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Engineer Preview: Wilson Security Sandown 500

10 Sep 2013
With an extraordinary list of drivers, and two wins at the '500' to his name, FPR's Campbell Little told v8supercars.com.au what to expect at Sandown.
4 mins by James Pavey
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Having engineered an extraordinary list of drivers, and with two wins at the ‘500’ to his name, Ford Performance Racing’s Campbell Little gave v8supercars.com.au the word on what to expect this weekend as the PIRTEK Enduro Cup kicks off.

Little, who engineers the #18 Jeld-Wen Ford Falcon of Alex Davison, has been in the media recently when it was announced he would be spending time at Dick Johnson Racing between events.

While he said it had been a lot of work splitting himself between DJR and engineering #18 at race meetings, Little feels the technical alliance between the two teams is working well.

Little said FPR found some “interesting little gains” at the team’s recent test day, ahead of the weekend’s event. 

V8supercars.com.au: What are the main characteristics of the circuit?

Little: “Sandown is always challenging. It is very bumpy in the braking zones, and in the acceleration zone on the front straight. It has historically been hard on brakes and drive train components, because of the kerbs.

“You need a good engine for the two straights and good fuel economy – these don’t normally go together.

“The circuit grip level isn’t high and depending on the track temperature is fairly abrasive.”

There will be two qualifying races to determine grid position for the 500km race. How will the weekend’s format affect setup and strategy?

“I think the qualifying and subsequent race for start position will put a lot of pressure on the co-drivers.

“We could see significantly different set-ups for the short races vs the 500km race (in areas like fuel economy vs power and fuel load vs balance).

“The Sunday race often has Safety Cars and weather to spice it up.

“Also the way teams will use their co driver, who starts and how long they stay in the car will change things up as well.”

What is the tyre allocation and what sort of degradation are you expecting? How will this impact setup and strategy?

“We have six sets of hard tyres allocated for the weekend, so we will probably see many teams have a crack in practice with greens before qualifying.

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“Hopefully it is reasonably straight-forward from there – a set for each of the 20 lap races and four sets for the 500km race. Not much wiggle room if you flat spot a set of tyres!

“Tyre deg is often depending on the track temp and condition, most years at Sandown we see the track get faster and faster as the weekend goes on, and this often changes the car balance late on Sunday.

“In the past we have had the roll center to tune during the race, but with the COTF (Car of the Future) car it will be a whole new ball game.”

What aspects of the circuit are you expecting to suit your car and what do you have to be mindful of?

“Lately FPR engines have been very good and we have topped the speed sheets at the last few races. The last few years the FPR cars have been very competitive at Sandown.

“Kerb compliance and braking had been strengths of FPR previously – but saying that we have to very mindful of the kerbs and bumps with the new cars, Sandown has notoriously been very hard on drive line and suspension components.”

What are you expecting to be the most important thing to do well this weekend?

“You always have to qualify well, but that won’t be enough this weekend, with the races on Saturday governing the final start position.

“You have to be able to look after the tyres, have good fuel economy, be smart in traffic, and we have often seen the pits as being a huge factor in race results – not making any mistakes in pit lane, so the pressure is on everybody.”

What are the biggest differences with endurance racing/running co-drivers?

“The obvious one is co-drivers and getting those guys comfortable in the car and racing with each other, driving within themselves and minimising mistakes.

“The other is the added pit work load, managing fuel and possible brake changes.

“Strategy for longer races is always fun.”

 

Tickets are available for the Wilson Security Sandown 500 through Ticketek. There is an Enduro Pass ticketing option, granting access to all three events at 30 percent off; or for those following at home, the V8 SuperView Enduro Pass for $14.95 offering live and uninterrupted streaming of the three events. Alternatively, see the Channel Seven TV Schedule here.

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