"It's pretty exciting," Reynolds said of topping qualifying. "I might have gotten lucky with the conditions but I tried to put a good lap in - safe and fast."
McLaughlin was chuffed to not only qualify on the front of the grid but also finish the lap safely.
"That was the toughest and scariest lap of my life," he said. "Finding the right speed and grip conditions was hard, and braking was difficult as well. I'm just thankful I have a clean car.
"We were lucky with the rain. We got on the track at the right time. The hardest thing was not knowing where to brake, how much road you could use or where it was going to be slippery, especially with the new surface. It was a bloody good feeling. Hopefully me and Frenchy (Alexandre Premat) can make up for the problems last year.
"It's a good start with no one in front of you. Hopefully we get a start where we can get into a rhythm in what are expected to be changeable conditions.
"My starts have been absolutely rubbish this year, so I'll see how we go. Dave's pretty good off the line."
Shane Van Gisbergen in a Holden qualified sixth fastest and Fabian Coulthard, who was fastest in the first qualifying session, was ninth.
With championship leader Mark Winterbottom starting back in 14th and his Prodrive team-mate, and second placed, Chaz Mostert out after his crash in practice, there is opportunity for Reynolds and other contenders to make their mark in the biggest race of the year.
The 161-lap, 1000km race starts at 1pm (NZT).
Today's racing was marred by another serious crash with V8 Supercars support category driver Damien Flack airlifted to hospital following a horror crash barely 24 hours after Mostert's shock accident.
Aussie Racing Car Series driver Flack is believed to have suffered broken ribs and a punctured lung after his vehicle went into a spectacular roll on Conrod Straight before catching fire track-side.
Flack received contact from behind by his brother Adrian during the race and spun before rolling six times at a speed of up to 230kph.
Officials said Flack was "alert and talking" when medical staff arrived at the scene before he was taken by helicopter to Liverpool hospital in a stable condition.
The crash came barely a day after Mostert broke a leg and wrist in a Bathurst 1000 qualifying accident that also injured three trackside officials. Mostert was airlifted to Orange hospital where he had surgery today and is expected to be ruled out for the rest of the season with five rounds left.
