FIRST LOOK AT THE NEXT-GEN COMMODORE SUPERCAR
Holden’s next-gen Commodore Supercar – Photo: Supplied
Holden and Triple Eight have given the public their first look at the new next-generation ZB Commodore Supercar.
The next-gen Commodore racecar, that features sleek hatchback styling and a specifically designed aerodynamic package, made it’s on track debut at the Norwell Motorplex on the Gold Coast yesterday completing an initial 60km shakedown.
The shakedown followed a secret ten-month project involving both Triple Eight Race Engineering and GM Holden to design, development, and build the new Commodore ahead of its competition debut in 2018.
The Holden ZB Commodore Supercar on track at Norwell Motorplex – Photo: Supplied
The development program included advanced simulation and aerodynamic evaluation using sophisticated Computational Fluid Dynamic (CFD) modeling to adapt Holden’s state-of-the-art next-gen Commodore for Supercars competition.
Triple Eight Managing Director, Roland Dane, mentioned that the development has not been without its challenges.
“The overall look of the car is quite different from anything we’ve had before, so it’s been a big but exciting task, and we’re relishing the opportunity to get on track to see how we’ve done.” said Dane.
“The team’s had to work incredibly hard this year in order to compete on track with the current VF Commodore, but also work flat out on the new car. By the time we get to the end of this year, the development process will have taken up about 20,000 hours.
“We are very privileged to have been given the responsibility for developing and producing the new Commodore as a race car. We’re excited to see the results of the work that we’ve been carrying out.”
Jamie Whincup drove the new Commodore at Norwell – Photo: Supplied
Jamie Whincup was given the responsibility of driving the new Commodore during the shakedown, under the watchful eye of Triple Eight engineers and mechanics, and provided positive feedback.
“The team’s been burning the midnight oil behind the scenes for this moment when we finally get to bring the brand new Commodore to the track and test it for the first time,” Whincup said.
“So far it feels fantastic. The work that they’ve done behind the scenes to this point, in my opinion we’re 99 per cent there. There’s just some fine-tuning that’s got to go on in the next few weeks and the next few months until we fully unleash the full version in 2018.”
New car features a Tom Grech designed camouflage testing livery – Photo: Supplied
The new car carried a camouflage testing livery created by GM Design Australia’s Tom Grech, under the guidance of Peter Hughes, GM Design Australia’s Exterior Manager.
The next-gen Commodore is the 16th model to carry the iconic Commodore nameplate, taking the place of the VF, which is the most successful model in Supercars history with 104 championship race wins.
“There’s been a long line of successful Commodores on the racetrack and we’ve no doubt the new car will continue that tradition.” said Mark Harland, Holden’s Executive Director – Marketing.
“Triple Eight have done an amazing job of adapting the road car to the race-ready Supercar. It looks terrific and I can’t wait to see it in our drivers’ hands next year.”
Holden’s new next-gen Commodore Supercar – Photo: Supplied
The development program began back in November last year and will continue throughout the remainder of 2017 as further testing is carried out in accordance with championship regulations.
Triple Eight will conduct three full test days before the aero package is finalised and the car is homologated for its competition debut at the Adelaide 500 next March, coinciding with Holden’s public release of the ZB Commodore road car in early 2018 .
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