Colin-on-Cars - Dakar provides a thriller

The second day of Dakar 2023 proved a thriller with all the ingredients of an epic adventure. Both the car and bike leads changed in the final sector as defending champions Nasser Al-Attiyah and Mathieu Baumel’s Gazoo Toyota Hilux overcame Dutchmen Erik Van Loon and Sébastien Delaunay’s similar privateer car for the closest of car victories. It was a good day all-round for SA teams Gazoo Toyota and Century Racing.

South African rookie R2 amateur biker Michael Docherty meanwhile took a sensational early motorcycle lead. Docherty ultimately took his second R2 win on the trot as US KTM lad Mason Klein benefited late leader Daniel Sanders’ GasGas slowing near the end in search of a better Tuesday starting position. Botswana rider Ross branch meanwhile ended fourth on the day on his Hero.

Michael Docherty

CARS: A GAME OF CAT & MOUSE

A glut of Sunday penalties affected the Monday car start order. WRC legend Carlos Sainz Sr. and Lucas Cruz led them away in their Audi RS Q e-Tron quattro from 9-time World Rally Champion Sebastien Loeb and Fabian Lurquin’s Factory BRX Hunter. Saudi home hero Yazeed Al Rajhi and Dirk van Zitzewitz’ left the gates third in their Toyota GR Hilux DKR T1+. 

Defending champions Attiyah and Baumel set off sixth ahead of SA crew Brian Baragwanath and Leonard Cremer in their Century CR6-T, with Toyota Gazoo compatriots Henk Lategan and Brett Cummings 10th, and Giniel De Villiers and Dennis Murphy 18th based on their final results yesterday.

Giniel de Villiers

De Villiers hit the ground running, assisted by the leaders struggling to open the narrow, rough, and rocky 430 km stage with unusually little sand and dunes. Giniel initially fought it out with French crew Lionel Baud and Remy Boulanger, as well as Erik Van Loon and Delaunay who recovered from their prologue rollover. Both Baud and Van Loo benefited the cleaned out road as they ran well down from their respective 74th and 41st starting positions in their similar privateer Toyota GR Hilux DKR T1+s. 

The Toyotas of Al-Attiyah and Saudi home hero Yazeed Al Rajhi and Michael Orr, and Polish crew Martin Prokop and Viktor Chytk in a Ford Raptor, also benefiting starting 20th, joined the top three in their wide-spread battle. Behind them Simon Vitse and Fred Lefebvre’s MD buggy held the two wheel drive advantage over Frenchmen Mathieu Serradori and Loic Minaudier Factory Century, as teammate Baragwanath lost 20 minutes on the road when he stopped to cool a hot engine.

Sunday’s frontrunners struggled early on, with Attiyah initially running in seventh, Sainz ninth, Audi teammate Mattias Ekstrom 13th, Lategan 18th, Seb Loeb’s BRX Hunter 23rd and Stéphane Peterhansel’s Audi in 24th.  Guerlain Chicherit was even worse off, stuck in the desert with no more spare wheels for his BRX Hunter, a fate which later also befell Loeb. The BRX troubles seemed to be caused by the team running tyre pressures too high in an effort to avoid punctures. Attiyah and Sainz however picked up the pace as the day progressed.

The second highest altitude of all the stages also allegedly saw the rear wheel drive turbo cars struggling against the 4x4 turbo cars as a result of slightly different turbo regulations between the two classes. That did not prevent a splendid dice between Serradori and Vitse, which saw Serradori stealing the lead from Vitse at the very end to take the 2WD win in his SA-built Century. 

Erik van Loon

The fat lady had however not yet sung, with all eyes on Van Loon chasing his first Dakar day win leading through the final control and Baud still in the thick of it. Had van Loon done enough to stave off the charging Al Attiyah? Alas no, as the Dutch crew missed out by a handful of seconds in the end. 

Nasser’s factory car pipped van Loon’s similar privateer Toyota to a classic Hilux 1-2. Sunday winner Carlos Sainz ended third on Monday to maintain the overall lead. With Serradori fourth from Baud, de Villiers, Prokop. Baragwanath clawed back to a provisional tenth, Lategan was provisionally 16th. Expect penalties to change the day’s order. 

Overall, Sainz leads Al Attiyah by two minutes, with Serradori third, 24 minutes off the pace and Vitse and de Villiers close behind. Baragwanath lies seventh from Prokop. Peterhansel and Lategan. That’s six South African cars and three teams in the top ten, albeit subject to penalties to be applied.

DOCHERTY, BRANCH STAR ON TWO WHEELS

Once all of Sunday’s penalties were applied, it was Californian Ricky Brabec’s Honda that led the bikes away ahead of KTM duo Kevin Benavides and Toby Price. Botswana’s Ross Branch was looking for a better day on his Hero from 12th as South African FK Husqvarna duo Michael Docherty led the R2 class away, and Charan Moore was the first Malle Moto Original machine to set off. He picked up the no-service bike class win yesterday after rival Joan Garcia also incurred a penalty.

Damp conditions however caused a few surprises as rookie leader Docherty emerged a shock leader early on from Spaniard Sachedina and Hero duo Sebastien Bühler and Joaquim Rodrigues, and Daniel Sanders’ GasGas. Clear tracks seemed to help the bikes further back in maintaining a higher pace.

