New Walkinshaw Racing recruit Fabian Coulthard got first taste of factory Holden power at Phillip Island last Friday, testing three of the team’s Commodores at the Victorian circuit.
The former Wilson Security Racing driver pedalled passengers around in the organisation’s ‘T2’ ride car before hoping into Garth Tander and Will Davison’s Holden Racing Team Commodore VE race cars.
Coulthard told Speedcafe.com.au that the ride day, despite being limited in laps, was good to get laps in before the new year holiday period.
“It’s everything that everyone said it would be – I knew the cars would be pretty good, but it’s just nice to get a picture of what it will be like before the Christmas,” he said.
“It gives me time to go away and think about it, rather than do it all after Christmas and be worried about it over the break.
“There are always things to pick up. The Commodore might like something the car that I’m used to does, but hey, that’s something that I’ll have to work out. Even if there are no differences, there’s no harm thinking about it. At least I go into next year having a fair idea of what I’ve got to work with and from my end, it’s all positive.”
Coulthard, who will drive the Bundaberg Red Racing Commodore next year, said that his career goals remain the same, despite the change of teams.
“I’ve said all along, now I’ll have a car that’s very competitive and all the guys and everything there have the same goal – they want to do what I want to do and that’s win races,” he said.
“I moved from New Zealand two and a half years ago to do the V8 Supercar Championship and nothing has changed since then, except the belief that I now have the key parts of the reciepe to do it.
Coulthard will move from his current Gold Coast base to Melbourne in the new year after spending time with his family in New Zealand.
Also present at the test was new signing Andrew Thompson and Nick Percat. The 2009 Ausralian Formula Ford Champion – part of the Walkinshaw Racing family – drove laps in the team’s ride car.
