Jan 9, 2012, Copiapó-Antofagasta
Connection: 245 Special Stage: 477 Total: 722 (km)

The Second Half of the Rally Kicks Off in Chile
Trucks Finish the Gravel Stage in Good Form

The second half of the 2012 Dakar Rally kicked off on January 9, with contestants competing on a 477 km segment from Copiapo to Antofagasta, Chile. Sixty-eight trucks raced in this stage this day. This means a large proportion of the 74 trucks that started from Mar Del Plata are still in the race, resulting in the highest first-half finish rate among all categories where 55 out of all 178 motorbikes, 11 out of all 30 quads, and 48 out of all 161 cars have already withdrawn from the rally. However, the second half of the race will challenge the contestants with a plentitude of dunes in northern Chile and Peru, suggesting that the real battle in the Trucks category awaits in the days to come. The SS for today took a northerly route along the Andes foothills, and the trucks were not able to pick up speed during the early sections of the SS primarily due to mud from the rain that fell the previous day, and dusty mountain crossing routes that were covered in fluffy powder sand (fesh-fesh). And while these sections were followed by flat, gravel-covered high-speed sections, contestants again had to deal with valley roads on dried river beds towards the end of the SS. There was little risk of getting stuck, but at elevations of 1200-3000 m, this SS was relatively more advantageous to large, high-powered trucks. HINO TEAM SUGAWARA, which fields two HINO 500 Series trucks in the Under 10-litre class in the Trucks category, maintained their pace and did well in this SS. Car 2 piloted by Teruhito Sugawara and Seiichi Suzuki came in at 15th overall in the Trucks category and 1st in the Under 10-litre class, posting a 31 minute 11 second lead over 2nd place contender, Johan Elfrink (Mercedes Benz Axor). Car 1 piloted by Yoshimasa Sugawara and Hiroyuki Sugiura came in at 41st overall and 4th in the Under 10-litre class.

This brings Car 2's overall rankings so far to 14th in the Trucks category, and 1st in the Under 10-litre class, and Car 2 came in at 24th and 3rd in these respective categories.

The bivouac in Antofagasta was set up along the coast on the outskirts of the city as it has been in previous years. Having left the Atlantic coast in Mar Del Plata, Argentina, the teams racing this rally have now reached the Pacific coast. Hino's mechanics who focused on servicing the trucks late into the rest day yesterday also reached the bivouac safety via a 603 km assistance route. The crew wasted no time to begin their servicing work once the race trucks arrived at the bivouac. Tomorrow, contestants will be heading for Iquique on a 556 km SS, the longest of this year's rally.

Yoshimasa Sugawara: For the first time during this race, I had to take medication for my high blood pressure, and probably because of that, I had to stop several times during the SS to relieve myself. I will refresh myself mentally and prepare for the challenges that await tomorrow and onward.

Hiroyuki Sugiura: I couldn't get into the groove physically, probably due to this being the first day after the rest day. We had no navigation issues today. I look forward to the dunes as gravel roads are more advantageous to the high power trucks.

Teruhito Sugawara: I paid close attention to how we were doing as this was the first day after our rest day. Car 2 is lightweight and picks up speed well so we were able to go over gaps without slowing down. I'm starting to re-realize how much its potential has improved. The SS today was relatively easy, but I'm sure the dunes we will be facing tomorrow and the day after will be quite challenging.

Seiichi Suzuki: Yesterday, we found a leak in the turbo charger's main gasket which was replaced, but after finishing the SS today, we still found some leaking. We found another crack in the door mouth area of the rear body, but this was not a major issue.

(The rankings in parentheses are in the class with an engine displacement of below 10 liters.)
*The rankings at the time when the report was written might be adjusted afterwards.

Refer to the Daily Movies
https://www.hino-global.com/dakar/gallery/video_index.html

*The HINO vehicle referred in this news in relation to the rally is specially designed, tuned and modified for the Dakar Rally, and most of its specifications are different from those of the HINO vehicles sold in the market unless otherwise specifically mentioned.