Sanders moved up to second and slowly closed on Docherty, passing the South African at mid distance. KTM man Toby Price loomed large in third ahead of Botswana rider Ross Branch on his Hero as yesterday’s winner Ricky Brabec struggled with his Honda. BAS KTM privateer Mason Klein and Husqvarna factory rider Skyler Howes were enjoying good run later in the day, Docherty had an issue in the penultimate sector, slipping to tenth, but maintaining a strong amateur R2 lead.

Ross Branch

It was Klein who emerged ahead at the finish to take the day in dramatic style, despite a two minute penalty. Sanders admitted to deliberately slowing in the final sector in an effort to avoid starting first on Tuesday. He slowed by over five minutes and finished ninth, which left Bühler second, Howes third and Branch in fourth, whilst Price rounded out the top five. Docherty ultimately rode home thirteenth to take his second R2 stage win on the trot. Klein moved into the overall lead with his win, leading Price, Barreda, Benavides, and Sanders, all within three minutes. Branch sits 12th and rookie winner Docherty is provisionally 19th overall.

Of the other South African bikers, R2 Malle Moto Original class rider Charan Moore had a solid day to 37th and second in the no service category on his FK Husqvarna. South African Malle Moto rider, Stuart Gregory was still running in 90th, iron lady Kirsten Landman sat 105th, and Stevan Wilken was sitting 123rd overall as we wrote.

In the quads, Frenchman Alexandre Giroud took a second win on the trot after a close dice with Argentine Manuel Andujar, who lost seven minutes in the final sector. That saw him to slip to fourth behind American veteran Pablo Copetti and Argentine Moreno Flores.

For the rest, the side by sides and trucks were still racing as we wrote. Poles Eryk Goczal and Oriol Menia won Sunday’s T4 production side-by-side race in their Can Am, from Pau Navarro and Michael Metge, and Michal Goczal and Szymon Gospodarczyk. Goczal led again at mid race on Monday, from Argentine Jermais Gonzalez and Pedro Rinaldi, and Brazilian Rodrigo Luppi De Oliveira and Maykel Justo’s Can Ams.

Chilean Francisco Lopez and JP Latrach’s Can Am took Sunday’s T3 side by side prototypes from Guilaume de Mevius and Francois Casalet’s GR and US lad Seth Quintero and Dennis Zenz SA rookie crew Eben Basson and Abertus Pienaar were 25th in their GR Rally and Geoff Minnitt and Gerhard Snyman’s Can Am 39th. Lopez led Monday’s stage at mid distance from US Can Am lads, Austin Jones and Gustavo Gugelmin  and Mitch Guthrie and Kellon Walch, with Basson 17th and Minnitt 27th.

Czech team Martin Macik, Frantisek Tomasek and David Svanda’s Iveco took Sunday’s truck race  from countrymen Ales Loprais, Petr Pokora and Jaroslav Valr’s Praga and Dutch Iveco men Mitchel van den Brink, Jarno van de Pol and Moises Torrallardona. It was all change, a third of the way on Monday as Dutch trio Janus van Kasteren, Darek Rodewald and Marcel Snijders’s Iveco led the Loprais Praga, and Martin van den Brink, Rijk Mouw Erik Kofman’s Iveco at a third distance.

Tuesday sees an even longer 446 kilometre run through several canyons from Al’Ula to Ha’Il.

Words: Motorsport Media

https://bit.ly/3WCMd3u

Colin-on-Cars - First Dakar stage provides drama

Dakar 2023 got off to a bruising start as Carlos Sainz and Lucas Cruz’ Audi RS Q e-tron quattro won the 367 km opening car stage and Daniel Sanders’ GasGas won the bike race. 

South African rider Michael Docherty took amateur bike honours on his Husqvarna, but dropped to third on a penalty, while all-SA car entry Brian Baragwanath and Leonard Cremer’s Century CR6-T was the first 2-wheel drive car home in sixth overall. It was a day of attrition and penalties however, with several top competitors cruelly retiring. From the race and many forfeiting positions to mistakes.

Brian Baragwanath/Leonard Cremer - first rear-drive vehicle home

Prologue winners Mattias Ekstrom and Emil Bergkvist hit the ground running to lead the way among the cars early on aboard their petrol-electric Audi. They led Nasser Al-Attiyah and Mathieu Baumel‘s Toyota Gazoo Hilux and Guerlain Chicherit and Alex Winocq’s Prodrive Hunter. Ekstrom still led by mid distance, but Sebastien Loeb and Fabian Lurquin’s Factory Hunter was up to second from flying South Africans Brian Baragwanath and Leonard Cremer’s Century CR6-T.

Ekstrom maintained a reduced minute lead over Loeb at three-quarter distance, with Chicherit fourth from Sainz, Al-Attiyah and Baragwanath. Saudi home hero Yazeed Al Rajhi and Michael Orr’s GR Hilux followed ahead of Orlando Terranova and Alex Bravo’s Factory Hunter Stéphane Peterhansel and Edouard Boulanger’s Audi. South African Gazoo Hilux crews Henk Lategan and Brett Cummings and Giniel de Villiers and Dennis Murphy followed.

Carlos Sainz

It was all change by the finish line, 100 km anon, however. Sainz made the best of a technical final sector to jump into the lead to take the day by 23 seconds over Loeb. Loeb also got the better of Ekstrom to slot his Hunter between the two hybrid Audis, with Chicherit fourth in his private Hunter. 

Al Rajhi also benefited a fine final section to lead the Toyotas home ahead of a delighted Baragwanath in sixth. Terranova’s Hunter ended seventh from Al Attiyah in the first of the factory Gazoo Toyotas, Pole Jakub Przygonski and Armand Monleon’s X-Raid Mini and Peterhansel provisionally came home tenth. 

