Defending champion Carlos Sainz was among those who got their first taste of South American dust on Wednesday at the first shakedown test ahead of the start of the 2011 Dakar Rally.
Sainz, last year's Dakar runner-up Nasser Al-Attiyah, 2009 champion Giniel de Villiers and American Mark Miller all put their Volkswagen Touaregs to the test on a gravel circuit designed on a farm in the municipality of Zarate, some 100 kilometres away from the Argentinian capital of Buenos Aires.
It was the first opportunity for the four men to get a feel for the heavily-revised 2011 Touareg ahead of the start of the rally proper on January 1.
“This is a day for our drivers and co-drivers to iron out the last details in order to get completely comfortable inside the car,” said Red Bull Volkswagen team boss Kris Nissen. “We’re also using today to make sure there aren’t any leaks or failures following the cars’ flight to South America.”
'It's a day to iron out the last few details'
Nissen revealed that the new Touareg is a major step forward in two key areas: cooling and top speed.
“Our cooling system is completely new – I believe cooling under extreme temperatures will be our single most significant improvement in comparison to the previous car,” he reveals. “We also have a new final drive ratio which should improve our top speed dramatically, putting us in a better position in comparison to the BMWs in the early, mostly flat stages."
Al-Attiyah agreed: “Today I covered about 300km mostly for systems checks, but on the straights here at Zarate the improved power and top speed in comparison with the previous car was pretty clear."
Want more?
- Head to a section of redbull.com dedicated entirely to the 2011 Dakar
- Al-Attiyah: I've acquired my own technique
Marcelo Maragni/Red Bull photofiles
Marcelo Maragni/Red Bull photofiles
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