Holden Sandman V8 Supercar

Red Bull Racing Australia and Holden whipped the covers off a very special race car in Queensland at the Gold Coast 600 V8Supercars, the Tribute Edition Sandman.

Created to help celebrate the Holden Sandman's 40th anniversary, the bespoke vehicle was built from the ground up by Triple Eight Race Engineering with design input from GM Holden's design studio.

The world-first race-ready Sandman took around six months to come to fruition and is fully drivable.

Powered by a motorsport V8 engine that belts out 525kW (705hp), the rear-drive vehicle features a full roll cage, race brakes, suspension, the works. Not just a panel van on steroids, a fully-fledged V8 Supercar, and it's faster in a straight-line than the current V8 Supercars thanks to its 'big banger' engine.

Under the skin it's based on the 2013 Red Bull Racing Commodore in which Jamie Whincup clinched that year's V8 Supercar Championship.

Power makes its way from the engine to the rear axle via six-speed electro-hydraulic paddle-shift gearbox (no doubt to make it easier to drive for non-V8 Supercar types) and right-foot response is courtesy of fly-by-wire throttle.

The hardcore Holden Sandman tribute car also features an operational rear tailgate and a pair of surfboards strapped to the roof – lightweight carbon-fibre of course.

Red Bull Racing driver and Whincup's team mate, Craig Lowndes, was on hand during the unveiling of the Tribute Edition Sandman, who noted the car is the same age as he is.

"The Holden Sandman was launched 40 years ago, the same year that I was born!" Lowndes said. "It sounds like a race car, it's faster than our race cars in a straight line with the big banger engine..."

Meanwhile Whincup was equally proud of the achievement by Triple Eight Racing and Holden, observing that "The heart and soul of the car is a V8 Supercar and it's an absolute rocket!"

"We're here after six months of development to reveal our secret project and what an honour to be a part of a Tribute Edition Sandman and have it race around the track this weekend," Whincup said.

The champion driver snatched first place in the Gold Coast 600, no doubt because of the confidence derived from drilling the Sandman around the track pre-race, as seen in the video below.