The winner came 30 seconds from the fourth minute of added time.
Jay Emmanuel-Thomas stepped inside a tackle, took aim, and fired low and true beyond Bolton keeper Ben Amos.
Did Rs deserve it after going behind 2-0, then recovering to take a 3-2 lead, and let that slip as well?
Answer: just about. But both sides put themselves on the line for a fabulous game on a sunny afternoon.
It's been a long week for Tjaronn Chery.
A villain last week when he sulked off at Fulham, and now a marvellous drive to turn it round for Rangers.
Alas, it wasn't to be the winner.
A porous defence leaked a third when Bolton sub Wellington Silva used his right boot to cut inside and fire past Rob Green - even if the Rs keeper got a hand to it after Rangers and Chery stood the game on its head.
QPR defended the first two Bolton goals like they had met each other in the tunnel before the start.
Liam Feeney swung in an early cross and Gary Madine was left very much alone to glance a header past Green.
As much as the Hoops keeper could do nothing about the first, there was a question mark over the second.
It was more prod than shot from Darren Pratley, but the Rangers keeper took an age to get down to his left, could only parry the ball and Feeney scooped home.
Home heads were down - but not for long.
Nedum Onuoha tested the keeper with a header at the back post, and then Tjaronn Chery curled a cross for Emmanuel-Thomas to head beyond Ben Amos.
The leveller was its twin. This time Phillips was the provider, and Thomas' initial header was saved by the keeper, only for Leroy Fer to scramble the ball over the line.
It was 180 degrees for Rs when Chery took an age to tee the ball up way over the left. But what a tee! His right-foot curling shot was 22 yards, over the keeper and into the top corner - a brilliant goal by anyone's standards.
Before the game, fans protested at the price of a football ticket. There are not many in the 16,000 crowd who would have minded paying double for this thriller.
