Round 3 of 16 · Midrand · 4 March 1978, Saturday
South African Grand Prix
Key highlights
Lauda
pole position
78
laps
12
finishers out of 26
| Pos | Driver | Team | Time / Gap | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Ronnie Peterson | Team Lotus | 1:42:15.767 | 9 |
| 2 | Patrick Depailler | Tyrrell | +0.466 | 6 |
| 3 | John Watson | Brabham | +4.442 | 4 |
| 4 | Alan Jones | Williams | +30.986 | 3 |
| 5 | Jacques Laffite | Ligier | +1:09.218 | 2 |
| 6 | Didier Pironi | Tyrrell | +1 Lap | 1 |
| 7 | Mario Andretti | Team Lotus | +1 Lap | |
| 8 | Jean-Pierre Jarier | ATS | +1 Lap | |
| 9 | Rolf Stommelen | Arrows | +1 Lap | |
| 10 | Hector Rebaque | Team Lotus | +1 Lap | |
| 11 | Brett Lunger | McLaren | +2 Laps | |
| 12 | Vittorio Brambilla | Surtees | +2 Laps | |
| DNF | Riccardo Patrese | Arrows | Engine | |
| DNF | Jody Scheckter | Wolf | Spun off | |
| DNF | Patrick Tambay | McLaren | Accident | |
| DNF | Gilles Villeneuve | Ferrari | Oil leak | |
| DNF | Carlos Reutemann | Ferrari | Spun off | |
| DNF | Niki Lauda | Brabham | Engine | |
| DNF | Rupert Keegan | Surtees | Engine | |
| DNF | Jochen Mass | ATS | Engine | |
| DNF | Arturo Merzario | Merzario | Suspension | |
| DNF | Jean-Pierre Jabouille | Renault | Engine | |
| DNF | Keke Rosberg | Theodore | Clutch | |
| DNF | Emerson Fittipaldi | Fittipaldi | Transmission | |
| DNF | Eddie Cheever | Hesketh | Oil leak | |
| DNF | James Hunt | McLaren | Engine | |
| DNQ | René Arnoux | Martini | Did not qualify | |
| DNQ | Clay Regazzoni | Shadow | Did not qualify | |
| DNQ | Lamberto Leoni | Ensign | Did not qualify | |
| DNQ | Hans-Joachim Stuck | Shadow | Did not qualify |
- DNF
- Did not finish
- DNQ
- Did not qualify