NGTC Insignia Completes First Full Test At Donington
It’s not the first time that the NGTC Vauxhall Insignia has been seen on track after it made it’s debut during the final round of the season at Silverstone but it’s the first time the car, run by Thorney Motorsport, has completed a session.
The car, driven by team owner John Thorne, put the car through it’s paces at the Donington Park circuit.
“Silverstone was a bit of a disappointment for us if I’m honest, whilst the crowd, TOCA and the other teams were fully behind us getting on track ultimately to be unable to race due to a faulty alternator was a bit of a blow and the team has been keen to actually get the car out there in anger,” said Thorne.
The NGTC Vauxhall Insignia was given a full shakedown and test following all of the changes which were made on the car since the final round of the season.
“I’ve never raced front wheel drive before so I really didn’t know what to expect, indeed I’ve been pretty dismissive of front wheel drive in the past but I was pretty blown away by how the car felt, in short it felt brilliant, I’m delighted”
John Thorne went on to say, “With a new car you really don’t know what to expect but to have its first shakedown and test be so positive is a real shot in the arm after Silverstone, we plan at least two more tests before Christmas as we fine tune the chassis so our plans of being fully ready ahead of the new season are very achievable”
One noticeable change to the car was the livery as the team reverted back to the traditional black and green ‘devil’ colours after using the Batman livery at Silverstone.
“The batmobile was always for a laugh really, just because we’re in the BTCC doesn’t mean we don’t have a sense of humour, however racing is expensive so we do need sponsors so the plan is to run the car in our usual livery until we can finalise our partner program for next season.”
Photo Credit: Thorney Motorsport
James Mappin
