Team Arena continued their testing in Gaudiz, Spain and with Tom Chilton at the wheel they managed to collect valuable data on the liquid petroleum gas technology which would be a more greener switch for the BTCC outfit.

Tom Chilton was joined by former team-mate, Tom Onslow-Cole who is still yet to sign a deal for 2010, for the two days testing. Chilton focused on testing the alternative fuel source while Onslow-Cole drove the petrol powered Focus ST concentrating on modifications to the rear suspension.

Mike Earle, Team Aon boss, spoke to BTCC.net about the possible switch to the LPG fuel, “Obviously we’re always looking for anything which could provide us with a competitive edge. Also in these economically difficult times we have to consider any commercial benefits as well.”

“In both of these areas LPG may be an option for us, but it’s early days in our evaluation process. An engine has been running on the dyno, but this is the first time we’ve tried it in the car. After running it for two days the results have been encouraging, but not conclusive.”

As I touched on earlier, Tom Onslow-Cole is yet to sign a deal for the forthcoming season but was very upbeat about the test session that he had with Team Arena when he spoke to BTCC.net, “The car was good at the end of last season, but now it’s incredible. I can’t believe how much work the team has done over the winter. All the development has not only made the Focus quicker, the way it handles now is a race driver’s dream and that makes it great fun.”

Onslow-Cole was also quoted earlier in the week to have said that, “It will be fantastic to get a full-season in and I’m confident I can be up there challenging at the front”, when speaking to his local newspaper The Richmond and Twickenham Times.

Photo Credit: Pete Mainey

James Mappin is the editor-in-chief covering the British Touring Car Championship. You can contact him at james@btcccrazy.co.uk, on twitter @BTCCCrazy or on his personal twitter account @jamesmappin.