Andy Priaulx and Mattias Ekstrom are enjoying a two-day test at Queensland Raceway ahead of their wildcard entry in the Supercheap Auto Bathurst 1000.
The DTM drivers are sharing a Triple Eight-run Holden Commodore under a one-race deal put together by Mark Skaife and sponsor Microsoft Xbox.
Triple Eight’s championship leading driver Jamie Whincup completed a shakedown run in the car during the morning before leaving the duo in the hands of engineer Ludo Lacroix and Skaife.
Bathurst will mark the first race for the chassis, which was the test mule for Triple Eight last year.
V8 Supercars’ own Holden prototype car is also currently in Xbox colours, hitting the track at Morgan Park earlier this week for promotional filming before performing showcar duties at Bathurst.
Three-time World Touring Car Champion Priaulx already has 10 V8 Supercars starts to his name, including three Bathursts, while Ekstrom is a V8 Supercar and Bathurst rookie.
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“To be honest the cars have just constantly got better since the first one I drove,” Priaulx told Speedcafe.com, having first competed in the class with Walkinshaw Racing in 2002.
“The gearbox now is really nice and with the new rear axle in these cars I think they’ve become a little bit more nimble.
“But they’re still a big, heavy car with a lot of horsepower, so it’s all about looking after the tyres and getting our heads around a car with low downforce.”
“Initially it’s very impressive to feel the power of these cars, there is plenty more than what I’m used to,” added Ekstrom, whose past experience includes two NASCAR Sprint Cup starts in 2010.
“That’s the number one thing but also the cars have less downforce, the tyres are different and you’re sitting on the right side as well.
“I’ve been watching some DVDs of last year’s Bathurst and have already had a run on the simulator in the Triple Eight workshop, but simulation and TV is not reality, so I’m looking forward to going and doing the real laps.”
Ekstrom attempted both left and right foot braking on the first day of the test, with the former the norm in the DTM, and the latter almost universal in V8 Supercars.
“We think he can be naturally faster with the left foot, but we must check how much fuel it is using,” noted Lacroix.
The Bathurst wildcard entry marks the first time that Lacroix is race engineering a car in several years.
The usually workshop-based technical director has attended more events than normal so far this season as the team learns the 2013-specification cars, but hopes not to be seen in the Red Bull garage at Bathurst.
“I thought that it was going to be a burden but I am enjoying it because it’s fresh,” he said of his direct role on the Xbox car.
“If I was doing it week in, week out, maybe not, but for this I am enjoying it.
“At Bathurst the plan for me is to just be on this car and only be in the other garage (Red Bull) if there is a problem.
“Hopefully I won’t have to go up there at all throughout the weekend!”
The Xbox Holden is the only wildcard in this year’s Bathurst field, with the Shannons Supercar Showdown reality television program stepping back to a Dunlop Series round prize after two years in The Great Race.
