"Put teamwork first and work closely as a team."

Hino Motors has historically named a mechanic sub-leader for the Dakar Rally team for a two-year term, choosing from among the mechanics working at the forefront of prototype building, a process that is indispensable to the development and manufacture of production vehicles. At the 2014 and 2015 rallies, Takeshi Suenaga, also of the Vehicle Planning & Production Engineering Div., drew from the skills he'd honed in his day-to-day work to play a critical role in achieving the team's sixth straight class championship and 24th consecutive finish. Having completed his two-year term with the team, he will be passing on his skills and experience to Masaki Nakamura, who was chosen to lead the team of mechanics for 2016 and 2017. Nakamura was handed a team uniform by team director Yoshimasa Sugawara and officially named the mechanic sub-leader. Although he appeared to be somewhat nervous, he was clearly eager to compete in the January 2016 rally and exchanged a solid handshake with the team director.

Masaki Nakamura, mechanic sub-leader (Vehicle Planning & Production Engineering Div., Hino Motors)
"I was involved in the fabrication of the Dakar Rally trucks last year and have learned a great deal from working with my predecessor. I was very excited to see the truck I'd worked on finish the rally. I'm feeling a lot more pressure this year because as sub-leader I'll be responsible for leading the team of mechanics to ensure the trucks finish the rally and achieve high rankings overall. That said, I'm confident there's no challenge we can't overcome as long as we put teamwork first and work closely as a team. So I would like to thank you in advance for your support."

Takeshi Suenaga, outgoing mechanic sub-leader (same as above)
"When I visited Hino Motors on a high-school trip, I saw a truck that raced in the 1996 rally and remember thinking, 'I'd like to be a part of that challenge.' This dream became a reality at the 2014 rally, the first of two years I was involved in the Dakar Rally. Over those two years, there were times the pressure almost got the better of me, but it was a great experience working with my teammates.
"I don't have that many opportunities to work with people from dealerships in my day-to-day work, so this experience was very stimulating and I think we were all able to gain a lot from working together. I also realized the importance of 'reporting, contacting, and consulting' working within the many constraints of the rally, and my failures were also a great experience. While there are things I think I could've done better in retrospect, I feel I've learned that much more because of these experiences.
"Nakamura, a junior of mine, will be taking on this challenge with new team members, and I hope he'll give it everything he has, without fearing failure, to make great trucks and a great team, as well as to achieve good rankings in the rally. I intend to communicate my experiences at the Dakar Rally to my juniors so they're able to take on any challenge, not necessarily just those at the rally. I've learned a great deal about the importance of quality and reliability at the rally, and now I'll be drawing on what I've learned to work toward making great vehicles."

On To Rally Mongolia 2015

Truck fabrication is in progress at Japan Racing Management (Ebisu, Tokyo)

In the previous Dakar Rally, HINO TEAM SUGAWARA achieved its sixth straight championship in the Under 10-Liter Class and marked its 24th straight finish since its first entry in the rally, confirming the excellent potential of the new trucks powered by the 9-liter A09C engine the team has been developing since the 2014 race. Meanwhile, with no boundaries between the different classes in the overall Trucks category, the race for higher positions only intensified as rival teams continued to move up and changes were made to the rally course. With this in mind, the team will be making further enhancements to the engines and suspensions used in the new trucks, and will be literally shaving grams off of different components to make the vehicles about 200 kilograms lighter as they aim for higher positions in the 2016 race.
Additionally, as part of the team's efforts to improve its capabilities overall, it will be conducting a training camp in Mongolia with all team members together for the first time. Until last year, driver Teruhito Sugawara and navigator Hiroyuki Sugiura were the only team members who took part in Rally Mongolia, which the team uses as a testing ground leading up to the Dakar Rally. This year marks the first time all of the nationwide dealership mechanics selected for team membership will also be taking part in the rally as part of their real-world training. Also for the first time, the team will be conducting a week-long driving training program over a distance of 4,000 kilometers in Mongolia to simulate the real rally. The team will be using the combined 8,000 kilometers traveled in this training program and Rally Mongolia as a virtual Dakar Rally (dubbed the "Mongolia Training Camp") to identify areas where the trucks need more improvement, give new team members a taste of a real rally environment ahead of the Dakar event, and help improve the team members' skills.
The fabrication of Car 2, the truck that will be racing in Rally Mongolia, is currently proceeding at a quick pace―primarily involving extensive modifications to the power train and suspension―ahead of the July driving test to be held in Japan and its shipment to Mongolia.

Mongolia Training Camp Overview

Driving training

Rally Mongolia 2015

Team organization

Dakar Rally 2016 Stage Makeup

Dakar Rally organizers have announced the stage makeup for the 2016 rally. The Trucks category will be crossing the border into Bolivia for the first time, where they are expected to face intense stages where not only the Special Stages, but also the support routes and campgrounds are situated on highlands at elevations in excess of 3,500 meters. The team's HINO500 Series trucks are powered by electronically controlled engines that allow for fine tuning, and these engines will be tested at the Technical Center at Hino Motors headquarters under a replication of the low-oxygen conditions found at high elevations to ensure optimum tuning for the courses these trucks are expected to travel.

Dakar Rally 2016 -Stages

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Please stay posted for new information from the team.

In the Dakar News, we provide regular updates on team activities and other matters of interest. We feature true-to-life photos and videos shot by our team staff on our official Facebook page and YouTube channel. We also plan to provide daily race reports during the race next January, so we hope you enjoy visiting us on this page!

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