The 1976 Southern Cross was the pinnacle of success as measured by international participation. Crew members came from ten countries other than Australia and, of course, from every state of Australia. More than half the drivers were from overseas, with 41 cars imported from overseas for the event. World class international drivers included Timo Makinen and Roger Clark in Ford Escorts, Harry Kallstrom, Rauno Aaltonen, Shekhar Mehta and Per-Inge Walfridsson in Datsun 710s, Andrew Cowan in a Mitsubishi Lancer and Archim Warmbold in a BMW. Of these, only Cowan, Mehta and Walfridsson would feature in the final results. Australia's best drivers of the time were all there including past Southern Cross winners Barry Ferguson and Colin Bond, reigning Australian Champion Ross Dunkerton, the fancied George Fury and up and coming Greg Carr. New Zealanders Mike Marshall and Blair Robson were both in Ford Escorts, with three other NZ entries. A large Japanese contingent of 20 entries was once again lead by Kenjiro Shinozuka, with entries also from the Philippines and New Caledonia.
| No. | Entrant | Driver | Country/ State | Co-Driver | Country/ State | Car |
| 1 | Ford Motor Company of Australia | Timo Makinen | Finland | Henry Liddon | England | Ford Escort RS 1800 |
| 2 | Ford Motor Company of Australia | Roger Clark | England | Jim Porter | England | Ford Escort RS 1800 |
| 3 | Nissan Motor Australia | Harry Kallstrom | Sweden | Roger Bonhomme | Victoria | Datsun 710 SSS |
| 4 | Nissan Motor Australia | Shekhar Mehta | Kenya | Adrian Mortimer | S.A | Datsun710 SSS |
| 5 | BMW Australia Pty. Ltd. | Achim Warmbold | Germany | Jean Todt | France | BMW 320 |
| 6 | Mitsubishi (Australia) Pty. Ltd. | Andrew Cowan | Scotland | Fred Gocentas | A.C.T. | Mitsubishi Lancer |
| 7 | Nissan Motor Australia | Rauno Aaltonen | Finland | Jeff Beaumont | Victoria | Datsun 710 SSS |
| 8 | Nissan Motor Australia | George Fury | N.S.W. | Monty Suffern | Victoria | Datsun 710 SSS |
| 9 | Mitsubishi (Australia) Pty. Ltd. | Barry Ferguson | N.S.W. | Neil Faulkner | N.S.W. | Mitsubishi Lancer |
| 10 | Gerry Ball Tuning Service | Greg Carr | A.C.T. | Wayne Gregson | A.C.T. | Datsun 710 SSS |
| 11 | M. I. Marshall | Mike Marshall | N.Z. | Arthur McWatt | N.Z. | Ford Escort RS 1800 |
| 12 | Marlboro Holden Dealer Team | Colin Bond | N.S.W. | George Shepheard | N.S.W. | Holden Torana L34 |
| 13 | R. Dunkerton | Ross Dunkerton | W.A. | Ben Williams | W.A. | Datsun 260Z |
| 14 | K. Shinozuka | Kenjiro Shinozuka | Japan | Garry Connelly | Qld. | Mitsubishi Lancer |
| 15 | Chateau Moteur | Dean Rainsford | S.A. | Rob Hunt | S.A. | Porsche Carrera |
| 16 | Nissan Motor Australia | Per-Inge Walfridsson | Sweden | Peter Godden | N.S.W. | Datsun 710 SSS |
| 17 | C. Porter | Blair Robson | N.Z. | Chris Porter | N.Z. | Ford Escort RS 1800 |
| 18 | D. S. Silverio | Dante Silverio | Philippines | Siegfredo Fuentes | Philippines | Toyota Corolla Levin |
| 19 | Mitsubishi (Australia) Pty. Ltd. | Doug Stewart | N.S.W. | John Dawson-Damer | N.S.W. | Mitsubishi Lancer |
