BMW UK has belatedly confirmed that Turkington and Adam Morgan will continue alongside the Laser Tools Racing with MB Motorsport entry of Jake Hill in the WSR stable of 330e M Sport machinery, and has unveiled the livery of its cars.
The BMWs suffered last season with a lack of straight-line speed when running in the pack, leading attention over the winter to be focused under the bonnet as well as other upgrades.
“We’ve got a new BMW engine – the latest-model BMW road car engine,” WSR boss Dick Bennetts told Autosport of the new powerplant, which features improvements in sustainability and efficiency.
“On the bodywork we’ve done a facelift to the latest model of BMW, we’ve done chassis work, development dampers – a lot’s gone on under the skin of the car.”
Bennetts explained that the new motor is “an evolution” of the existing B48 powerplant used in recent seasons.
Whereas the old units were supplied from Austria, the latest have arrived from BMW’s Hams Hall plant in Warwickshire, and the team’s long-time engine-preparation wizards from Neil Brown Engineering “started work in September” on developing them.
The new engine was shaken down in two cars at the MIRA proving ground last week, before WSR begins testing with all four of its cars at Snetterton on Wednesday this week.
“Everything looks really positive,” Turkington told Autosport. “Having the new engine under the bonnet is probably what excites me the most.
“Reflecting on last year, it’s probably where we lacked the most with our overall performance on the straights.
“At the moment it’s still an unknown quantity. With the effort over the winter we feel we’ve taken a step and we’ve nudged the package forwards, but that will all be relative to the steps the others have taken.”
Turkington, along with Ash Sutton, is targeting a record-breaking fifth BTCC title in 2024.
“I’m definitely confident that we’ll be in the mix,” said the 42-year-old Northern Irishman.
“From where I understand the car to be, I think we should be up there, whereas in the past two or three seasons I think we’ve been clinging on a bit and we’ve had the third fastest car.
“I feel in a better position to challenge, especially with the changes in the hybrid [regulations] – there’ll be a lot of different factors at play.”
Morgan, a winner of 11 BTCC races who joined WSR last year when the family Ciceley Motorsport team pulled out of the series, said: “In 2023 we scored a podium at our first weekend together but now the target has to be getting that first win with WSR and making sure we’re in the hunt for victories and podiums at every event.
“If we do that then we’ll be in for a very good season, and Colin and I will have a strong shot at winning the Teams’ Championship for Team BMW.”
WSR has not yet filled the final seat occupied previously by Carrera Cup GB-bound Stephen Jelley.
Speculation has linked highly rated but perennially underfinanced ex-Team Hard Cupra racer Bobby Thompson to the drive, and Bennetts admitted that “he is definitely on the list”.
The Kiwi described the berth as “a work in progress”.
“We have discussed running two half-seasons [with one driver in for the first five rounds, another for the final five],” he added.
“It’s not ideal, but if that’s what we have to do then we’ll have to do it. There’s a very good car sitting there for someone.”