Penalties for Chicherit, Al Attiyah and Baragwanath however reshuffled the order. That saw Al Rajhi up to fourth from Chicherit, Terranova, Al Attiyah and Baragwanath in 8th.

Of South African interest, Lategan followed in eleventh with de Villiers provisionally 16th. Century crews Frenchmen Mathieu Serradori and Loic Minaudier’s Factory CR6-T and lady racer Laia Sanz and Fabrizio Gerini’s Astara CR6 were classified 17th and 24th at the time of writing. SA navigators Gerhard Schutte was guiding Tom Bell in 54th and Ryan Bland 57th alongside Daniel Schroder among the Red-Lined entries.

Hein Lategan

It was a bittersweet opening day for 2022 bike winners GasGas and for the South African R2 motorcycle riders. Defending champion, Briton Sam Sunderland crashed out of the lead early in the day. Former winner, Aussie Daniel Sanders however made good by winning the day on his Factory GasGas. 

Sanders was however handed a 2 minute penalty to drop to fifth behind Californian Ricky Brabec’s Factory Honda, Factory KTM duo Toby Price and Argentine Kevin Benavides. Spaniard Joan Barreda’s Honda also took a minute penalty to drop to fourth from second on the road. 

Ricky Brabec

Sanders was fifth in a day of penalties, ahead of one of the heroes of the day, US youngster Mason Klein, who led most of the way on his BAS KTM. Chilean Pablo Quintanilla dropped from third to seventh on a 2 minute penalty, ahead  of Adrien van Beveren’s Honda, Skyler Howes’ Husqvarna, and Hero rider Joaquim Rodriguez on tenth.

It was a similar story in the amateur R2 class, where South African youngster Bradley Cox led the way early on before crashing his BAS KTM out off a broken dune and injuring his arm. That left fellow South African Michael Docherty to race on to the R2 win as he finished 17th on his FK Husqvarna, while Cox and Sunderland were casevacced to hospital. 

Docherty was however handed a 15 minute penalty to drop to 26th overall and third in R2. Of the Southern African two-wheeler contingent, Botswana’s Kalahari Ferrari Ross Branch ended 14th on his Factory Hero. Charan Moore rode in 15th among the R2 bikes and second in the Malle Moto no service class after a tough day in the saddle.

Stuart Gregory finished a provisional 38th, lady heroine Kirsten Landman 63rd, and Stevan Wilken was 74th, all those results of course provisional. Argentinians Manuel Andujar and Moreno Flores meanwhile rode home first and third in the quads with Frenchman Alexandre Giroud second.

Elsewhere, Chilean Francisco Lopez Contardo and Juan Pablo Latrach Vinagre’s Red Bull Can Am led the T3 side-by-side prototypes from US Junior teammates Austin Jones and Gustavo Gugelmin, and Seth Quintero and Dennis Zenz. South Africans Geoff Minnitt and Gerhard Snyman were still racing in 21st in their HBE Can Am whilst rookie crew Eben Basson and Abertus Pienaar ran 36th in their GR Rally.

Chileans Francisco Lopez Contardo and Juan Pablo Latrach Vinagre in their Red Bull Can Am led the T4 side by sides from Poles Eryk Goczal and Oriol Mena. Marek Goczal and Maciej Marton came home in 3rd ahead of Pau Navarro and Michel Metge in fourth. Mozambican crew Paulo Oliveira and Miguel Alberty Can Am sat 38th.

In the trucks, Czech team Martin Macik, Frantisek Tomasek and David Svanda’s Iveco led the similar machine of Martin van den Brink, Jan van de Pol and Manuel Torrallardona. Martin Soltys, Roman Krejci and David Hoffmann in their Tatra rounded up third.

Monday’s Day 2 brings a challenging 430 km of racing from the Sea Camp across to Alula. The day starts on fast tracks before hitting the dunes later in the stage.

Words: Motorsport Media

https://bit.ly/3GyGQww

Colin-on-Cars - Cat and mouse in the desert

South African men and machines starred as Dakar Rally 2023 got under way with a short 13 kilometre prologue along Saudi Arabia’s Red Sea beach at the event’s Sea Park start base on Saturday.

Traditionally seen as a game of Cat & Mouse, many consider Dakar’s Prologue results as merely academic. Faster crews may play for a better road position in Sunday’s opening stage, while others just go for broke in search of an easy stage result.

2022 winners, Qatari Nasser Al-Attiyah and Mathieu Baumel opened the road in their Toyota Gazoo Racing Hilux DKR T1+. They were however pipped by second crew out, 9-time World Rally Champion Sebastien Loeb chasing that elusive Dakar win alongside Fabian Lurquin in their factory Prodrive Hunter.

It took a while for the rest of the big guns to filter through, but 14th away, Frenchmen  Stéphane Peterhansel and Eric Boulanger slotted their petrol-electric Audi RS Q e-tron between Loeb and Attiyah. Four cars later, Mattias Ekstrom and Erik Bergkvist’s Audi then put a second on Loeb to take the win and claim pole position for Dakar 2023.

By the time the dust had settled, it was Ekstrom who topped the car Prologue from Loeb, Peterhansel, and Al Attiyah. Dakar veteran Guerlain Chicherit ended fourth in his Prodrive Hunter from Carlos Sainz’ third Audi, Saudi home hero Yazeed al Rajhi’s Toyota Hilux and Jakub Przygonski in the quickest of the Minis.

