McLaughlin's long Mustang wait over

Scott McLaughlin was pleased to ‘finally’ get behind the wheel of his new Ford Mustang at Queensland Raceway today, completing a 60km shakedown.

It marked McLaughlin’s first time in a Supercar since winning the 2018 title aboard the outgoing FG X Falcon in Newcastle last November.

He’d driven the team’s Mustang development mule, which was a converted FG X, before the finale, but today marked the Kiwi's first laps in his brand-new car.

Shell V-Power Racing ran through its permitted 60km program with the chassis, despite rain showers during the morning.

“It was great to finally get behind the wheel of my brand-new Mustang for the 2019 season,” he said.

“It was only a shakedown, so we didn’t get to do a lot of laps, and the weather wasn’t particularly kind to us with a bit of rain, but the car ran well and feels very nice to drive.

“It will now head back to the workshop and get stickered up in the awesome Shell V-Power colours before we head to Phillip Island for more testing next Thursday.

“It’s very exciting to be a part of bringing the Mustang into the sport, and I think this is going to be a great season.”

Ford Australia took the wraps off the Mustang Supercar for the first time earlier this week, while Shell V-Power Racing’s 2019 livery will be unveiled on Monday.

The Shell squad is currently finishing work on converting Fabian Coulthard’s 2018 Falcon into a Mustang, ahead of Supercars’ full-field test at Phillip Island on February 14.

Coulthard attended today’s running at Queensland Raceway, but did not drive the car.