The SuperUtes Series (known for commercial reasons as the Haltech V8 SuperUte Series) is an Australian

pickup truck racing Pickup truck racing is a form of auto racing which involves modified versions of pickup trucks on Race track, racing circuits, mostly Oval track racing, oval tracks. Race pickup trucks are mechanically similar to coupé-shaped Stock car racing, s ...

competition that was launched in 2018 as a successor to the

V8 Ute Racing Series The V8 Ute Racing Series, known originally as the V8 BRute Utes was an Australian motor racing series for utilities, derived from the Australian Production Car Championship. It was conceived in 2000 by PROCAR chief and owner Ross Palmer, V8 Ute P ...

. The series' events are held as a support category to

Supercars Championship The Supercars Championship is a touring car racing category in Australia, running as an International Series under Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA) regulations, governing the sport. Supercars events take place in all Australian ...

events throughout Australia.

Background

Ryal Harris at the 2018 Coates Hire Newcastle 500

The

, which ran from 2001 to 2017, used

utility As a topic of economics, utility is used to model worth or value. Its usage has evolved significantly over time. The term was introduced initially as a measure of pleasure or happiness as part of the theory of utilitarianism by moral philosopher ...

vehicles based on the

Ford Falcon Ford Falcon is an automobile nameplate applied to several vehicles worldwide. * Ford Falcon (North America), an automobile produced by Ford from 1960 to 1970. * Ford Falcon (Argentina), a car built by Ford Argentina from 1962 until 1991. * Fo ...

and

Holden Commodore The Holden Commodore is a full-size car that was sold by Holden from 1978 to 2020. It was manufactured from 1978 to 2017 in Australia and from 1979 to 1990 in New Zealand, with production of the locally manufactured versions in Australia endin ...

models. However, with

production Production may refer to: Economics and business * Production (economics) * Production, the act of manufacturing goods * Production, in the outline of industrial organization, the act of making products (goods and services) * Production as a stati ...

of the Falcon and Commodore finishing in 2016 and 2017 respectively, utility vehicles were no longer being mass produced in Australia, which led to investigations into a new platform for the Utes series as far back as the early 2010s. While an initial plan was proposed to continue with a generic utility chassis, the

purchased the series in 2015 and pursued a move to a production-based series which would move away from the traditional formula. After several delays, it was announced in 2016 that SuperUtes, based on production dual-cab diesel-powered utilities, would be introduced in 2018.

History

The inaugural season launched at the

2018 File:2018 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: The 2018 Winter Olympics opening ceremony in PyeongChang, South Korea; Protests erupt following the Assassination of Jamal Khashoggi; March for Our Lives protests take place across the United ...

Adelaide 500 The Adelaide 500 (also known as the VALO Adelaide 500 for sponsorship reasons) is an annual motor racing event for Supercars held on the streets of the east end of Adelaide, South Australia between 1999 to 2020 and again from 2022. It is somet ...

with ten cars entered, representing five manufacturers in

Ford Ford commonly refers to: * Ford Motor Company, an automobile manufacturer founded by Henry Ford * Ford (crossing), a shallow crossing on a river Ford may also refer to: Ford Motor Company * Henry Ford, founder of the Ford Motor Company * Ford F ...

Holden Holden, formerly known as General Motors-Holden, was an Australian subsidiary company of General Motors. It was an Australian automobile manufacturer, importer, and exporter which sold cars under its own marque in Australia. In its last thre ...

Mazda , commonly referred to as simply Mazda, is a Japanese multinational automotive manufacturer headquartered in Fuchū, Hiroshima, Japan. In 2015, Mazda produced 1.5 million vehicles for global sales, the majority of which (nearly one m ...

Mitsubishi The is a group of autonomous Japanese multinational companies in a variety of industries. Founded by Yatarō Iwasaki in 1870, the Mitsubishi Group historically descended from the Mitsubishi zaibatsu, a unified company which existed from 1870 ...

and

Toyota is a Japanese multinational automotive manufacturer headquartered in Toyota City, Aichi, Japan. It was founded by Kiichiro Toyoda and incorporated on . Toyota is one of the largest automobile manufacturers in the world, producing about 10 ...

. Isuzu would later join the series while

Dakar Rally The Dakar Rally (or simply "The Dakar"; formerly known as the "Paris–Dakar Rally") is an annual rally raid organised by the Amaury Sport Organisation. Most events since the inception in 1978 were staged from Paris, France, to Dakar, Senegal, ...

winner

Toby Price Toby Joseph Price OAM is an Australian off-road and enduro motorcycle racing world champion. He lives in Gold Coast, Queensland, and rode for the KTM Off-Road Racing Team until October 2015. He now represents the Red Bull Factory KTM Rally Tea ...

was amongst the entries in a

Mitsubishi Triton The Mitsubishi Triton is a compact pickup truck produced by Mitsubishi Motors. In Japan, where it has only been sold intermittently and in small numbers, it was originally known as the Mitsubishi Forte and from 1991 as the Strada. In the Unite ...