Of the South Africans, the Gazoo Toyotas of young guns Henk Lategan and Brett Cummings, and Dakar hero Giniel de Villiers and Dennis Murphy will start Dakar 2023 10th and 12th , respectively. Quickest two wheel drive car on the day, Brian Baragwanath and Leonard Cremer will provisionally set off 15th in the all-new biturbo V6 Century CR6-T on Sunday. They came home 32 seconds off Ekstrom’s pace.

South Africans also starred in the Motorcycle Prologue. Australian duo Toby Price was quickest overall  for KTM from Daniel Sanders’ GasGas, and Botswana Hero rider Ross Branch. Joan Barreda’s Honda, Kevin Benavides’ KTM and Joaquim Rodriguez’ Hero followed. 

SA riders however owned the R2 bike class with first, second and fourth in the amateur rankings. Sand specialist Dakar rookie Michael Docherty piloted his HT Husqvarna to a 9 second R2 win over teammate and Malle Moto Original leader Charan Moore, with Bradley Cox fourth on his BAS KTM. Docherty placed ninth overall, Moore 16th and Cox 26th.

SA rider Stevan Wilken came home 41st in R2 on his HT Husqvarna, while Malle Moto duo, Stuart Gregory ended 76th and iron lady Kirsten Landman 79th among the amateur bikers. Dakar’s Malle Moto Original class sees riders riding without any support and servicing their own machines, pitching their tents, and racing Dakar solo throughout.

Opening the road in the morning, Alexandre Giroud took a one second quad victory over Brazilian Marcello Medeiros and Spanish rookie Daniel Vaques. The Side by Sides and Trucks were still racing at the time of writing.

Sunday’s real opening 367 Stage 1 should start to sort the men from the boys. Dakar 2023 will race 5,000 km through the Arabian Desert to 15 January. The real action Starts Sunday. Watch this space!

Words: www.motorsportmedia.co.za

https://bit.ly/3C9BXaD

Colin-on-Cars - What UK drivers think

Polling the views of more than 6 000 cars owners, the 2022 Honest John Satisfaction Index in the United Kingdom places Lexus at the top of the pile as the UK’s most satisfying car brand.

Each year HonestJohn.co.uk readers are asked to rate their car in a number of important areas including fuel economy, reliability, practicality and safety, as well as the car’s performance and how comfortable and easy it is to drive.

Lexus topped the reliability category and performed well across the board with an overall satisfaction rating of 92,37%, beating last year’s winner Dacia to the top spot (92,16%), with Tesla a fraction behind (92,12%).

Porsche (90,91%) and Jaguar (90,53 %) complete the top five of this year's index.

Most satisfying

The Hyundai Tucson is the highest rated car in the 2022 Satisfaction Index, with a score of 96,64%.

Available as a hybrid, plug-in hybrid or pure electric car, it was praised for its performance, ease to drive, and reliability, backed by Hyundai’s five-year warranty. 

Worst for owner satisfaction was the Mercedes-Benz GLC Class (2015-2022 model), singled out for its high repair costs and poor fuel economy, receiving an overall rating of 80,98%.

It was followed by the Toyota RAV4 (2013-2019 model) in second place with 85,07% and the Ford Fiesta (2013-2017 model) in third with 85,62%.

Lexus is the best car brand for reliability for the fourth year running, with an average score of 9,89 out of 10.

Suzuki takes second place (9,75), with Subaru finishing third with an average score of 9,72. 

At the other end of the reliability table, Land Rover receives the lowest average rating - a disappointing 8,93 and, while, Peugeot also scored 8,93 out of 10, takes second spot by the smallest of a fraction. Fiat completes the bottom three with an average of 8,94. 

The Lexus NX (2014-2021) is the UK's most reliable car with an outstanding average of 9,98. The Hyundai Tucson is ranked second with an impressive 9,96, followed by the Kia XCeed (9,96).

The Mercedes-Benz GLC-Class (2015-2022) languishes at the bottom of the reliability rankings with an average score of 8,52, followed by the Peugeot 3008, which scored 6,61 out of 10 and the Ford Kuga, which scored 8,70.

Images: HonestJohn

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Colin-on-Cars - Ready to race

With the prologue for the world’s toughest rally-raid race just five days away, the Toyota Gazoo Racing (TGR) Dakar Team has assembled its three GR DKR Hilux T1+ race cars at the Sea Camp, north of the Saudi Arabian town of Yanbu.

The next order of business is a thorough shakedown to confirm that everything works as expected, before attending to the final checks and administration for Dakar 2023.

The 11 km prologue for the race, which is used to determine the starting orders for the first stage, will get the action under way during the afternoon of 31 December 2022, before the race itself kicks off on New Year’s Day 2023. Fourteen competitive stages will follow, with a Rest Day following Stage 8.

For TGR, the 2023 Dakar Rally will offer an opportunity to defend the crown it won, when Qatar’s Nasser Al-Attiyah and French co-driver, Mathieu Baumel, brought the mighty GR DKR Hilux T1+ home in first place at the end of the 2022 edition of the race. This was Nasser and Mathieu’s second victory for the team, and they will be aiming for a repeat performance early in the new year.

Teammate Giniel de Villiers, from South Africa, has one of the best Dakar records in history, having competed in twenty Dakars to date. He won the race in 2009, and has been on the podium seven additional times. He has only finished outside the Top 10 once in twenty races, and will be aiming for another solid result, again with co-driver Dennis Murphy, also from South Africa, beside him.

