Not since the end of the Group A era three decades ago has Australia’s Supercars championship undergone a technical revolution as big as this one. Even the Gen2 cars were a clear evolution of the first five-litre Group 3A Holden Commodores and Ford Falcons that debuted way back in 1993. Of course, the product was refined over the journey.
Car of the Future, introduced in 2013, was a significant turning point with the introduction of a control chassis. But it was still an evolution of the V8-powered, four-door sedan formula. Gen3 is something new. The old highly strung V8 motors have been replaced by modern, production-based units. The new control chassis is specifically designed for two-door coupes.
There have never been more control parts. And downforce has been slashed in a bid to kill off aero wash once and for all. The key objective Supercars has tried to hit with its new platform is cheaper, better racing that retains the visceral experience for the drivers and fans. Has it hit the mark? Let’s take a look at the burning questions heading into this brave new era.
Will the Gen3 cars be reliable?
The Gen3 roll-out has been anything but smooth. There has been delay after delay in both the design and development stages and the team-builds process.
Initially the hold-ups were about the car itself. Early prototype testing revealed that the cockpit was too crammed for the taller drivers in the field, with complaints of leg numbness after a handful of laps. At the same time, the incredibly compact front end made performing even simple servicing tasks way too time consuming. All that led to a significant redesign well into 2022.
The design and redesign of parts has continued until now, on the eve of the new season. And, adding to the time stress has been the availability of raw materials and completed parts, thanks to the challenges the world has been facing over the past year. Combined, these factors have left teams in a last-minute scramble to build their cars. It wasn’t until 16 February that every single team had run at least one of its Gen3 race cars on track. That was effectively three weeks out from round one in Newcastle.
The rush to build cars caused panic in itself but, despite the limited running, there has been little concern over major reliability issues. That’s because the car has been designed and developed in its entirety by Supercars and its technical partner Triple Eight.
It is more of a ‘kit car’ than any of its predecessors. This isn’t like Formula 1, where teams are handed a set of rules and go and design their own car. It’s not even like Car of the Future where there was a control chassis and rear suspension, but still a relative amount of freedom.
The kit nature of the Gen3 platform means more teams than ever have built their own cars, with PremiAir Racing the only squad opting to buy turnkey cars as a customer of Triple Eight. Engines, meanwhile, have gone the other way, with a complete centralisation of supply. KRE builds the GM motors, HPE builds the Fords. They are then dished out to teams in a random ‘lottery’. The transaxles, meanwhile, carry over from the old car.
Firstly, less downforce means less drag. The motor also creates more torque, while the overall weight of the car could be down by as much as 100kg. All of that combined makes these new cars rockets in a straight line
Throughout the limited teams testing programme there have been a few niggling issues. Some Ford outfits had throttle issues in Sydney due to a mapping change, while overheating clutches have also caused some headaches. Scott Pye missed the last part of the Sydney test due to a broken gearbox mount, and wheel nuts have been troublesome throughout the process, with teams still working on a better retaining clip system.
But, even then, there is confidence that reliability shouldn't be a huge issue when the season kicks off. If nothing else, the brutal streets of Newcastle will provide one heck of a durability test.
Will the Gen3 cars be faster?
This is one of the more fascinating questions as we head into the 2023 season. The Gen3 cars are very different beasts to their predecessors. Depending on who you talk to, downforce figures have been slashed by as much as 64% with these new machines. That’s a performance disadvantage, obviously – but there are things the new car does better.
Firstly, less downforce means less drag. The motor also creates more torque, while the overall weight of the car could be down by as much as 100kg (although that is yet to be formally set). All of that combined makes these new cars rockets in a straight line. They also generate more mechanical grip thanks to being lower and wider. The indications from testing at Queensland Raceway and Winton has seen times on a par with Gen2, while the cars weren't too far off at the high aero SMP.
“I think it will be track-dependant,” says Erebus CEO Barry Ryan. “Across the top at Bathurst, for example, you won’t be as strong. But acceleration up and down the hill… you can see it at Winton. We’re pulling sixth gear much earlier. I honestly think lap times will be similar. What we saw at Winton, you wouldn’t expect to do anything faster in the same conditions with a Gen2 car.”
Ryan is even tipping that we could see a Supercar finally break the magic 300km/h (186mph) mark down Conrod Straight: “On a qualifying run, on a gripped-up track if the weather is right, and all the stars align, we could do it…”
Will the racing be better?
This is the big one. If the cars can follow and really race, issues such as cost and outright speed become less important. Gen3 will be seen as a win regardless of those other factors.
