Toyota Gazoo quietly confident ahead of challenging Dakar
John Floyd
The Toyota Gazoo Racing SA team announced its contingent for Dakar 2019 in Cape Town last Sunday.
The three-car team will field the latest evolution of Toyota SA’s race-proven Hilux in South America, when they will tackle the world’s most grueling automotive race in January 2019.
When the first South African Toyota Hilux challenged the Dakar in 2012, Giniel de Villiers was behind the wheel and it is the po- sition he retains for 2019.
Partnered with German co-driver Dirk von Zitzewitz, the pair has notched up five podium finishes for Toyota on the Dakar Rally.
In 2019, they will have Qatar’s Nasser Al Attiyah and French co-driver Mathieu Baumel as team-mates. The pair took an excellent second overall in the 2018 Dakar Rally.
Netherlander Bernhard ten Brinke will this time be partnered by Frenchman Xavier Panseri.
Team principal Glyn Hall says a key factor for Dakar 2019 will be the size of the air intake restrictor, set at 37mm for the race in an attempt to balance the performance of turbo-diesel cars and naturally aspirated V8’s.
“The smaller restrictor is sure to count against us somewhat this year.
“But with the lower altitudes of Peru, we may just have enough grunt to make it work regardless,” Hall says.
“You must tackle the Dakar one day at a time, and you should never expect an easy race.
“But our car has been significantly honed over the last two years, and we have every reason to be confident as we head to South America.”
Dakar 2019 will take place solely through the deserts of central and southern Peru.
Starting in Lima on January 6, the teams face a shorter rally than previously, covering a total distance of 5 000km,before finishing in Lima on January 17.
Ten stages totalling 3 000km, 70% run on sand and in temperatures of around 40°C, suggest it may well be the most challenging in the Dakar Rally’s 41-year history.