For the South African pairing of Henk Lategan and co-driver Brett Cummings, their first two Dakar Rallies together proved learning experiences. In their first outing, in 2021, the pair crashed heavily during Stage 5 of the rally, resulting in a broken collarbone for Lategan. In 2022 they bounced back, driving at a more manageable pace that saw them take two stage victories, though their 31st place finish belied the pace of the young pairing.

Dakar 2023 promises to be one of the toughest yet, consisting of 14 stages rather than the dozen that has become the norm over the last few editions of the race. Not only that, but the route also ventures further into the so-called Empty Quarter of Saudi Arabia than ever before. Add to that the Rest Day, which comes well after the mid-point of the race, as well as the removal of mid-stage rest-and-refuel points, and it is clear that the upcoming rally will be tough.

With that said, the GR DKR Hilux T1+ has seen constant improvement since the last Dakar, winning the inaugural W2RC in the hands of Nasser and Mathieu, and taking Giniel to yet another title in the South African Rally-Raid Championship, which serves as one of the test series for the team. With refinements to the car’s quality, reliability and durability, the team is confident that it has built an even better car than the one that won the race in 2022.

The route for the upcoming Dakar Rally starts at the so-called Sea Camp, on the North-Western coastline of Saudi Arabia. Both the Prologue and Stage 1 will be staged from here, before Stage 2 takes the rally towards the stunning rocks and canyons around Alula. Next up is Stage 3 towards Ha’il, where the bivouac will remain in place for three days before shifting to Al Duwadimi for two days. Stage 8 will see the rally reach the Saudi capital of Riyadh, for a much-needed Rest Day.

From here, the route continues in an Eastward direction towards Haradh, before shifting into the Empty Quarter for the final few days of the event. This year’s Marathon Stage – where the crews race away from the bivouac to an unsupported camp in the desert, before racing back the following day – will take place near the end of the race, and may well change the outcome of the event.

The final stages of the race will take the crews from Shaybah to Al-Hofuf, and on to the city of Dammam, on the Arabian Gulf. While the closing three stages of the rally all feature distances under 200km, the organisers have cautioned that these stages may well prove the toughest of the event, and that competitors should not take them lightly based purely on their relatively short distances.

Dakar 2023 is scheduled to finish on January 15, in the city of Dammam. This will be the Dakar’s first visit to the city, and also the first time that the race spans across the entire Saudi Arabian landscape from coast to coast.

https://bit.ly/3WGqdo4

Colin-on-Cars - Ready to tace

With the prologue for the world’s toughest rally-raid race just five days away, the Toyota Gazoo Racing (TGR) Dakar Team has assembled its three GR DKR Hilux T1+ race cars at the Sea Camp, north of the Saudi Arabian town of Yanbu.

The next order of business is a thorough shakedown to confirm that everything works as expected, before attending to the final checks and administration for Dakar 2023.

The 11 km prologue for the race, which is used to determine the starting orders for the first stage, will get the action under way during the afternoon of 31 December 2022, before the race itself kicks off on New Year’s Day 2023. Fourteen competitive stages will follow, with a Rest Day following Stage 8.

For TGR, the 2023 Dakar Rally will offer an opportunity to defend the crown it won, when Qatar’s Nasser Al-Attiyah and French co-driver, Mathieu Baumel, brought the mighty GR DKR Hilux T1+ home in first place at the end of the 2022 edition of the race. This was Nasser and Mathieu’s second victory for the team, and they will be aiming for a repeat performance early in the new year.

Teammate Giniel de Villiers, from South Africa, has one of the best Dakar records in history, having competed in twenty Dakars to date. He won the race in 2009, and has been on the podium seven additional times. He has only finished outside the Top 10 once in twenty races, and will be aiming for another solid result, again with co-driver Dennis Murphy, also from South Africa, beside him.

For the South African pairing of Henk Lategan and co-driver Brett Cummings, their first two Dakar Rallies together proved learning experiences. In their first outing, in 2021, the pair crashed heavily during Stage 5 of the rally, resulting in a broken collarbone for Lategan. In 2022 they bounced back, driving at a more manageable pace that saw them take two stage victories, though their 31st place finish belied the pace of the young pairing.

Dakar 2023 promises to be one of the toughest yet, consisting of 14 stages rather than the dozen that has become the norm over the last few editions of the race. Not only that, but the route also ventures further into the so-called Empty Quarter of Saudi Arabia than ever before. Add to that the Rest Day, which comes well after the mid-point of the race, as well as the removal of mid-stage rest-and-refuel points, and it is clear that the upcoming rally will be tough.

With that said, the GR DKR Hilux T1+ has seen constant improvement since the last Dakar, winning the inaugural W2RC in the hands of Nasser and Mathieu, and taking Giniel to yet another title in the South African Rally-Raid Championship, which serves as one of the test series for the team. With refinements to the car’s quality, reliability and durability, the team is confident that it has built an even better car than the one that won the race in 2022.

The route for the upcoming Dakar Rally starts at the so-called Sea Camp, on the North-Western coastline of Saudi Arabia. Both the Prologue and Stage 1 will be staged from here, before Stage 2 takes the rally towards the stunning rocks and canyons around Alula. Next up is Stage 3 towards Ha’il, where the bivouac will remain in place for three days before shifting to Al Duwadimi for two days. Stage 8 will see the rally reach the Saudi capital of Riyadh, for a much-needed Rest Day.

From here, the route continues in an Eastward direction towards Haradh, before shifting into the Empty Quarter for the final few days of the event. This year’s Marathon Stage – where the crews race away from the bivouac to an unsupported camp in the desert, before racing back the following day – will take place near the end of the race, and may well change the outcome of the event.

