"My ambition is to win the Australian title and this is an important first step," round winner Scott Pedder said.
"The car was exceptional today, I am really looking forward to the rest of the season."
Second overall at the end of today's fourth round of the Globalstar Australian Rally Championship went to Toyota's Neal Bates, third in today's second Heat.
Bates, the surprise winner yesterday, again started steadily in his Corolla before closing the time gap to the leaders and moving into second place in the mid afternoon.
But in a battle that was measured in milliseconds, Subaru rival Juha Kangas grabbed second position and held it - just. Kangas was equal fourth overall for the round.
"To have missed the overall win so narrowly is a great shame but it's tremendous to be serious contenders at last ... everyone has worked so hard to achieve this, I am delighted," Neal Bates said.
Defending Globalstar Australian Rally Champion and 2005 series points leader Cody Crocker was fourth overall today, and third for the round.
Crocker, undefeated coming into the Toyota RallySA and short-odds favourite to continue his dominance of the 2005 national series, was steady but unspectacular today.
"RallySA was always going to be our weakest round and that's the way it panned out," Cody Crocker said.
"Next up is our home event, the Rally of Melbourne, and it's an event we always do well in so I think our championship aspirations are well on track."
A precautionary gearbox change during the day was Crocker's only hiccup.
Crocker continues to lead the Globalstar Australian Rally Championship series with 149 points, well clear of today's round winner Scott Pedder on 102 points.
Watched by a 30,000 strong crowd in the stages through the Barossa Valley forests, perhaps the day's most notable performance came from local South Australian Steve Glenney.
Privateer Glenney surprised all with his pace through the dry and dusty forest stages in the hills of the Barossa Valley, winning the day's opening Special Stage and thereafter driving with dogged determination to keep him at the sharp end of the field all day.
A final fifth position today earned him an outstanding fourth overall for the weekend, just reward for a strong performance..
