Australia’s leading racing series is officially called Supercars. But for most people it’s still called V8 Supercars, and it’s a better name because the series has always been run with 5.0-liter V8s.
But that will change in 2023 when the new “Gen3” regulations come in, introducing the new Ford Mustang and Chevrolet Camaro models, both of which are powered by entirely new engines; at least for the category.
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The new V8 supercar engines are actually long-life V8s that can be found on the Mustang and Camaro streets, which are all part of the organizers’ push to make the category more relevant to what you find on the street.
Here are the details of what’s currently under the hood of V8 supercars and what’s coming in the future.
What are V8 supercars?
Before we dive into the engines, let’s take a look at the history of the category and the broader V8 Supercars specs.
The series began in 1993 when the locally developed rules for the “5.0 liter touring car” (officially known as Group 3A in case you ever need them for a quiz) were introduced to make the global “Group A” -Formula to replace those of those like the Nissan GT-R, Ford Sierra Cosworth and BMW M3.
This was done to bring the sport back to the glory days of the 1970s and 80s, when Ford and Holden competed with their popular family cars – including the Falcon, Torana and Commodore – making the sport more relevant to both local automakers and fans close. It was also designed to cut costs and make racing more exciting.
The Ford Falcon and Holden Commodore became the only two models that could drive, each powered by a V8 engine. This new format immediately proved to be more popular, seeing a new breed of riders like Craig Lowndes, Greg Murphy and Russell Ingall competing against established stars like Peter Brock, Dick Johnson and Larry Perkins.
The change to the name V8 Supercars took place in 1997, when the series got a new owner and was managed and promoted more professionally. New events such as the Adelaide Street Race and overseas events in China, Bahrain and the USA followed over the next ten years.
The sport grew in popularity during this period, but it coincided with the decline in interest in the locally built Falcon and Commodore. Organizers tried to respond by introducing new V8 supercars specs in 2013 that allowed more car brands to join, with Nissan, Mercedes-AMG and Volvo signing up (although Mercedes was unofficial).
This made for a short-lived boost, but eventually all three brands disappeared from the field at the start of the 2020 season.
At the start of the 2018 championship, Holden introduced the ZB Commodore (the first Commodore that was not available with a V8 engine as a production vehicle) and in 2019 the Mustang finally replaced the Falcon FG X (which had been discontinued since 2016).
With the need to return to market relevance, Supercars announced plans for its Gen3 rules package in 2020, with a move to two-door models, less aerodynamics, and more road vehicle-relevant engines.
What engines do V8 supercars use?
The current V8 Supercars engine specifications, like the engines themselves, have been refined over the past 28 years. Both the Ford Mustang and Holden Commodore use a 5.0 liter V8 engine specially designed for racing, with lots of bespoke parts.
While these engines are powerful and sound good, they have also become very expensive and outdated compared to the vehicles used by automakers. Both engines are smaller than those used in their respective road vehicles, using cast blocks, two valves per cylinder, and overhead valves (also known as pushrods).
The Supercars “Car of the Future” rules, introduced in 2013, allowed manufacturers to use more modern technology, including aluminum blocks, four valves per cylinder and overhead camshafts, and these types of engines were developed by Nissan, Volvo and Mercedes-AMG. However, Ford and Holden chose to stick with what they had. When the other three brands left the sport, they were left with the older engines they have today.
Which cars are in V8 supercars?
The sport is currently played by the Ford Mustang and the Holden Commodore (ZB). With delays in Gen3 rules due to ongoing supply chain issues due to the global pandemic, these cars will be racing again by the 2022 season.
The current plan calls for the sport to demonstrate the new Gen3 Mustang and Camaro throughout the ’22 championship before teams hit the track with them in 2023.
Are there rules and regulations regarding the types of engines used in V8 supercars?
As automakers have scaled back their involvement with supercars over the past decade, Supercars has taken a more direct role in developing the new Gen3 engine specifications. For this reason, they are not forced to write a specific set of rules, but have taken a holistic view of engine development to ensure that they get V8 engines that are more relevant to road vehicles, but also louder, more powerful and cheaper.
Reducing costs was a key element of these new rules, with the current 5.0 liter engines costing up to $ 150,000. The price target for these new units is between $ 65,000 and $ 70,000.
Another important way to save costs is to reduce maintenance requirements for the engines. Therefore, Supercars is initially aiming for maintenance intervals of 5000 km, which will later be extended to 10,000 km. This is a huge improvement over the current engines, which require servicing every 4,000 km; which is itself a big leap forward from the 1000km overtakes some teams have done earlier.
This is one of the main reasons for moving to larger displacement engines as it means less stress on the components, which should extend the life of the parts.
How different are they from any car?
In short – a lot. Unlike the old regulations that required a 5.0 liter engine, these new engines are based on what can be found in the road vehicles.
For example, the Chevrolet Camaro will use a 5.7 liter V8 while the Ford Mustang V8 engine is only 5.4 liters but is part of the “Coyote” family that you can find under the hood of the “Stang” in the showroom Find.
That’s just the beginning of the differences. The Camaro uses a larger displacement engine as it uses older technology than the Ford, with only two valves per cylinder and a single camshaft. In contrast, the Mustang engine has four valves per cylinder and four camshafts, which means that the two engines will perform the same despite being different in size.
Which are the best? How much do they affect the outcome of a race?
Because Supercars took such a hands-on approach to developing the new engines, they managed to ensure performance parity between the two. The Chevrolet engine is bigger, but not more powerful than the Ford. In theory at least, the two engines should be on par on the track and neither side should win any more races.
How often do they change? When was the last update of the V8 supercar engine rules?
This will be the first significant change to the Holden / Chevrolet and Ford engines since the category was introduced in 1993.
This despite attempts to open up the sport to even more brands by removing the “V8” from the name – officially just “Supercars” – and introducing the “Gen2 rules” for 2017, which would have enabled teams to Turbocharged four and six-cylinder engines to drive.
Since the ZB Commodore was not available as a production vehicle with a V8 engine, Holden examined the use of a 3.6-liter twin-turbo V6 engine – sourced from the GM brand Cadillac. The V6 engine got through to track testing and a public demonstration in Bathurst in 2017, but Holden ultimately decided to abandon the project due to cost and complexity.
V8 engines have been the only type that powers Australian touring cars / supercars since 1993.
