Team Sugawara and Hino Motors, of Japan, are aiming for a high overall placing in the truck category of the 2016 Dakar Rally and to this end have prepared two four-wheel-drive 500-Series trucks that are lighter, more powerful and significantly faster than the trucks raced in 2015. The team’s objective also includes a seventh straight win in the class for trucks with engines under 10-litres capacity.

Hino has been a regular participant in the Dakar Rally since 1991 and has built up an amazing record for reliability, class wins (trucks with engines of less than 10 litres) and overall placings, including an outright win in 1997 and two second places in the truck category in 1994 and 1995. Hino is the only Japanese truck brand that regularly takes up the challenge of this gruelling annual event.

The 2016 Dakar Rally will start in Buenos Aires, Argentina, on January 3 and finish in Rosario, also in Argentina, on January 16 after a route of more than 9 000km which includes a loop into Bolivia. This will be the first time that the trucks will go into Bolivia, although both cars and motorcycles raced in that country in 2015. The 2016 route includes sections at an altitude of more than 3 500m.

There will not be many dunes on this year’s route due to the fact that Peru and Chile have been forced to withdraw from the 2015 event: Chile due to flooding in the northern parts of the country and Peru because of the effects of El Nino.

There are 56 trucks in the total field of 556 motorcycles, cars, quads and trucks which will contest the 38th Dakar Rally in January. The most popular truck in the entry is MAN with 16 in the field. Other makes represented are: Tatra (9), Iveco and DAF (6 each), Kamaz and Ginaf (4 each), Maz and Renault (3 each), Hino (2) and Liaz, Scania and Mercedes-Benz (1 each).

Team Sugawara and the Hino engineers have used the 2015 race trucks as the basis for developing the two 2016 contenders. The latest racing trucks have had engine and suspension upgrades as well as shedding 300kg in weight.

Both trucks will be powered by the 9-litre Hino A09C engine tuned to deliver 630hp and 2 255N.m of torque. Transmission is a six-speed manual gearbox with two-speed transfer case and hub reduction rear axle. The trucks are equipped with part-time four-wheel drive and diff locks front and rear. Braking is by disc brakes with four-pot callipers on all four wheels. The fuel tank carries 700 litres. Gross weight of each vehicle is 7 300kg. A central inflation system allows the crew to inflate or deflate the Michelin tyres on the move.

The No. 1 truck, to be crewed by team principal Yoshimasa Sugawara (now 74 years old) and navigator Mitsugu Takahashi, features the 500-Series facelift which was introduced in Indonesia and Thailand earlier this year.

Yoshimasa Sugawara has been competing in the Dakar Rally since 1983 when he rode a motorcycle. He then raced in the car category for seven years before switching to racing the Hino 500-Series trucks in 1992. He has started the event a record 32 times and has had the most consecutive finishes at 20 events.

The second Hino truck will be driven by Yoshimasa’s second son, Teruhito, and navigated by experienced Hiroyuki Sugar. Teruhito’s first experience with the Dakar was as a mechanic in 1998. He then navigated for his father before being promoted to driver of the second Hino in 2005. This year marked his fifth straight win in the under 10-litre engine class.

In keeping with tradition three of the mechanics were chosen from applicants working at Hino dealerships in Japan.

Preparation for the 2016 event by Hino Team Sugawara has been very thorough and included taking part in the Mongolia Rally and China Silk Road Rally earlier this year.

HINO’S PROUD RECORD ON DAKAR RALLY

Hino has a proud record in long distance Dakar rally-raids over 24 years and none of the factory-supported Hino's has been forced to withdraw from an event due to mechanical failure. The 2016 Dakar Rally will mark the 25th participation by Hino in this gruelling event.

1991 Paris-Tripoli-Dakar (9 186km): Four starters and three trucks finished 7th, 10th and 14th (out of 109 trucks entered and 44 finishers). The fourth Hino completed the course unofficially, as the driver had to be replaced when he was badly injured in a tyre-changing accident. (This was the first truck from a Japanese manufacturer to enter the rally)

1992 Paris-Sirte-Le Cap, which finished in Cape Town (13 015km): Four trucks entered and they finished 4th, 5th, 6th and 10th in the Camion class.

1992 Paris-Moscow-Beijing: One starter and one finisher, in 6th position.

1993 Paris-Dakar (8 877km): One starter and one finisher, in 6th place, out of 28 finishers from an original field of 43 trucks.

1994 Paris-Dakar-Paris (13 398): One starter and one finisher, in 2nd place out of 10 finishers, from 29 starters in the truck category.

