Erebus Motorsport will be a top five contender once its next phase of engine developments are ready for track action, believes the team’s star recruit Will Davison.

The former Ford Performance Racing driver has enjoyed mixed fortunes in his early outings with the customer Mercedes outfit.

Rain at Sydney’s pre-season test in mid-February hampered preparations for Adelaide; an event that Davison ended 19th in the standings after a Race 3 crash.

Albert Park’s non-points event yielded race results of 12th, 10th, 21st and sixth, with his Race 3 having been hampered by a punctured tyre.

According to Davison, the Albert Park weekend gave a clear picture of both the car’s strengths and weaknesses.

“We definitely know where we need to be better, there’s no doubt about that,” he told Speedcafe.com.

“We’re still struggling on the straights… that’s where we’re losing a chunk of time at the moment.

“It had a me a bit confused after qualifying (at Albert Park) because the car was brilliant and we were 13th.

“I was wondering where the two or three tenths were. It makes it a bit difficult for us in the pack during races as well.

“Now I know that (more straightline speed) is all we need to get us up in that top five. We will get it, it’s just time.

“In terms of the chassis and the feeling of the car it was absolutely brilliant,” he continued.

“It definitely does some things better than my car last year. It’s really encouraging.”

Erebus’ engine development is this year being undertaken in-house at Erebus’ former Stone Brothers Racing workshop under the watch of Ross Stone.

With significant improvements not expected to come online for some weeks, Davison says that the focus will be on maximising the current package at the upcoming Symmons Plains event.

The 2.41km Tasmanian layout appears unlikely to suit the AMG, which is said to be lacking its power in the mid-range.

One element of the package that Davison hopes will be fully sorted at Symmons is his seat, which has proven troublesome since joining the team.

“Every time I change teams it’s difficult,” he said of making more seat modifications, having repeatedly suffered from a numbness in his foot during races since joining V8 Supercars.

“I prayed that doing this seat there’d be no problems but there was. I think the E-cell is quite tricky as well to get comfortable in.

“We tried another one for Saturday at the grand prix and we’ve taken a big step forward. It’s not perfect but we’re getting there.”

Erebus’ two cars have this week been prepared from the team’s Melbourne GT workshop, with the E63s in the midst of a month-long stint away from their Queensland base due to the tight scheduling.

Davison himself remains based in Melbourne but is in the process of relocating to the Gold Coast to be closer to the team.