Team BOC has enjoyed its first test session as a Holden team after hitting the track during the recent pre-season test session at Winton Raceway.

In its first test since switching from Ford, Andrew Jones posted the eighth quickest time while new team-mate Cameron McConville was 16h fastest as the pair focused on race set-up for the season opening Clipsal 500 in Adelaide.

“In my entire racing career, I don't think I'd ever been any more nervous than when we lifted the covers off our cars in Sydney, but after today the nerves are gone and I'm really excited about the year ahead,” team boss Brad Jones said. “We had a really good run; the cars ran faultlessly, we had great support from Walkinshaw Performance and gained a lot of knowledge. Our race speed was encouraging and I can clearly see where we are going.

“I know the guys were a little disappointed not to put on 'greens', but in the mid-section of the day when it's easier to gauge your competitiveness we were within a tenth or two and in the top eight/top five. For a first hit out with Holden it was really encouraging.”

Andrew Jones said he was pleased with his first drive back for Holden after driving Falcons last year.

“We've had a good day, a very good day, and I think we can start aiming our goals higher,” he said. “The car is very different to what we've been used to; it responds so well to small changes – changes to the front and rear roll bars and brake bias - and gives you a lot of confidence.

“Our day didn't start to plan, but working with our engineering group we tuned the car to the rubber. I would have loved to switch to 'greens', but we missed the ideal part of the day when it rained. I'm not too disappointed as I was more concerned about learning the car and not setting fastest laps. Given the tyres we used, we were very happy with what we achieved.”

McConville admitted that his day was the reverse of his team-mate's, but he would also be heading to Adelaide with confidence.

“We started well and probably dropped off a little as the day went, but that's more an indication of the tyres we used and what changes we made trying to learn the limitations of the new car,” he said. “These cars are incredibly responsive and you can notice even a few small 'clicks' on the roll bars – and that's what you want.

“I'm very happy with where we are at; we gained a lot of knowledge today, I'm comfortable in the car and working with [engineer] Wally Storey and the Jones Family again and I'm excited heading to Adelaide.”