Gold Coast residents will hear the roar of V8 Supercars through the streets of Surfers Paradise until 9:30pm within two years, the Queensland Government has announced.

Key points: The Gold Coast will have V8 cars racing until 9:30pm within two years

The Gold Coast will have V8 cars racing until 9:30pm within two years The Queensland Government says residents and the Gold Coast City Council will be consulted

The Queensland Government says residents and the Gold Coast City Council will be consulted More than 400 small towers will be built to provide trackside lighting, but it has not yet been decided who will fund the cost

Tourism Minister Kate Jones said there would be two nights of racing from 2021.

"The Gold Coast will be the first place anywhere in the world to have Supercars under lights at a street circuit and it will be only the second place in the world to have night racing," she said.

However, the State Government and Supercars were still in negotiations over how much each would pay towards the cost of floodlighting the circuit.

"By upgrading the lighting across the course it will make the Gold Coast 600 one of the most iconic motor sports events on the planet.

"Government modelling shows night racing will inject another $27 million into the Gold Coast economy," she said.

Ms Jones said the city council and local residents would be consulted about the move.

"We are only talking two nights of racing during the event and considering there have been proposals to bring back Indy — which would be a much longer disruption to local communities —this is a way we can reinvigorate the GC600, give it a long-term future and add new interest."

Night racing is set to begin on the Gold Coast in 2021. ( Supplied: Supercars )

The sights, sounds and smells of motor racing have been part of life for Surfers Paradise and Main Beach residents since 1991 when the first Gold Coast Indy was run.

The open-wheeler event pitted international drivers against each other in a world series until 2008.

The V8 cars, which had been a support category, became the main event in 2009 and the next year the annual motor event became known as the Gold Coast 600.

Business benefits vs pets and children

Main Beach resident Linda Woods is diplomatic about the proposal.

"I think anything to do with night time is great for anyone who does not go to bed early," she said.

"I don't want to say we are ultra conservative but we probably have lights out about 9:30[pm] in Main Beach.

"If you are looking at it from a business point of view — you want to expand and diverse your model," she said.

Georgie Brown, who has lived at Main Beach for 20 years and is a former secretary of the Main Beach Progress Association, says it's a bad idea.

"Someone has got to think of the dogs and the cats and the children at 9:30pm at night," she said.

"It's very noisy and it's smelly and by that I mean the exhaust fumes, etcetera, and it's really not appropriate for this area," she said.

Another Main Beach resident, Judy Spence, said the community should have been consulted before the decision was made.

"There really hasn't been any consultation up to this point," she said.

"Extending it to 9.30pm at night — that's quite a burden for people who don't want to tolerate that noise all weekend."

Kate Jones says lighting will need to be upgraded along the course but the Government is still negotiating how much it will contribute to the cost. ( ABC News: Steve Keen )

An 'incredible spectacle'

General Manager of Corporate Affairs at Supercars Cole Hitchcock said race schedules are yet to be finalised but he believes racing is likely to finish in the early evening on Friday and continue into the night on Saturday.

He said Supercar racing under lights looked magnificent.

"Glowing brakes, sparks… the cars look amazing.

"It is just an incredible spectacle.

"For the drivers it is an amazing experience as well, and the drivers and the teams are all very much in favour of it," he said.

Mr Hitchcock said more than 400 purpose-built small towers would provide trackside lighting.

"They won't be monoliths like stadium towers … they will be minimal wash for residents," he said.