FIVE RACE TOUAREGS TO TACKLE THE SAND

+ Click to Enlarge WOESTYNWAGEN: The 2008 VW Race Touareg has a five-cylinder, 2.5-litre, 205kW TDI engine.

November 30, 2007

The 2008 Dakar rally promises to be the hardest yet; the 30th running of the world's toughest motorsport event will be longer and more arduous than ever.

Special stage distance has been lengthened by a third over 2007 to 5736 km with the treacherous sand dunes of Mauritania set to provide much of the drama during the 16-day trek from Lisbon, Portugal, to the Senegalese capital of Dakar.

Volkswagen will attempt to be the first to win the Dakar with a diesel car; it will field four works Touareg Race 2s with 2.5-litre TDI engines, for Spaniard Carlos Sainz, South African Giniel de Villiers, Germany's Dieter Depping and American Mark Miller.

A fifth, privately entered, Race Touareg will be driven by Portugal's Carlos Sousa.

2007 World Cross-Country Rally champion Sainz said the 2008 Dakar would be the most arduous yet: "It will be longer, tougher and more difficult. We expect lots of sand dunes and there will be two cross-country legs after which we will be allowed no assistance from mechanics."

Volkswagen motorsport director Kris Nissen added: "At almost 6000 timed kilometres we are in for a very long event, and many days will be spent in the dunes of Mauritania.

"It will be a great challenge but also a great strain: the drivers and co-drivers will be spending many hours in the cars on the long stages, which means the team will not be able to start work on the cars until late in the evening."

He said the team had a good chance of success following recent tests and promising results in the UAE Desert Challenge in early November 2007, in which Volkswagens finished second and third

"We drove a lot on sand in that event and achieved notable improvements on this type of terrain."

De Villiers' co-driver Dirk von Zitzewitz explained: "In Mauritania the rally will return to locations that have not been used on the rally for more than a decade.

"The organisers have announced a number of so-called erg crossings - sand stages that have not previously been driven - and the famous Nega pass, near Kiffa, as special challenges.

"The outcome of the rally has been decided more than once on such stages."

VW Touaregs won 10 of the 2007 Dakar's 14 special stages but failed to prevent Mitsubishi claiming a seventh consecutive win. The Mitsubishi team, led by three-times Dakar winner Stéphane Peterhansel is favoured to win once more.

The Dakar Rally will start on 5 January, 2008.

Go back 

Useful TOOLS

Email this article       Print this article       Search Prices       Repayment Calculator       Set as homepage

Free NEWSLETTER

The latest motoring news - 3 times a week. Preview Sign up