Reynolds: Erebus has genuine potential

The squad spent yesterday testing at Winton, which not only meant drivers Reynolds and Aaren Russell having their first run with Erebus, but the team running it’s ex-Walkinshaw Racing Commodores for the very first time.

After a turbulent off-season, which included dumping its Mercedes-based technical package for the Commodores and shifting workshops from the Gold Coast to Melbourne, the test went perfectly to plan – something Reynolds says is a clear sign of potential.

“For sure, there is potential,” he told Motorsport.com.

“It was a good step for the team to move to a known product, and it’s a better business model to have streamlined the operations and the spending.

“Once everyone understands their position and their role, there is potential. It’s been a big off-season; they’ve changed manufacturer, moved workshops, new drivers, new staff – there’s a lot going on.”

Reynolds added that he particularly enjoyed working with the team’s tech guru Campbell Little.

“Campbell is great. He’s very smart, he’s not too stressed, so it was good working with him.

“The car didn’t miss a beat, so it was a great day. I’ve had plenty of worse days testing.

“I was happy by the end of the day. We made changes to the car, and it responded. There are some things that I like and some things that I dislike, but that’s normal. We just need to play with it and make it better.”

Ergonomics still a problem

One key issue that Reynolds highlighted from the Winton test was ergonomics. After a long stint in Prodrive Falcons, he admits he didn’t feel at all comfortable inside the VF Commodore.

“Ergonomically I need change a lot of things; the seat is wrong, the seat pour was a bit rushed, the pedal heights are a bit out, the steering weight isn’t quite what I like… I wasn’t quite comfortable with anything inside the car,” he explained.

“The good news is that they’re all easy things to fix.”

As was the case during the all-in test on Monday, the new track surface at Winton did make it a bit tougher for Reynolds and Erebus to get a decent read on the chassis performance.

“With the chassis, it’s hard to know because of the new track surface,” he added.

“I’ve got an idea of how different it is to a Prodrive Falcon – and I can see why Prodrive was so good last year, because the car was so easy to drive on the limit.

“But once we get to tracks which I’m more familiar with, with the same brake markers as last year, it will be easier to get a proper read on the car.”