Welcome to my Website.
Bob Watson is a qualified mechanical engineer, former Australian and Victorian champion car rally driver, part time motoring journalist and motor sport event organizer.
Another book from Bob.
I have just finished writing the autobiography of Ross Dunkerton, Australia’s greatest rally driver. Titled DUNKO, the book traces Ross’s history in rallying, business and television from the early days of being a privateer competitor in VWs and Datsun 1600s to moving to the Datsun Rally team, then on to the Mitsubishi competition organization Ralliart. In this time Ross won five Australian Rally Championships, two Asia Pacific Rally Championships and a total of thirty seven International rallies. He had success in Australia, India, Malaysia, Indonesia and Thailand.
I was co-driver to Ross in the 1977 Singapore Airlines London – Sydney marathon, the longest rally in the world, with a distance of 30,000 kms over almost six weeks. We got to know one another fairly well, and I was in a good position to witness his rally driving skills.
One of Ross’s skills is as a story teller and after dinner speaker, and the book contains many of his anecdotes which are often long and always hilarious. He is the quintessential Aussie larrikin, but with a serious side.
Dunko will be launched at the first heat of the 2012 Australian Rally Championship, Rally Calder in March 2012. Click the 'DUNKO' link for full details and order form.
Bob commenced his working career as a mechanical engineer at Holdens at Fishermens Bend. After a short engineering cadetship he worked in the Experimental Department at Holden on engines, chassis and brakes. He became brake design engineer for Holden before leaving to follow a career in motor sport.
He won the Victorian Trials championship in 1968 and 1969, and in 1970 became Rally Competition Manager for Renault Australia, co-ordinating Renault’s rally program throughout Australia. He won the Australian Rally championship in 1970 driving a Renault R8 Gordini, and a further two Victorian championships in 1970 and 1973.
In 1973 Renault withdrew from motorsport and Bob returned to work at Holden as Resident Engineer for Bendix Automotive. In 1977 he was asked to organize a team of Peugeot cars for the Singapore Airlines London to Sydney Marathon and finished fifth overall, first in class and first all- Australian crew with team mates Ross Dunkerton and Roger Bonhomme.
At the conclusion of this successful project Bob opened a car repair and servicing workshop, Bob Watson’s Service Centre located in Hawthorn in Melbourne’s east in partnership with a friend and former Renault rally team mechanic, Bruce Shepherd.
In 1990 Bob sold his share of the business to Shepherd, and then began organizing a series of long distance rallies, including the Australian leg of the 1993 Lombard London to Sydney rally and the round Australia Mobil 1 Trial in 1995. The Mobil 1 Trial celebrated Mobil’s centenary in Australia and had 134 starters. It was won by Ed Ordynski and Ross Runnalls in a Holden Commodore.
In 1995 Bob returned to work at Holden, first in the Holden Engine Company and then as chassis engineer in the newly formed Asia Pacific Engineering group which was set up to engineer Opel products for the Asia Pacific region. He then joined the team that developed the Holden Adventra, the first AWD car designed and built in Australia, to develop all chassis components.
Leaving Holden yet again he assisted in the organizing of two Grand Prix Rallies in 2004/5, the Great Ocean Road Escape for Porsche in 2006, and then directed the 7500 km Red Centre to Gold Coast Trial in 2008. Bob was an inaugural inductee into the Victorian Rally Hall of Fame. He is the recipient of a Confederation of Australian Motor Sport Service Award, and is a life member of the Historic Rally Association. He has been a member of the committees of the Austin Seven Club of Victoria, The GMH Motoring Club, the Light Car Club of Australia, the Historic Rally Association and has served on numerous CAMS committees and sub committees.