The whole point of slashing aero is to eliminate dirty air, which increasingly became an issue across the COTF era, particularly with the Gen2 cars. As well as decreasing turbulence, the drop in aero is expected to increase rear-tyre degradation, another factor that, it’s hoped, will improve racing. During the initial shakedown of its two Camaros, Triple Eight did some close quarters running – and there was some positive feedback on the dirty air front. But the jury is still out on whether the racing will be better.
Tickford Racing driver Thomas Randle, who completed a race run on his second day of testing, noted that the rear-tyre degradation was significant, particularly with the cars not fitted with roll-bar adjusters at the moment. Will that mean lots of passing, or will it mean driving to a number?
“Because the car moves around so much more the rears are going to be going off sooner,” Randle says. “You’ll be driving to a number and the number will be slower. Who knows what they will be like when we get to Newcastle. We might have to do an extra stop for tyres. Everyone might just be running around trying to hang on.
“I really don’t know at this point. It’s all a bit of an unknown. It would be nice to have better racing. They are a wider car, on the same-width street circuit in Newcastle, so it might be a bit tricky.”
Will the cars be cheaper?
Whenever a new car comes along there is the promise of cost-cutting. In Supercars, NASCAR is often cited as the ideal model – make cars cheap enough to basically be disposable. As was the case with COTF, it appears that Gen3 has missed the mark when it comes to a radical reduction in costs.
Teams are bracing themselves for the changeover to cost around AUS$1million per car, including a spares bank and all the new gear needed for the new fuel fillers and wheelnuts and so on. Some of the changeover cost will be covered by Racing Australia Consolidated Enterprises, which owns the series, but far from all of it.
But there could be cost-saving down the track for teams, particularly when it comes to motors, thanks to a proposed service life of 10,000km – up from 4000km with the outgoing motors.
The upswing to the relative lack of testing time means the teams will all head to Newcastle with limited understanding of what makes these cars fast. That means there will be an element of luck when it comes to set-up
“Engines are the biggest part of the budget for most teams,” explains Ryan. “If we can get to 10,000km and our engines are a bit cheaper to build, we can certainly save a couple of hundred grand a year. That’s a small percentage of your budget, but it’s still significant.
“I think ultimately they can be cheaper cars to service over their life. But there is still some work to do on components, making things like front splitters cheaper. We don’t want team owners telling drivers to be careful not to crash, that’s not what Supercars is about.
“You want to be able to push someone and break a front splitter or rear bumper and not worry about it. But, until we start racing, and start crashing, we don’t know if you’ll have to write parts off all the time, or if you’ll be able to repair them.”
Will the cars be even?
This is another incredibly important question heading into the season. It wasn’t until December last year, after the aero homologation testing (known as VCAT) was complete and, supposedly, signed off on, that Ford’s concerns over parity came to light. Supercars was adamant that the Mustang and Camaro were equal; Ford was anything but. So the prototypes were put back to work in January to look for answers.
Initially it was thought that the concerns were based on aero alone. Over time it became clear that there were engine issues, too. Not issues with the Ford engine itself, but how it interacts with the control electronics, and how the overhead cam unit then stacks up against the push-rod Chevy in terms of acceleration.
At the time of writing, there was still no outcome to the parity saga. The Chevrolet teams were given a longer shift cut during the SMP test to try and help on the engine front, while more runway testing will take place to monitor aero next week.
But, as it stands, the Vehicle Specification Documents are still not finalised for either the Mustang or the Camaro. At the start of this month, Ford Performance chief Mark Rushbrook made his thoughts on the matter very clear.
“I think the industry, the media certainly, has sensed or heard bits that, as a manufacturer, and aligned completely with all of our racing teams, we are not satisfied that parity has been reached either for engine or aero,” he said. “That goes back to some of the VCAT testing that was done, and when we left there not satisfied that parity had been achieved. And also, more recently, with some of the testing, comparative testing that was done on track that the acceleration of the cars down the straightaway is not equivalent.”
If there is a disparity in aero, we might not be able to tell on the tight confines of Newcastle. But the wide, flowing Albert Park circuit? That will be the big test.
Will it shake up the order?
History certainly suggests so. Back in 2012, the last year of Project Blueprint, Triple Eight and Tickford dominated. The following year, as teams grappled with their COTF cars, there were 13 different race winners from eight different teams.
The upswing to the relative lack of testing time means the teams will all head to Newcastle with limited understanding of what makes these cars fast. That means there will be an element of luck when it comes to set-up – and it’s feasible that anybody in the field could stumble across something and look like a hero until the others catch up.
Adding to the intrigue is the sheer variety of circuits that make up the first part of the season. What works on the streets of Newcastle won’t work on the wide-open roads around Albert Park. Then it’s on to the bullring that is Wanneroo. And then Symmons Plains with its long straight and incredibly tight hairpin. Anything could happen. And that’s what makes this season such an exciting prospect.