The final stages of the race will take the crews from Shaybah to Al-Hofuf, and on to the city of Dammam, on the Arabian Gulf. While the closing three stages of the rally all feature distances under 200km, the organisers have cautioned that these stages may well prove the toughest of the event, and that competitors should not take them lightly based purely on their relatively short distances.

Dakar 2023 is scheduled to finish on January 15, in the city of Dammam. This will be the Dakar’s first visit to the city, and also the first time that the race spans across the entire Saudi Arabian landscape from coast to coast.

https://bit.ly/3WGqdo4

Colin-on-Cars - Fastest Xmas tree

Breaking records is a very human condition and the reason the Guinness Book of Records exists but, down Texas way a new, unofficial record has been set for the fastest Christmas tree.

Hennessey, the Texas-based hypercar manufacturer and high-performance vehicle creator, has attained a new unofficial holiday record, having driven its Venom 1000 Mustang GT500 to a velocity of 307 km/h with an illuminated Christmas tree strapped to the roof.

Based on the most powerful factory-produced Mustang of all time, the stock Ford Mustang Shelby GT500 boasts a hand-built supercharged 5,2-litre V8 with a 2,65-litre Roots-type supercharger nestled on top.

Hennessey's Texas team upgrades the iconic pony car with a high-flow induction system, new fuel rails and injectors, and an air/oil separation system. In addition, fittings, lines, belts, and tensioners are upgraded, and the dual-clutch transmission is recalibrated for its high-output role.

The result is the Venom 1000 Mustang GT500, which is rated at 745 kW and 1 156 Nm on 93 octane pump fuel.

Piloted by professional race car driver Spencer Geswein under clear blue Texas skies with temperatures in the mid-50s, the road-legal Venom 1000 Mustang GT500 achieved the record speed on the closed circuit without drama.

This is despite the significant additional drag (and holiday cheer) produced by a festal light-adorned evergreen. The vehicle was not altered explicitly for the run, except for removing the factory under hood ‘rain tray’ to improve airflow.

John Hennessey, company Founder and CEO, says: "Our annual ‘Christmas Tree Run’ serves two roles for our growing company. First, testing our performance at a proving grounds is a great opportunity to validate our engineering – the Venom 1000 delivers impressive numbers. Second, adding the seasonal twist allows our hard-working team to end the year with some high-speed fun before they slow down and enjoy their families for the holidays."

The ‘Christmas Tree Run’ has become a Hennessey tradition, with the team carefully choosing the proper pairing between vehicle and evergreen – if nothing else than to ensure needle stripping speeds.

In 2017, the company used a 2018 Dodge Challenger Hellcat Widebody to take a tree to 280 km/h – establishing a benchmark. The number was broken in 2019 when its HPE1000 Jeep Trackhawk hit 291 km/h with a hapless Douglas Fir strapped on its roof rails and last year, Hennessey cracked 294 km/h with a tuned Audi RS 6 Avant (borrowed from John Hennessey's wife!) with a fresh Christmas tree tied to its roof.

https://bit.ly/3Vgzhik

Colin-on-Cars - Hero in the making

As the sun began to set over Cape Town at the weekend, the newly-named Sarel van der Merwe corner at the Killarney circuit honouring the South African motor sport legend, saw another in the making as 18-year-old Kwanda Mokoena drove faultlessly to become the youngest-ever South African Endurance Champion.

Mokoena, partnered with another young SA hotshot Andrew Rackstraw and Audi factory driver Luca Engstler dominated proceedings in Cape Town after claiming pole position in their MJR Motorsport/Amandla Coal Audi R8 LMS GT3 Evo2 and proceeded to lead from lights to flag, emerging three laps clear of title rival Tschops Sipuka, partnered with Xolile Letlaka and Stuart White in their Into Africa Mining Lamborghini Huracan GT3 who duly finished second overall.

Kwando Mokoena/Andrew Rackstraw

The Lamborghini suffered tyre issues in the opening stint with White unable to keep up with the flying Audi.

White set the fastest race lap as he dug deep to close down the gap, making it back on to the lead lap by mid-race. During a brief rain shower, which occurred moments after his pitstop, White was one second faster than the whole field as the young charger tried to close the gap.

The third championship contender Hein Lategan ended third in his Black Bull Racing Porsche 911 GT3 Cup with co-drivers Henk Lategan and Verissimo Tavares giving their all in their near-standard Porsche ending four laps down on the Lamborghini after a trouble-free race.

Hein and Henk Lategan

Fourth overall was a fantastic effort from Mo Mia/Lee Thompson (Toys-R-Us Porsche 911 GT3). The car’s left front corner was badly damaged during a pitlane accident during Friday night’s practice session; parts were ordered, arrived at 07h30 and the car was ready to race by 9am after a mammoth effort from the team.

Fifth overall was the Bucketlist Racing BMW 340i of Heinz Bose and Christopher and Anthony Pretorius in spite of suffering a broken control arm which the team had to make running repairs to keep the car running over the final half-hour.

Danie van Niekerk and Roberto/David Franco (Graphix Supply World Volkswagen Polo SupaCup) claimed a surprised class D win and sixth overall. Van Niekerk had to repair a right-rear wheel bearing which cost the team 30 minutes in the pits. Over the final 30 minutes of the race, Van Niekerk was involved in a huge fight with Johan de Bruyn’s similar Polo.

