The focus areas of the latest round of Gen3 testing
01 Feb 2022
Testing of the Gen3 prototypes will recommence on Tuesday as part of the second block of planned track days.
The Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 and Ford Mustang GT Gen3 prototypes will take to Queensland Raceway on Tuesday and Friday.
Shane van Gisbergen and Broc Feeney will get behind the wheel of the Camaro on Tuesday, while James Courtney and Tim Slade will steer the Mustang.
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It will mark Slade’s first steer of the Gen3 prototype, with the others having previously sampled the respective cars.
The running will be centred on the reliability of the cars, with new parts to be tried and tested across the two days.
Drivers will conduct runs in high temperatures, with a high of 37 degrees expected at Queensland Raceway on Tuesday.
Drivers will also test 2022-specification Dunlop Super Soft tyres, before the focus shifts to cars following each other in a bid to gain data on the aerodynamics package.
"It's about revision and ironing out teething issues," category motorsport head Adrian Burgess told Supercars.com.
"We've got a little bit of work to do on the brake package; we need to make a decision on brake packages in the not too distant future.
"We'll also work on some of the engine ancillary systems.
"The anti-roll bar systems are in there, they're working and the car feels more balanced than it did, but we haven't ventured into the world of adjusting set-ups yet.
"Both cars are on a basic set-up; we're focusing on fixing small problems and putting miles on the cars."
Development moved into its latest phase midway through last month when the two prototypes took to the track for the first round of testing.
The cars had been fitted with a number upgrades, notably an anti-roll bar system.
The first week's testing was centred on mileage and ergonomics. Drivers also had an opportunity to acquaint themselves to the new cars and draw comparisons to the current Gen2 cars.
In time, attention will shift to performance, but the focus remains on reliability.
"We're not chasing lap time at the moment," Burgess said.
"Whilst we're keeping an eye on it, we're focusing on reliability and the fundamentals.
"We won't get into the performance side of things until teams take more control of the cars later in the year.
"But we have to make sure there is a similar balance car to car, with engines and aero, before we do that.
"We're constantly updating the cars."
Tuesday and Friday’s running will be open to the public.
The Gen3 Camaro and Mustang will debut in the 2023 Repco Supercars Championship.
On-track exhibitions of the Gen3 cars will be carried out at Supercars events throughout 2022.
