Nash looking forward to more power with NGTC

James Nash heads into his what would be his first full BTCC season armed with a new engine in the Triple Eight Vauxhall Vectra, and hopes to be chasing his first ‘official’ win in the championship with it.

Last year Nash joined the championship one round late, after the team’s intended driver line-up was sidelined when Triple Eight’s title sponsorship deal fell through after one race. That gave Nash the opportunity to take the reins of the 2007-2008 championship winning car, and work his way up to 12th place in the drivers’ standings, one spot behind Chevrolet driver Alex MacDowall.

This year Triple Eight have dropped their Super 2000 engine developed by French engine builders Sodemo for the Next Generation Touring Car (NGTC) 2.0 litre turbo of Swindon Engines. This engine was used by Team Eurotech and Pinkney Motorsport last season in the team’s old Vectras.

The engine will help Triple Eight where they were beginning to struggle against the newer S2000 cars last year, explains Nash to TouringCarTimes:

“(It’s got) more torque and more power, so it’s just about managing the tyres from the extra torque and a maybe a bit from the extra weight over the front wheels.”

“The engine last year, although it was a very good engine in its day, was getting to its limits. There wasn’t much more we could get out of it, so it’s come at a good time that these turbo engines are now available.”

The Vectra is, along with the BMW 320si, one of the oldest Super 2000 cars on the grid, but that also means it’s one of the most developed.

“The chassis has always been a good chassis,” said Nash.

“If Triple Eight couldn’t have been able to get it sorted whilst they were with Vauxhall than they never would be able to.”