| 20 | TBA | Evan Green | N.S.W. | John Bryson | N.S.W | Alfa Alfetta GT |
| 21 | J. L. Leyraud | Jean Louis Leyraud | New Caledonia | Therry Corsin | New Caledonia | BMW 2002ti |
| 22 | B. T. Hodgson | Bruce Hodgson | N.S.W. | Chris Heaney | A.C.T. | Ford Escort RS 2000 |
| 23 | R. Soulard | Robert Soulard | New Caledonia | Jean Mouledous | N.S.W. | Renault Alpine |
| 24 | Grenville Motors Pty. Ltd. | James Laing-Peach | N.S.W. | Barry Lake | N.S.W. | Lancia Beta Coupe 1800 |
| 25 | J. Reddiex | Jim Reddiex | Qld. | Greg Sked | Qld. | Citroen CX 2200 |
| 26 | R. Jackson | Bob Jackson | N.S.W. | Holden Torana XU1 | ||
| 27 | D. Bond | David Bond | Victoria | Ian Richards | Victoria | Mitsubishi Lancer |
| 28 | A. Crawford | Peter Janson | Victoria | Paul Paterson | Victoria | Mitsubishi Lancer |
| 29 | Tony Matson Suspension Service Qld. | Adrian Taylor | Qld. | John Suominen | Qld. | Honda Civic |
| 30 | C. Taylor | Colin Taylor | N.Z. | Ken Foulkes | N.Z. | Ford Escort RS 1800 |
| 31 | M. Coote | Murray Coote | Qld | Brian Marsden | Qld. | Datsun 1200 |
| 33 | A. J. Brough/M. J. Gall | Alan Brough | N.Z. | Mike Gall | N.Z. | Toyota Trueno |
| 34 | I. W. Hill | Ian Hill | N.S.W. | Graham Roser | N.S.W. | Mitsubishi Lancer |
| 35 | R. Jackson | Ross Jackson | N.S.W. | Peter Berriman | N.S.W. | Datsun 180B SSS |
| 36 | Stones Corner Motors Pty. Ltd. | Hank Kabel | Qld. | Simon Kabel | Qld. | Mazda RX3 Coupe |
| 37 | K. Cleghorn | Ken Cleghorn | N.Z. | Tim Gibbes | N.Z. | TBA |
| 38 | G. Bevan | Gary Beven | A.C.T. | John MacDonald | A.C.T. | Datsun 1600 SSS |
| 39 | Y. Iwashita | Yoshio Iwashita | Japan | Nobu Yasuoka | Japan | Datsun PB 210 |
| 40 | B. K. Dyer | Barry Dyer | N.S.W. | Brian McQuirk | N.S.W. | Subaru Coupe |
| 41 | B. Cheesman | Bruce Cheesman | N.S.W. | Fred Thomas | N.S.W. | Mitsubishi Lancer |
| 42 | K. Ishiguro | Kunio lshiguro | Japan | Masahiro Tominaga | Japan | Mitsubishi Lancer |
| 43 | The Road & Rally Centre | Frank Neale | N.S.W. | Eric Vigar | N.S.W. | Mitsubishi Lancer |
| 44 | Bryne Ford Pty. Ltd. | Fred Thompson | Qld. | David Kortland | Qld. | Ford Escort RS 2000 |
| 45 | J. C. Johnson | Jim Johnson | N.Z. | Neil Cruckshanks | N.Z. | Lancia Beta Coupe 2000 |
| 46 | M. Ayabe | Mitso Ayabe | Japan | Shigeru Imai | Japan | Toyota Trueno |
| 47 | D. J. Coulter | Doug Coulter | N.S.W. | Kerry Anderson | N.S.W. | Mitsubishi Lancer |
| 48 | G. Meehan | Gary Meehan | N.S.W. | Martin Fell | N.S.W. | Toyota Corolla |
| 49 | G. Mecak | Gary Mecak | N.S.W. | John Trumpmanis | N.S.W. | Mazda RX3 |
| 50 | S. Enjitsu | Susumu Enjitsu | Japan | Shiro Kawabe | Japan | Mitsubishi Lancer |
| 51 | D. Balmain | David Balmain | N.S.W. | Guenter Nowacki | N.S.W. | Mitsubishi Lancer |
| 52 | J. Kato | Junichiro Kato | Masayuki Yamashita | Japan | Subaru | |
| 53 | H. Satoh | Hideya Satoh | Japan | Tarao Mitsuaki | Japan | Mitsubishi Lancer |
| 54 | I. Kakuchi | Isao Kakuchi | Japan | Tatsuhiko Kawaguchi | Japan | Honda Civic |
| 55 | Gerry Ball Tuing Service | Peter Gaudron | N.S.W. | Graeme Pigram | N.S.W. | Datsun 1600 |
