The cover has been blown and the word is out – the V6 engine has hit the track.
Due to make its competitive debut in the Supercars Championship in 2019, the six cylinder, twin-turbocharged engine was tested in the Triple Eight Sandman at Norwell Motorplex on Monday and Wednesday earlier this week with Jamie Whincup, Craig Lowndes and Steve Richards all taking a turn behind the wheel.
Although reluctant to spill too many beans, Roland “RD” Dane reported that the test was a success.
“We’re very pleased with the initial running. GM Racing in the US have given us a great base to work off.”
The topic on everyone’s lips will most certainly be the noise. How does it sound?!
“Awesome! We’ll let people in on it soon.”
Hmm, still not giving much away there, are you, Boss?
This is a major change for both Triple Eight and the category that the guys and girls at Red Bull Holden Racing Team HQ have been working on tirelessly behind the scenes since the announcement of the switch last August.
“A huge amount of work has been done already, both at GM Racing in Pontiac, Michigan and also here in Queensland,” RD said. “There’s still plenty more to do, but we’re now going to crack on with the development behind closed doors.”
In the absence of a spare car at Triple Eight this year (it’s currently Paul Dumbrell’s trusty steed in the Super2 Series) the Sandman has been called up for duty, with noticeable modifications made to the front bar and bonnet to accommodate the air in-take and intercooler ducts.
“There aren’t any advantages or disadvantages to running the engine in the Sandman for what we’re doing at the moment,” continued RD. “It’s about getting kilometres on the engine and understanding what it needs at this point to prepare it for racing in Supercars.
“It’s not far away from being competitive, but Supercars is a very competitive category, so we can’t leave anything on the table.”
So, Boss, what’s the plan from here?
“Work hard. And in private!”
Here’s a taster of the action from Wednesday’s test:
