at the time. Although officials later agreed that the team had not intentionally breached regulations, the disqualification remained in place.
