Car 2 Wins 4th Straight Championship in the Under 10-litre Class

Goal Ceremony is Held in Santiago.

The goal ceremony for Dakar Rally 2013 was held on January 20 in Santiago, the capital city of Chile. A podium was set up in a central part of the city, in a plaza in front of La Moneda Palace which houses the president's executive offices. All finishers were introduced one by one as they appeared on or by the podium. This was the first time the city was designated the goal for the Dakar Rally, and tens of thousands of onlookers gathered, not only near the plaza where the goal ceremony was being held, but also along the 4km stretch of road from the Parc-Fermes on which the rally vehicles traveled to the ceremony and back, engulfing the entire city in the mood of the Dakar Rally.

In what was the company's 22nd consecutive entry in the Dakar Rally since its first in 1991 (not including the 2008 rally which was canceled), Hino Motors teamed up with HINO TEAM SUGAWARA to enter two HINO 500 Series trucks. Car 1- which was fitted with an electronically controlled engine, as well as a new frame, front and rear axles, and brake system in what was the second year of a three-year plan to develop a new racing truck-was piloted by the Yoshimasa Sugawara and Katsumi Hamura crew. Car 2, a modified version of the existing model, was piloted by Teruhito Sugawara and Hiroyuki Sugiura. The supporting team was made up of four mechanics screened from among applicants from Hino dealerships around Japan, and engineer/mechanic Seiichi Suzuki from Japan Racing Management, the parent organization of TEAM SUGAWARA.

During the rally, Car 2 maintained its top position in the Under 10-litre class with no major problems, while Car 1 was hit with a series of issues, including a bent tie rod on January 8, and the problem of rising water temperatures which surfaced on January 11. Although the mechanics took a variety of countermeasures, none were as effective as hoped, and in the end, the problem was resolved only after the truck's radiator was replaced on January 16. Car 2 maintained a solid lead in its top position in the class, and the Car 1 crew also began to show its true potential towards the end of the race and improved its rankings in the Atacama Desert and other stages. Ultimately, upon crossing the finish line in Santiago, Car 2 came in at 19th overall and top in the class, giving the team its fourth straight championship in the Under 10-litre class, and Car 1 came in a 31st overall and 4th in the class.

The two HINO 500 Series trucks from HINO TEAM SUGAWARA appeared by the podium after 5:30pm. With mechanics riding on the roofs of the trucks, the crew made solid handshakes with Kazuo Okamoto, chairman of Hino Motors, who had flown in from Japan, and also joined the local distributors and associates, waving to a cheering crowd. This completed all scheduled events for the Dakar Rally 2013. The team will now begin working on maturing the new racing truck for next year based on the data gathered on Car 1 this year.

Kazuo Okamoto, chairman of the board, Hino Motors: This is my first visit to the Dakar Rally, and I got a true sense of how much the Dakar is about people and that it is a wonderful motor sport event that many, many people enjoy. Through the hard work of our team, this rally ended up being a very good one for Hino Motors as well. We are committed to continue our support for this activity.

Yoshimasa Sugawara: This Dakar Rally fell short of my expectations partly because of the two canceled stages. I guess part of what the Dakar Rally is about is that things never go as you want them to go. But I do think we've been able to fulfill our mission as testers of the new Car 1.

Katsumi Hamura: This was my first finish in four years since 2009 (as we had to withdraw from the race in 2010). It feels great to be at the goal. A lot of things came up and I had a hard time keeping down my tears.

Teruhito Sugawara: The streets were lined with a lot of people again today. We got to see a lot of people from Chile Hino and local supporters, so that was a huge support. As for our results in overall rankings, if I may say so, I think we did pretty well considering the number of competitors and the technicalities of this year's rally.

Hiroyuki Sugiura: This is the first class championship for me, and I'm simply just elated. I have to say though, that I expected the courses to be more challenging. The kinds of courses that we had in this year's rally don't give us that much of an advantage.

Seiichi Suzuki: This was the first time in a long while that I took part in the Dakar Rally in a position where I could concentrate on servicing as a mechanic. We encountered quite a few problems this year, but I think we achieved pretty good results.

Mitsuhiro Urabe: Tears welled up when I saw the HINO 500 Series trucks crossed the finish line. The race was eventful to say the least, but I think these results are great.

Takahiro Kikuchi: No one could get any decent sleep during the rally but it was very rewarding. The most tense moments for me were when Car 1 got its tie rod bent. And I feel regret for Mr. Sugawara's crew that we couldn't resolve the overheating problem sooner.

Takeshi Koiso: The two weeks went by in a flash. Car 2 had almost no problems, other than a minor exhaust leak, and I'm happy that we were able to win the class championship. It was hard work, but I would like to come again if I'm given the opportunity.

Yoshiaki Sakai: Everyday was pretty tough during the rally, but that's what made it so much fun. I feel a bit sad to think that it's over already. In any case, I'm glad that both trucks made it to the finish in solid form.

For the final rankings, please visit the official site.

https://www.dakar.com/dakar/2013/us/stage-14/rankings/overall-trucks.html#ancre

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*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.