VW RACE TOUAREG - DAKAR 2009

The latest evolution of the successful Touareg-shelled (well, vaguely) rally raid car is currently taking shape in VW’s motorsport workshops in Germany. With 206hp on hand (and presumably bagloads of torque) from its 2.5-litre turbo diesel and with a rugged spaceframe chassis lying beneath that Red Bull-liveried bodyshell, the Touareg 2 should prove a fearsome performer.

The 2009 Dakar rally (which, ironically, no longer finishes in the West African city of Dakar, but on a different continent altogether) is set to begin January 3, and rally teams across the world are busy working away on this year’s field of contenders.

Volkswagen has had a long involvement in past Dakar Rallies, and there’s no intention of slacking off for the 2009 event. The latest evolution of the successful Touareg-shelled (well, vaguely) rally raid car is currently taking shape in VW’s motorsport workshops in Germany. With 206hp on hand (and presumably bagloads of torque) from its 2.5-litre turbo diesel and with a rugged spaceframe chassis lying beneath that Red Bull-liveried bodyshell, the Touareg 2 should prove a fearsome performer.

Rally master Carlos Sainz will head the four-car VW team at Dakar. With the former WRC champion at the helm of the Touareg 2, VW’s hopes are high of a win in the legendary rally, an event which it hasn’t won since 1980.

After terrorism concerns led to the cancellation of the traditional Paris-Dakar route, the rally has now moved across the Atlantic to South America, where it begins in Buenos Aires in Argentina, heads west to Chile, then winds back east towards the finish line in Argentina.

The route covers over 9000km and crosses the Andes twice, with crews having to climb up to altitudes of around 4600 metres. With less sand, more gravel and a huge mountain range, the South American rally is world’s apart from the old African race. It will be interesting to see whether Dakar dominators Mitsubishi will be able to hang onto the trophy, or if contenders like VW will be able to take advantage of the new terrain and snatch the crown off Mitsu’s head.