Ambrose impressed by 'old school' Gen3 feel

Marcos Ambrose’s first taste of Gen3 prototype machinery also featured a playful run-in with Shane van Gisbergen.

The two-time champions completed a shakedown of the prototypes at Symmons Plains on Friday.

It marked Ford legend Ambrose’s first laps of the Gen3 Mustang prototype.

It was also van Gisbergen’s first laps in the updated Camaro, which recently turned laps at Queensland Raceway.

The duo completed the laps in front of Supercars technical staff and team personnel.

Van Gisbergen and Ambrose completed laps as well as taking turns following.

There, van Gisbergen played a game of cat-and-mouse with Ambrose, who initially thought Garth Tander was behind the wheel.

“He was just playing with me, I reckon,” said Ambrose, who will feature in this weekend's broadcast.

“I thought it was Garth in the car, so I was thinking to myself, ‘Man, two retirees and I’m the slowest’.

“I was pleased when Shane jumped out of the seat.

“It’s my first time sitting in it, first time driving it. I reckon they’re 90 per cent there.

“As soon as the teams get their hands on these cars, they’ll get the last 10 per cent out of them.

“I’m excited for it.”

Ambrose later took passengers in the Mustang around the circuit, giving him further opportunity to get used to the car.

His first impressions took him back to the style of car he raced when he dominated the sport in the early 2000s.

"There's plenty of speed in the car," he explained.

"It was pretty exciting to see the car go that hard so quickly.

"I was very comfortable in the car, so they've sorted out the ergonomic issues.

"The power felt old school V8 to me, it felt old school Supercar to me. It was great."

Ambrose, who won dual titles at the turn of the Project Blueprint era, was impressed by the new cars.

Notably, he was pleased with how he was able to push from the outset and gauge the lower-downforce car’s performance.

“The sport’s moved on from the early days,” the 28-time race winner said.

“There are sequentials, transaxles, big brakes, big wheels.

“For me, old school racing’s all about sliding and moving the car around, and having to muscle it.

“This car is a great balance between what it used to be, and what motorsport is today.

“They’re trying to get less aero, they’re trying to make it harder to drive. I think they’re doing it.”

The prototypes will also be tested on the Monday and Tuesday after this weekend's event.

The 2022 season will resume at the NED Whisky Tasmania SuperSprint. CLICK HERE to purchase your tickets.

Every session of the event will be broadcast live on Fox Sports 506 and streamed on Kayo.

The Seven Network will broadcast highlights on Saturday and Sunday.