With the demise of JPS Team BMW, Longhurst started his own touring car team in 1988, which based itself on the Gold Coast behind the Longhurst family owned Dreamworld. Both Gardner and Terry Morris would take a shareholding in the team which became known as LoGaMo Racing. For sponsorship reasons the team was known by various names during its time including Freeport Motorsport and Benson & Hedges Racing.
Initially running the powerful Ford Sierra RS500 from 1988 to 1990, Longhurst won the 1988 Bathurst 1000 driving with Tomas Mezera. The car (pictured right) remains on display at the National Motor Racing Museum, which is located on the outside of the final turn of the famous Mount Panorama Circuit. Longhurst also won his first championship round in 1988 at Amaroo. The team then used the evolution model BMW M3 from 1991 to 1993, and Longhurst finished a career-best third in both 1991 and 1992. In this period, Longhurst saw particular success at Lakeside International Raceway, winning three rounds at the circuit in 1988, 1991 and 1992.[5]
Outside the ATCC, Longhurst was the only driver to have won five of the now defunct AMSCAR series run at Sydney's Amaroo Park circuit. He won the series in 1986 (BMW 325i), 1987 (BMW M3), 1989 and 1990 (Ford Sierra RS500) and 1991 (BMW M3 Evolution). Longhurst also saw success in the New Zealand endurance events held for Group A regulations. In 1992 he won the Wellington 500 in the team's BMW M3 and came 3rd in the 1989 event.[7] He also finished 3rd in 1989 and 2nd in 1986 in the Pukekohe 500 event which was held in conjunction with the Wellington event.
In 2003, Longhurst only entered the endurance races, pairing with Jim Richards as he had done in the 1980s. He would sign for Perkins Engineering in 2004, but did not see out the full season. In 2005, Longhurst bought the license for Team Dynamik's second car, running the No. 45 car for Max Wilson under WOW Sight & Sound sponsorship.[10] Following Simon Wills's rollover at the Sandown 500, Longhurst purchased the remaining license from Team Dynamik and replaced Wills as Wilson's co-driver for the following round at Bathurst. He announced his retirement from competitive racing after the 2005 Bathurst 1000, where he and Brazilian co-driver Max Wilson failed to finish the race.[11]
He also made an appearance at the Targa Tasmania in 2005 and 2006, finishing fourth overall in the latter.
Retirement and comebacks
Despite his retirement announcement, Longhurst made two subsequent returns to the V8 Supercar Championship Series. In 2006, he was co-driver for Steve Owen in the Rod Nash Racing AutoBarn Commodore. The pair put in solid drives finishing 12th at Sandown and 7th at Bathurst. Longhurst's final drive came at the 2007 Sandown 500 where he paired with Glenn Seton following a series of last minute driver swaps in the Holden Racing Team following Mark Skaife having surgery to remove his appendix.[12]
Longhurst continues to live on the Gold Coast in Queensland and owns and manages the Boat Works facility at Coomera.[16]
Before entering motorsport, Longhurst was successful in water skiing, holding the Australian speed record.[10]
^Greenhalgh, David; Howard, Graham; Wilson, Stewart (2011). The official history: Australian Touring Car Championship - 50 Years. St Leonards, New South Wales: Chevron Publishing Group. ISBN978-0-9805912-2-4.
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