Heartbreak

The heartbreak story of the Killarney 9-Hour befell Karah Hill/Michael Stephen/Jurie Swart’s Kalex VW Polo. The trio were in a comfortable class lead and fifth overall for eight hours and 53 minutes when the left-front wheel bearing failed – with seven minutes of the race remaining!

The factory Volkswagen Polo GTi SupaCup of Daniel Rowe/Keagan Masters was well in the hunt until the halfway mark when a fuel pump fitting failure caused the car to stop on track. After being towed back and repaired, losing 11 laps, the pair clawed their way back up the order, finally finishing seventh and second in Class D.

The class E win went to the Backdraft-Lexus of Mark Owens, Trevor Graham and Richard van Heerde who lost a fuel pump an hour into the race and dropped from a two-lap lead. They fought hard to overturn their 15-lap deficit, edging the Team Qhubani Backdraft of Fikile Holomisa/Baphumze Rubuluza/Xolela Njumbunxa by 11 seconds. The Qhubani team drove the second half of the race stuck in fifth gear making their tenth overall all the more remarkable.

Mark Owens, Trevor Graham and Richard van Heerde

Phillip Meyer/Mark Harvey/Dean Wolson brought their PPLE Group/Adapt Backdraft home in a solid 12th overall having lost 25 minutes with numerous stops to bleed the brakes, ending a slender 21 seconds behind the 11th placed Gazoo Yaris after nine hours of hard racing.

The coveted Index of Performance Championship nearly slipped through Pesty Racing’s fingers as the Backdraft team of Harm and Barend Pretorius perfect run almost unravelled until a brief rain shower saw father Harm slither off the road, damaging a fuel overflow pipe and dislodging the fuel tank. Hasty repairs were made and the team duly claimed the Class E Championship as well as the Index silverware.

Another hard luck story belonged to the Team Retro Mates Backdraft of Meredith Willis/Michael Gaines/Manfred Schroder/Reg Sutton who was leading Class E when a left-front wheel worked loose in the fast turn four. The car was towed back to the pits and repaired, and the quad ended 14th.

Thwarted

Andrew Horne/Gerald Buys (Xena Chemicals Nash-VW) had high hopes for a strong result but were thwarted by a broken rose-joint which cost the pair 20 minutes, and later, they lost another 30 minutes  replacing a wishbone. From 33rd they fought their way back to end 15th overall.

Franco di Matteo/Julian Familiaris/Warren Lombard had an eventful weekend. Their Mobil 1 Mustang V8 suffered engine failure in practice and the team packed up before deciding – just 15 minutes before the start of the race – to rent a spare Backdraft. No practice, no overalls or helmet, the trio borrowed or bought what they needed. There was only time to add fuel, and starting last, they raced to 16th overall and seventh in class E.

The Dolphin Engineering-entered Juno-Nissan also had a character building weekend. The team discovered a gap between the engine and bell-housing which took an all-nighter to strip and repair. The car ran well until a driveshaft broke, which cost 75 minutes to repair.

The #213 Bucketlist Racing Volkswagen Polo of Rob Clark, Pieter Zeelie and Johan de Bruyn ended 18th after suffering a broken engine mounting that took 90 minutes to repair.

Jan Lammers

Francis Carruthers/Steve Humble/Jonathan Thomas (Pilbeam MP84) ran as high as second place after two hours but tumbled down to 19th position by flag fall after Carruthers suffered a right rear suspension failure at the newly-renamed Sarel Sweep (turn five) travelling over 180km/h, losing 35 minutes while the car was recovered.

The Toyota Altezza team of Sergio Alvares/Cristian Bouche/Paul de Re/Rufino Fontes from Mozambique ended 20th after numerous technical issues including a broken fuel pump which cost 20 minutes to repair followed by another 15 minute loss to trace and fix a broken wire.

Gianmaria Gabbiani/Alberto Huober/Mags Govender brought their Dues Backdraft home 21st after a gearbox repair dropped them out of the running.

Gearbox

The final classified runners were Craig Rapp, Robi Bernberg and Charles Ugo endured a weekend from hell. Ugo crashed at turn three which broke a gearbox and propshaft mounting which was repaired in 45 minutes. The team worked its way through four differentials, a gearbox, an engine and gearbox mounting on top of having to re-build the engine a week before the race.

Five teams competed in a one-hour dash which was won by Paul Hill (Kalex Aston Martin Vantage GT3), followed by Sun Moodley (Bigfoot Express Freight Mercedes-AMG GT3) five seconds adrift. Ray Farnham (Birkin 7-Opel) followed in third from Jan Willem (Ford Mustang) and Mike Verrier (Shelby CanAm).

Other leading retirements included Benjamin/Crisjan/Ben Morgenrood (Morgenrood Group Backdraft) who lost three hours replacing a broken differential. As the clock ticked down, Morgenrood peeled into the pits out of fuel. The service crew scrambled to fill the tank but ran out of time as the pit lane closes five minutes before the chequered flag, stranding the Backdraft at pit exit.

Danie van Niekerk and Roberto/David Franco

Five times Le-Mans winner Emanuele Pirro and his sons Cris and Goffredo retired with alternator failure while the Hennie Groenewald/Anthony Reid/Murray Shepherd machine retired with overheating issues. Le Mans winner Jan Lammers/Greg Mills/Tim Reddell succumbed to possible differential damage. 

Mikaeel Pitamber/Mark Cronje/Nick Adcock retired their AidCall 247 Ligier-Honda JS53 with gearbox failure after a rear wing broke off while running second overall. The wing is mounted to the gearbox so the whole rear-end of the car had to be disassembled.