1995 Granada-Dakar (10 067km): One starter and one finisher, in 2nd place out of 20 finishers from 60 starters in the truck category.

1996 Granada-Dakar (7 579): Two starters and two finishers, in 6th and 11th places, from the 70 trucks that started from Granada. (Winner of under 10-litre category)

1997 Dakar-Agades-Dakar (8 051km): Three starters and three finishers, in 1st, 2nd and 3rd places over – a feat never achieved by any truck maker previously and it was only equalled by Kamaz in 2011 and repeated in 2013. (1, 2, 3 in under 10-litre category in 1997).

1998 Paris-Granada-Dakar (10 570km): One starter and one finisher, in 2nd place. (Winner of under 10-litre category).

1999 Granada-Dakar (9 441km): One starter and one finisher, in 4th place, out of the 16 trucks (from an original field of 29 trucks) that made it to the end. (Winner of under 10-litre category).

2000 Paris-Dakar-Cairo (7 880km): One starter and one finisher, in 5th place, out of 23 trucks (from an original field of 66) that made it to the finish. (Winner of under 10-litre category).

2001 Paris-Dakar (10 873km): Two starters and one finisher, in 2nd place, out of 12 trucks (from an original field of 30) that made it to the finish. (Winner of under 10-litre capacity). The truck that retired with gearbox failure was a private entry and not factory-supported.

2002 Paris-Madrid-Dakar (9 440): One starter and one finisher, in 3rd place, out of 15 trucks (from an original field of 34) that made it to the finish. (Winner of under 10-litre category – seventh consecutive victory in this class).

2003 Telefonica Dakar: Marseille-Sham El Sheikh (8 602km): One starter and one finisher, in 5th place, out of 27 trucks (from an original field of 49) that made it to the finish.

2004 Telefonica Dakar: Clermont-Ferrand-Dakar (10 411km): One starter and one finisher, in 5th place, out of 38 trucks (from an original field of 62) that made it to the finish.

2005 Telefonica Dakar: Barcelona-Dakar (8 956km): Two starters and two finishers, in 2nd and 5th places, out of 36 trucks (from an original field of 69) that made it to the finish. (Winner of under 10-litre category).

2006 Lisbon-Dakar (9 043km): Two starters and two finishers, in 5th and 7th places, out of 35 trucks (from an original field of 69) that made it to the finish.

2007 Lisbon-Dakar (7 915km): Two starters and two finishers, in 9th and 13th places, out of 59 trucks (from an original field of 85) that made it to the finish. (Winner of under 10-litre category)

2008 Lisbon-Dakar: The race was cancelled at the last minute due to terrorist threats in North Africa.

2009 Dakar Argentina-Chile: Buenos Aires-Valparaiso-Buenos Aires (9 579km): Two starters and two finishers in 14th and 26th positions out of 54 trucks (from an original field of 81) that made it to the finish. (Second in under 10-litre category).

2010 Dakar Argentina-Chile: Buenos Aires-Antofagasta-Buenos Aires (9 026km): Two starters and one finisher in 7th position out of 28 trucks (from an original field of 54) that made it to the finish. Winner of the Production Series truck category and under 10-litre engine capacity class. The second Hino Team Sugawara entry was disqualified for missing a check-point.

2011 Dakar Argentina-Chile: Buenos Aires-Alica-Buenos Aires (9 458km): Two starters and two finishers in 9th and 13th positions out of 41 finishers from an original field of 66. Winner of the Production Series truck category and under 10-litre category.

2012 Dakar Argentina-Chile-Peru: Buenos Aires-Copiapo-Lima (8 836km): Two starters and two finishers in 9th and 24th position out of 60 finishers from an original field of 73. Winner of the under 10-litre engine category

2013 Dakar Peru-Argentina-Chile: Lima-Antofagasta-Santiago (8 121km): Two starters and two finishers in 19th and 31st position overall out of 60 finishers from an original entry of 74. Winner of the Dakar Challenge for trucks with an engine capacity under 10 litres.

2014 Dakar Argentina-Bolivia-Chile: Rosario-Salta-Valparaiso (9 209km): Two starters and two finishers in 12th and 32nd positions overall out of 50 finishers from an original entry of 71. Winner of the Dakar Challenge for trucks with an engine capacity under 10 litres.

2015 Dakar Argentina-Bolivia-Chile: Buenos Aires to Buenos Aires (8 159km): Two starters and two finishers in 16th and 32nd positions overall out of 42 finishers from an original entry of 64. Winner of the Dakar Challenge for trucks with an engine capacity under 10 litres.

Ends