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DJR has struck a deal with the Betty Klimenko-owned Chevrolet squad to field chassis built by Erebus’ fabrication guru James White.
The agreement coincides with the impending switch of reigning champion and Bathurst winner Brodie Kostecki from Erebus to DJR in a move jointly announced by the parties in late August.
While Supercars’ Gen3 chassis are a control specification item fitted with either Mustang or Camaro bodywork, Erebus has proudly pointed to its chassis builds as a key part of recent success.
Erebus’ chassis have been built by White from his remote workshop in the South Australian border town of Mount Gambier since 2017, when the team parked its customer Walkinshaw Commodores.
White and Erebus put great time and resource into their Gen3 chassis jigs, believing extreme attention to detail on tolerances and welding quality would net an advantage in the new era.
DJR has long had its chassis built by Gold Coast-based Pace Innovations, which currently supplies the bulk of the Supercars field outside of Erebus and Triple Eight.
It’s understood that at least one more Ford team is in talks with Erebus to score a similar customer deal to DJR.
How ‘philosophy’ and ‘tone of voice’ rescued Kostecki’s season
The DJR-Erebus agreement has been in the works for some time, with the first chassis – fitted with Ford-specific body fixings – believed to already be nearing completion.
It’s expected DJR will have two new chassis available for the start of 2025, when Kostecki joins incumbent Will Davison in the Shell V-Power backed squad.
The customer chassis deal is not entirely new for Supercars racing’s most historic outfit, even in the modern era.
DJR fielded Triple Eight-built cars from 2009-12, winning the 2010 drivers’ championship with James Courtney aboard an FG Falcon bought from Roland Dane’s powerhouse.
The Erebus chassis solution is just part of an aggressive plan being cooked up by DJR team principal Ryan Story aimed at returning DJR to the front of the field.
DJR has failed to maintain its class-leading position since Scott McLaughlin and Team Penske departed at the end of 2020, falling into a slump since the Gen3 era began.
Its duties as Ford’s homologation team, which included taking over the Blue Oval’s engine program at the end of 2023, have undoubtedly hampered its own progress.
Kostecki will be joined at DJR by his current race engineer George Commins. More engineering recruits are also expected ahead of 2025.
DJR currently sits fifth in the 2024 Supercars teams’ championship standings, with drivers Davison and Anton De Pasquale ninth and 11th respectively.