Mike McLaughlin/Steve Clark retired their Backdraft Slingshot suffered suspension failure pitched the car into the wall at Sarel Sweep.

Mike Verrier/Tate Bishop/Kai van Zijl retired their VW Golf with a broken engine, while Ricky/Jimmy/Gianni Giannoccaro/Ant Blunden retired their G&H Transport Mazda MX-5 with a broken engine. 

Wayne Lotter/Steve Truter suffered a pit fire on Friday evening after a fuel system component broke. The car was towed away and remarkably returned to race, having replaced the burnt wiring and oil lines. After replacing wiring to the ECU and a crank sensor, the team withdrew.

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Colin-on-Cars - Enticing lineup from BMW

Although BMW M Motorsport has confirmed it will contest the 2023 Intercontinental GT Challenge Powered by Pirelli campaign, the final driver selection has not been announced – but could include South African ace, Sheldon van der Linde.

Other racers could include Dries Vanthoor and Charles Weerts who have joined the extensive list of BMW M works drivers. 

The 20-strong roster also includes Brazilian, Augusto Farfus, who clinched the IGTC drivers’ crown when BMW last entered the globe-trotting GT3 series in 2020, as well as Connor De Phillippi who shared victories with the Brazilian at Indianapolis and Kyalami, respectively.

Both wins were achieved with the previous generation M6.

Successor

Now its successor, the M4 GT3, will make its Mount Panorama debut with Team WRT early next year before the likes of Rowe Racing – which is contesting Fanatec GT World Challenge Europe Powered by AWS – nominates additional IGTC entries at the CrowdStrike 24 Hours of Spa. Customer teams are also eligible to score points on BMW’s behalf at all of 2023’s Intercontinental rounds.

BMW M Motorsport’s busy 2023 schedule also features the Nurburgring 24 Hours and IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship.

“After a successful 2022, including the title win in the DTM, we are shifting up another gear next year,” says Head of BMW M Motorsport, Andreas Roos. “We have improved what was already a very strong squad of works drivers with René Rast, Maxime Martin, Dries Vanthoor and Charles Weerts. 

“On the team side, we are continuing our collaborations, which have grown over many years, including with BMW M Team RLL, BMW M Team RMG and Rowe Racing. We also welcome BMW M Team WRT as a new BMW M Motorsport team. We are facing some exciting sporting challenges in 2023 and the years to come, for which we need the best teams and drivers. After all, the goal is to add to the success story of the BMW brand in motor racing.”

Further full-season IGTC manufacturers will be confirmed in due course, while the championship’s 2022 campaign concludes this weekend at the Gulf 12 Hours.

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Colin-on-Cars - Lower truck mass equals greater loads

Lower truck mass means greater loadability and this is key for fleet operators considering the fluctuating fuel prices and other cost pressures – not the least of which is the increasing interest rate.

Fuel expenditure, which makes up 80% of total operating costs and approximately 60% of the total cost of ownership, depending on the application, can be alleviated with the ability to carry more payload to maximise the productivity and efficiency of a fleet.

The UD Trucks Quon extra heavy truck range solves this problem by a reduction of weight in the physical truck that allows operators to carry more payload. Fewer trips mean less fuel is used.

“The Quon is a highly productive range of vehicles optimised for the business needs of today and tomorrow,” explains Reytjie Laubscher, Managing Director of UD Trucks Lichtenburg. “These days the key to efficient transport is increased payload. Not only will a lowered tare weight increase payload, but also the productivity and profitability of your operations.”

Reytjie Laubscher

Every component on the Quon has been refined to realise an overall lighter vehicle, while achieving gains in load-carrying capacity of up to 200 kg, depending on the model.

The Quon GW26 460 - TT HR, for instance, has a low tare weight of 8 418 kg. This is achieved by using disc brakes and high-tensile steel rails for the main frame to reduce vehicle weight. In addition, the reduced height of the main frame cross section further reduces weight while maintaining strength, to further improve the Quon’s loading performance.

Laubscher explains this, for instance, means with a reduced tare weight, an operator can now typically transport a 36,5-ton load of cargo legally using an interlink with a twin bin side tipper trailer. (Afrit specification used for this example)

“There is an increase in payload of about 700 kg on average on the new generation Quon High Roof Truck Tractor compared to any other competitor in the market. This is the ideal set-up for fleet owners that specialise, for instance, in the coal transport industry,” says Laubscher.

Improved ease of loading, bodybuilding efficiency and smoothness at creeping speeds for approaching loading docks, also reflect UD Trucks’ commitment to boosting productivity for fleet owners.

Optimal

Quon’s air suspension features an increased adjustment range. This enables optimal height adjustment for loading docks and connecting the trailers, with an adjustable width of +140 mm upward from the neutral position. The uneven load adjustment function automatically adjusts any lateral differences in height on trucks, which improves handling when loading from the side of the truck.

The new Quon range boasts a fuel-efficient, powerful and clean 11-litre GH11 engine. 

It generates powerful torque from low revs up through a wide rev range,  and, to further support fuel-efficient driving, the Quon also features UD Trucks’ Nenpi Fuel Coach - a system that displays real-time driving advice to help drivers achieve further improvement in the vehicle’s fuel economy. 

“Our customers’ definition of the essentials needed in a truck, has changed.  Our focus, therefore, is to give customers reduced operating costs as related to things like fuel efficiency, payload ability and uptime.  Secondly, we are concentrating on the people factor within the transport business, making our trucks even safer and environmentally friendly,” says Laubscher.

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