Car 2 finishes at 9th overall, marking its spot in the top 10.

January 12: Teams raced on a looped course this day that started and finished at Belén, Argentina with a special coursing through the southeastern part of Belén on the opposite side of Fiambala desert. Most of the course was off-piste (off-road wastelands), and was reminiscent of northern Africa with its fluffy grass-covered dunes and dried riverbeds. With the temperature soaring above 40ºC and road surface resistance keeping the vehicles from picking up speed, this was a stage where overheating became a major risk. The SS for the day was scheduled to be 285km long, but was cut short at CP (checkpoint) 2 due to the extreme heat. The cars and trucks headed for the bivouac in Belén on a 5km liaison, and motorbikes set out for their special marathon bivouac on another route.

Teruhito Sugawara and Hiroyuki Sugiura on Car 2 took full advantage of the mobility of their HINO500 Series truck to deliver outstanding performance. The crew finished at 9th in the overall Trucks category and top in the Under 10-litre Class, making their first foray into the top 10 this year. Meanwhile, the Yoshimasa Sugawara and Mitsugu Takahashi crew on Car 1 maintained a brisk pace―all the while paying close attention to their coolant temperature―finishing the special at 30th overall and 2nd in the class. Based on these results, Car 2 now climbs to 15th place, and Car 1 to 35th place in the overall Trucks category. The two trucks continue to maintain their one-two lead in the Under 10-litre Class.

The SS for tomorrow, January 13, is set to make one round through the notoriously challenging Fiambala Desert on its way from Belén to La Rioja.

Yoshimasa Sugawara: The coolant temperature got quite high so we turned on the heater to let the engine release as much of its heat as possible. As you can imagine, it got very hot in the cabin. We kept pouring drinking water over our bodies so our racing suits are drenched.

Mitsugu Takahashi: This was a brutal stage, so you can't blame the organizers for cutting it short at CP2. The majority of the course was off-piste and it was another day of mostly CAP (compass bearing) navigation. I was a bit anxious of the rather big intervals between the block drawings in the road book, but that didn't end up being a problem.

Teruhito Sugawara: The fact that many vehicles had to stop on the side of the course is surely one of the reasons for our good finish position, but we also did make good time. This was another confirmation that the directions we set for the trucks' construction were spot on. I can't blame the organizers for canceling the race at CP2.

Hiroyuki Sugiura: The sand was soft in today's stage, so I think it must have been tough for cars running behind trucks. On these types of terrain, road surface conditions can vary dramatically depending on how soon or late you cross any given point.