It was today confirmed that West Surrey Racing will field three cars in the 2012 Dunlop MSA British Touring Car Championship with Tom Onlsow-Cole joining the pairing of 2011, Rob Collard and Nick Foster.

The announcement comes after Tom Onslow-Cole’s former team, Arena Motorsport, left the series to pursue the World Touring Car Championship, leaving him without a drive for this season.

“I’m excited to be joining eBay Motors for the 2012 season and to again be part of the WSR team with such a history of success,” said Onslow-Cole. “This season I am looking to challenge for regular podiums as we certainly have the car to be at the front of the grid. I am counting down the days until the new season and can’t wait to get started at Brands Hatch’s opening round on 1 April.”

Onslow-Cole, as well as Rob Collard and Nick Foster, will drive the BMW 320si which was used in 2011 however they will all be fitted with NGTC-spec turbo engines prepared by Neil Brown Engineering, the same engine supplier as Honda Racing.

Speaking about the decision, Dick Bennetts, team principal at West Surrey Racing said, “I believe eBay Motors has a very strong driver line-up for this year’s championship. We have worked with Rob, Nick and Tom in the past and together they make a fantastic team.”

“We have been busy developing the cars over the winter, which will have new BMW turbocharged engines developed by Neil Brown Engineering. With the prospect of added horsepower and torque alongside our in-depth understanding of the BMW chassis we are expecting a very competitive season.”

Photo Credit: BTCC.net

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.