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Issue #10:January 14, 2025
On the 13th, Stage 8 was held between Al Duwadimi and the capital, Riyadh, with a 488 km SS (Special Stage) forming a large loop to the south side of the east-facing service route. Just like the previous day, separate courses were set up for bikes and cars, featuring gravel roads, sandy areas, rough, rocky sections and dunes, making for another stage loaded with diverse terrain!
The two TLC Land Cruiser 300s continued their solid performance in the SS. Akira Miura and Jean-Michel Polato in car #500 started first, but soon after, Ronald Basso and Jean-Pierre Garcin in car #501 took the lead. Later, car #500 encountered a puncture, while car #501 was running smoothly until it stopped 20 km before the finish line due to problems with the right driveshaft. Car #500 caught up and took the lead once again, finishing 104th overall in the Car category and 1st in the Production Car (Stock) category. Car #501, who replaced the driveshaft themselves, finished 128th overall in the Car category and 2nd in the Production Car (Stock) category. As a result, the cumulative ranking for car #501 is 90th overall in the Car category, while car #500 is 91st overall with a time gap of 22 minutes and 20 seconds. The team continues its hold on to their one-two position in the Production Car (Stock) category.
Car #500 arrived at the bivouac on the outskirts of Riyadh around 7 pm, followed by car #501 around 8 pm. The mechanics immediately got to work and began vehicle inspection and maintenance. Stage 9 on the 14th will be held between Riyadh and Haradh.
Driver Miura: We only had one puncture, but we couldn't pick up the pace as much as we wanted to in this stage. As it stands, I think the current Dakar Rally terrain, aside from the dunes, might be a bit too harsh on competition vehicles based on production cars.
Driver Basso: We replaced the right driveshaft at the 460 km mark. I think it took about 30 minutes. The grease leaking from the rubber boot caught fire due to the heat, which gave us a hard time.