. The first race for the new category was won by Ryal Harris, a three time series winner in V8 Utes, who went on to win the series in a

Mazda BT-50 The Mazda BT-50 is a compact/mid-size pickup truck produced by the Japanese manufacturer Mazda since 2006. It is a larger version of the predecessor B-Series pickup and is not sold in the Japanese and North American markets. The second-generat ...

. The new series drew some criticism due to the small field sizes and slower lap times than V8 Utes. The higher centre of gravity also saw some SuperUtes roll over, most notably at the

Queensland Raceway Queensland Raceway nicknamed "the paperclip" is a motor racing circuit located at Willowbank in Ipswich, Queensland, Australia. The circuit did host Supercars Championship until 2019, drifting as well as club level racing and ride days. Qu ...

round in 2018 and

Adelaide Street Circuit The Adelaide Street Circuit (also known as the Adelaide Parklands Circuit) is a temporary street circuit in the East Parklands adjacent to the Adelaide central business district in South Australia, Australia. The "Grand Prix" version of t ...

in 2019, where two vehicles rolled during each event. This led to various technical upgrades for the cars during the 2019 season, including lowered ride heights and a move to a race-specification

Yokohama is the second-largest city in Japan by population and the most populous municipality of Japan. It is the capital city and the most populous city in Kanagawa Prefecture, with a 2020 population of 3.8 million. It lies on Tokyo Bay, south of To ...

tyre. The series announced further changes for the 2020 season, with the turbo diesel engine to be replaced by a LS3 V8 Engine in an attempt to reconnect with fans of the V8 Utes era. The ownership of the series also transferred from Supercars Championship to the team owners themselves. However, the 2020 season was then cancelled and the series did not re-launch in its new guise until May 2021 at

The Bend SuperSprint The Bend SuperSprint (formally known as the OTR SuperSprint – The Bend) is an annual motor racing event for Supercars, held at The Bend Motorsport Park in Tailem Bend, South Australia since 2018. In 2020, after originally being intended to be ...

. Ryal Harris won his second title in the five-round 2021 SuperUtes Series, again in a Peters Motorsport Mazda BT-50. Aaron Borg won the 2022 SuperUtes Series driving for

Sieders Racing Team Sieders Racing Team is a family-owned and -run Australian Touring Car, Sports Car and Truck Racing team that has competed in various Australian motor racing series. The team's primary operation is racing a V8 Supercar Ford Falcon in the second- ...

, who had won the V8 Utes series in 2016.

Vehicle specification

2018 & 2019 *4 or 5 cylinder turbo Diesel Engine evaluation *Motec ECU with Supercars engine parity program *Motec dash colour display/data logger *Exhaust – (OE manifold) *Suspension – Front and Rear SupaShock shock absorbers and springs *Brakes – Brembo 6 piston front and 4 piston rear callipers, Brembo front and rear disc’s *Tilton Pedal box and master cylinders incorporating

brake bias The brake balance or brake bias of a vehicle is the distribution of brake force at the front and rear tires, and may be given as the percentage distributed to the front brakes (e.g. 52%) or as the ratio of front and rear percentages (e.g. 52/48). Th ...

adjustments *Xtreme Outback 230mm twin plate ceramic clutch kit *Control gearbox and ratios *Control differential and ratio *Control R-spec Yokohama tyre *20” control Hussla wheels *Control specification roll cage (bespoke to each manufacturer) – CAMS approved
2021-onwards * Engine: Warspeed Prepared Control LS3 6.2 Ltr Engine * Control ECU: Haltech Nexus Locked, with Control Wiring Harness * Control Dash: Motec C125 with Data Logging * Exhaust Manifold: Standard GM * Exhaust System: Twin 3inch with X Pipe * Suspension: Pace Innovations Control Rear Adjustable Live Axle, Front standard control arms with front and rear Bilstein Control Coilovers * Brakes: Brembo 6 piston front and 4 piston rear callipers, Brembo front and rear discs * Foot Pedal Controls: Tilton Pedal box and master cylinders incorporating brake bias adjustments * Gearbox: 6 Speed Tremec Control Gearbox and Ratios * Tyres: Control R-spec Yokohama tyres * Wheels: Control 18inch x 9.5inch Lenso Control Wheels

Series winners

References

{{V8 Supercar support categories Supercars Championship Pickup truck racing series Auto racing series in Australia 10 Sport