THERE has been an early scare for Toyota at the AirTouch 500 at The Bend, with the Brad Jones Racing Supra of Cameron Hill and Brad Vaughan encountering immediate engine gremlins.
Supercars braved the icy conditions to head out on track for a dedicated session to bed in an emergency batch of brake pads following category-wide issues experienced last month at Queensland Raceway.
However, BJR’s attention swiftly turned to the unhappy motor aboard the Farmers Union-backed #14.
Supercars engine specialist Craig Hasted and a number of personnel from Toyota homologation team Walkinshaw TWG Racing gathered in the garage, along with the likes of Brad Jones himself and #14 engineer Jason Bonney.
Pic: Mark Walker
Hill briefly ventured back out on track before returning to subject to further inspections, while other cars pressed on with their brake bedding protocols on-track.
Engine reliability has been a question mark on the approach to the enduros, after notable failures at QR for Chaz Mostert (Toyota) and Matt Payne (Ford).
Practice 1 for the Repco Supercars Championship is scheduled for 11:25am local (11:55am AEST) and will be open to all drivers.
Pic: Mark Walker