300km/h van breaks Bathurst lap record

Bathurst now has a record-holder that can be parked in loading zones.

A unique Ford Transit van specially prepared by Ford Performance has lapped Mount Panorama faster than a V8 Supercar and a GT3 racer, with only a Formula 1 car having lapped the iconic public-road circuit faster in its entire history.

Powered by a near-1500kW quad-motor electric powertrain, the Ford SuperVan 4.2 experimental project lapped the 6.213km Mount Panorama circuit in 1:56.28sec, setting a new unofficial lap record for a closed-wheel vehicle.

The only vehicle still ahead of the be-winged van on Bathurst’s all-time fastest laps chart is the McLaren MP4-23 Formula 1 car driven by former world champion Jenson Button, who set an unofficial lap record of 1:48.8sec in 2011.

The brash achievement means a 1:56.6064sec lap time set during last weekend’s Bathurst 12-Hour event by Mercedes-AMG driver Jules Gounon – in a specially-prepared ‘unlimited’ GT3-based race car – stood for only eight days.

Previous Bathurst fastest lap marks include a 1:58.69sec time set in a Brabham BT62 by carsales’ own Luke Youlden in February 2019.

On the same day the SuperVan set its Bathurst record, pole position for Race 2 of the 2024 Repco Supercars Championship at Bathurst was claimed by Broc Feeney with a time of 2:06.5465. The best time of the weekend set by a V8 Supercar was 2:05.317 and the current-regulation record for the Supercars category is 2:04.2719.

Two-times Le Mans 24 Hours winner Romain Dumas was behind the wheel of the rambunctious Ford SuperVan, which is the largest vehicle to set a record at the famous track. It repeatedly reached speeds above 300km/h during the lap.

“We didn’t know that AMG was going to come here last week and do their lap, so that gave us a target to go for it, for sure,” said Ford Performance Motorsport director, Mark Rushbrook, who was at Mount Panorama when the record was set.

“We’re in motorsports to compete with manufacturers, right? So of course doing a lap record, no matter who it is [against]… to get a lap record is a big deal for us.”

The team had been building up for the record-breaking afternoon final session since it arrived at the circuit more than a week earlier, but almost ‘accidentally’ did so in the penultimate Sunday morning run.

“You might not believe it, but this morning went a lot faster than what we expected,” Dumas told media including carsales at Bathurst following the record lap.

“[We] Always said we should go around [1min] 59. On the sim [simulator] we were driving [1]58.57 and this morning went a lot faster. And for that day, we didn’t have any more new tyres for this afternoon – so we just tried.”

The older Pirelli slicks mean the SuperVan is capable of an even faster lap time, with Dumas needing every ounce of skill to keep the huge van on the circuit – especially when negotiating the tight twists of The Esses and The Dipper.

“I was sliding a lot,” Dumas said. “So I think with four new tyres it [the lap time] could be reduced.”

The massive van is the latest in Ford’s five-decade history of wild SuperVans, which are essentially extreme race cars with van bodies on top – in this case the Ford Transit Custom.

The battery-powered SuperVan 4.2 is an engineering masterpiece built in collaboration with STARD (Stohl Advanced Research and Development) and sharing little with the Transit that drops off your Amazon deliveries.

Sitting wide and low, with its aero-efficient carbon-fibre body work and a massive Perspex windscreen that flexed as the car climbed and descended the undulating Mount Panorama layout, its full-size van proportions are completely at odds with setting records.

The space behind the front cab features a huge aero channel and rear wings to help keep it on the ground while cornering at ridiculous speeds.

SuperVan 4.2 was built to tackle the legendary 14,115-feet Pikes Peak International Hill Climb held last July. Dumas – a three-time winner of the ‘Race to the Sky’ – set a stunning 8:47.682 time to finish as runner up along the 19.99km road to the summit, only seven seconds from outright victory.

Mount Panorama throws up a different set of challenges, so the configuration of the SuperVan 4.2 was changed to adapt to short bursts around a 6.213km circuit with higher top speeds and, in comparison to Pikes Peak, relatively no altitude.

There is also a single run to set the time along the 19.99km, 156-turn stage. At Bathurst, the team ended up covering the equivalent of around only 11 laps in total – approximately 70km – across five different days.

This meant the reliability and measured risk needed for a successful Pike Peak run took a back seat to outright performance and pace at Mount Panorama.

First up was an upgrade from three electric motors making over 1000kW to a fourth – a pair on each axle – boosting power to almost 1500kW.

Dumas, too, had to deal with up to 600kW of braking regeneration – which was adjustable – and had slick Pirelli tyres but no anti-lock brakes.

“As the driver, you need laps to feel the track, to see how you settle the car, how you turn – and this was the biggest challenge,” he said.

Changes came after the first runs at the Bathurst 12 Hour the previous weekend – where no full laps were completed – including softer tyres with higher sidewalls (profile), as well as revised damper settings.

The work involved also solving steering issues – which still haven’t quite been resolved – and calling in parts from Japan, Austria, Supercars team Dick Johnson Racing as well as a local fabricator (who was paid in beer!).

An international team of nine – 10 including Dumas – was on site poking, prodding, dry-icing and constantly number-crunching, with the data sent back to Ford Performance in Charlotte, North Carolina and to STARD in Austria.

The final lap times included more than 300km/h on Mountain Straight – the shorter, upward climb to the top of Mount Panorama.

“To go over this crest you your feel your heart!” said Dumas.

The Ford SuperVan – a name that’s been trademarked by Ford in Australia – will now head to Ford’s You Yangs proving ground before being shipped to Adelaide Motorsport Festival and then a cameo appearance at the Australian Formula 1 GP in late March.