'Possum' Bourne

Obituary

New Zealand lost its best-known rally driver at the end of April after a freak road accident during preparations for the Race to the Sky Hillclimb.

‘Possum’ Bourne, 47, never recovered from injuries sustained in a head-on accident with a fellow competitor and died in hospital 11 days later. He is survived by his wife Peggy and three young children.

His rally career spanned 25 years and included seven Australian rally championships and three Asia-Pacific titles.

He was due to contest the Production Car category of the World Rally Championship this season with Subaru.

Hugely popular in his native country, Bourne’s success was instrumental in the establishment of Subaru in Australia and New Zealand.

Rallying has lost one of its good guys.