| 56 | Bathurst Light Car Club | Rodney Jones | N.S.W. | Arthur Davis | N.S.W. | Datsun 180B SSS |
| 57 | Team Route 6 Japan | Takao Nagayama | Japan | Mitsuhiro Kogima | Japan | Toyota Corolla |
| 58 | Dr. J. Munro | John Munro | Victoria | Wal Harris | Victoria | Datsun 180B |
| 59 | H. Watanabe | Hiroshi Watanabe | Japan | Koji Watanabe | Japan | Toyota Trueno |
| 60 | A. J. Hunter | Allan Hunter | N.S.W. | Bruce Partridge | N.S.W. | Datsun 610 Bluebird |
| 61 | Team Route 6 Japan | Kuniharu Ujima | Japan | Kazuyoshi Funaki | Japan | Honda Civic |
| 62 | R. Marks | Ron Marks | N.S.W. | Graeme Gillies | N.S.W. | Lancia Stratos |
| 63 | Team Route 6 Japan | Ikuo Maki | Japan | Yasuo Komori | Japan | Datsun 610 Bluebird |
| 64 | B. E. Clark | Brian Clark | N.S.W. | Peter Hardy | N.S.W. | Mitsubishi Galant |
| 65 | A. Tezuna | Akira Tezuna | Japan | Yukio Iwashita | Japan | Mitsubishi Lancer |
| 66 | A. F. Ryan | Alan Ryan | Qld. | Peter Whalley | Qld. | Holden Torana |
| 67 | P. Bramble | Paul Bramble | N.S.W. | Stephen Bradley | N.S.W. | Mitsubishi Galant |
| 68 | Team Route 6 Japan | Kazuo Hamada | Japan | Takeshi Kekoya | Japan | Datsun Sunny |
| 69 | W. C. Adams Racing | Bill Adams | N.S.W. | Kevin Snowball | N.S.W. | Holden Torana XU1 |
| 70 | North Shore Sporting Car Club | John Graydon | N.S.W. | John Sullivan | N.S.W. | Datsun 1200 |
| 71 | R. Johnson | Bob Johnson | N.S.W. | Steve Halloran | N.S.W. | Mitsubishi Lancer |
| 72 | Y. Nakamura | Yoshihiro Nakamura | Japan | Mashiro Yoshitake | Japan | Datsun 710 |
| 74 | M. Fukada | Michimasa Fukada | Japan | Katsuhiro Aoki | Japan | Isuzu PF 50 |
| 75 | Road & Rally Centre | Philip Dodd | N.S.W. | Ken Smith | N.S.W. | Datsun 180B SSS |
| 76 | Team Route 6 Japan | Hisashi Shimura | Japan | Kazuo Takahashi | Japan | Honda Civic |
| 77 | R. M. Moore | Bob Moore | A.C.T. | Roger Moore | N.S.W. | Mitsubishi Lancer |
| 78 | H. Kunimasa | Hisao Kunimasa | Japan | Toshiaki Fukui | Japan | Mitsubishi Lancer |
| 79 | The Road & Rally Centre | Geoff Goodwin | N.S.W. | Arthur Evans | N.S.W. | Datsun 1200 Coupe |
| 80 | K. Koyama | Kenji Koyama | Japan | Akio Koyama | Japan | Toyota Celica |
| 81 | I. Monk | Ian Monk | A.C.T. | Jarp Emmelkamp | N.S.W. | Peugeot 504 |
| 82 | R. Rotondo | Ruggero Rotondo | N.S.W. | Enrico Zanarini | N.S.W. | Alfa Alfasud T1 |
| 83 | K. Kitaura | Kengo Kitaura | Japan | Kanji Nakayama | Japan | Toyota Corolla |
| 84 | W. J. Slater | Wilf Slater | N.S.W. | Gordon Slater | N.S.W. | Mini Cooper S |
| 86 | D. Mulholland | Doug Mulholland | N.S.W. | Gwyn Mulholland | N.S.W. | Cortina 1600 |
| 87 | New South Wales Car Club | John Stanton | N.S.W. | Ross Hearne | N.S.W. | Mini GT |
| 88 | B. Ashworth | Brian Mcllvenna | N.S.W. | Barbara Ashworth | N.S.W. | Ford Capri GT |
| 89 | C. Ryder | Joyce Ryder | N.S.W. | Charlie Ryder | N.S.W. | Mitsubishi Lancer |
| 90 | Christian Autosports Car Club | Keith Downie | N.S.W. | Wayne Simeon | N.S.W. | Mazda RX2 |
Car 32 Reserved for Rally Organisers Association of New Zealand (RQANZ) 1976 Championship Winner
Cars 73 and 85 Withdrawn
