What do you get for around $500,000.00?

The Chassis

• It takes 720 man hours to construct each car
• All cars must meet the minimum weight of 1445kg at all times
• Front suspension: Walkinshaw Racing developed double wishbone designed for racing with adjustable camber and adjustable front anti-roll bar
• Rear suspension: Walkinshaw Racing developed, location by four-link parallel arms and Watts link. Cockpit adjustable rear antiroll bar
• Fitted with onboard air operated jacks for tyre and wheel removal during a pit stop

The Engine

• Walkinshaw Racing 5.0 litre fuel injected V8, WR developed cylinder heads, fuel injection, intake and exhaust system, category controlled MoTec engine management control system
• Estimated power: 620 + BHP, limited to maximum 7,500 RPM
• The cost of an engine is approximately $120,000 each
• The engines have a minor service every 3,000km’s and a major rebuild every 12 months
• From 2009 all V8 Supercar teams use E85 CSR fuel

Gearbox & Differential

• All V8 Supercars use a custom built Holinger six speed sequential gearbox
• The oil used in the gearbox and differential is blended specially to meet the high temperatures and extreme workload
• All V8 Supercars use the same differential gears, the gear sets are changed to suit the length of the track the cars are racing on
• Differential ratios are determined by V8 Supercars
• The cost of a gearbox is approximately $20,000

Brakes & Wheels

• Front brakes: Alcon Racing 6-piston front calipers with 375mm ventilated discs
• Rear brakes: Alcon Racing 4-piston rear calipers with 343mm ventilated discs
• Each team will use 2 sets of front brake rotors per race meeting
• Brake rotors can reach up to 950 degrees Celsius in front and 750 degrees Celsius in rear during a race
• Each team will use 2 sets of front brake pads per race meeting
• All V8 Supercars use a Dunlop control tyre
• There is only one slick tyre and one wet tyre to choose from
• Wheels: O.Z. wheels, 17” by 11” magnesium alloy
• Each wheel and tyre weighs around 23kg inflated

Equipment

• The air spike used to jack up the cars during a pit stop needs to be supplied with 450 PSI of air pressure to jack the car off the ground
• All team members are in radio contact with each other during a race, they all have their own 2 way radios fitted into their helmet
• The driver’s helmet is made from Carbon Fibre and once fitted with the radio and custom paint scheme these helmets are worth $3,500 each and most drivers will own two helmets
• A V8 Supercar costs an estimated $500,000