Opel Vectra will debut at Silverstone says Simon Garrad
A former STW Opel Vectra will make its Super Touring Car series debut at the Silverstone Classic, Simon Garrad has confirmed.
Speaking at the Brands Hatch Masters Historic Festival, Garrad, currently racing his ex-Jean-Christophe Boullion Williams Renault Laguna, had hoped to have the Opel racing already in 2015, but following some setbacks had to postpone the car’s debut.
“We haven’t had the time to get the engine as we’d like it,” Garrad told TouringCarTimes. “It should have been on the dyno last week but it never actually got there so it’ll definitely be out at the Silverstone Classic. 100% because the Laguna will be up for auction and the Opel will be doing the races.”
Garrad contested the 2014 season in the Williams Renault, having raced a Ford Sierra RS500 previously, but is relishing the opportunity to get behind the wheel of the STW Vectra.
“I’m looking forward to it very much so,” Garrad said to TouringCarTimes. “It’s a 1998 car from the STW series. I think it’s different to John [Cleland]’s Vectra in certain ways, but I believe John actually tested the car back in the day and I think he talks quite highly of it, it’ll be nice to get in it. I’m not saying it’ll be any better than the Laguna, there’s nothing wrong with this car.”
Turning his attention to the job at hand, Garrad put the Laguna on eighth place for the first of two races over the weekend, with the second race taking place on the Indy circuit following a second qualifying session on Monday.
“That was my first time out this year,” he told TouringCarTimes. “The first time I’ve used the [new Hoosier] tyres and I had to go out on slicks because we haven’t got the wets fitted to the rims yet, so that was a bit disappointing.
“I think we’ll be OK in the dry, there’s some more speed to come, starting eighth we should be able to come up the field a little bit. I think it’s going to be tricky to get a podium this weekend, especially qualifying eighth, but you never know do you? You never know.”
