Jan 3, 2012, San Rafael-San Juan
Connection: 291 Special Stage: 208 Total: 499 (km)

Car 2 Moves up to Top Position in the Under 10-litre Class.
Car 1 Completes the SS Without Any Problems.

The HINO 500 Series trucks fielded by HINO TEAM SUGAWARA completed the route to San Rafael on January 2, with Car 2 piloted by Teruhito Sugawara and Seiichi Suzuki finishing the day at 18th place overall in the truck category, and 2nd place in the Under 10-litre class. Car 1 crewed by Yoshimasa Sugawara and Hiroyuki Sugiura finished the day at 29th and 4th in these respective categories. Car 1 had its windshield broken by a stone thrown by a spectator in the first half of the SS, and arrived at the bivouac at around 10:30 pm, about an hour and a half later than Car 2. Sugawara sustained a minor injury from broken glass, but both he and the truck received treatment at the bivouac and were able to race on Day 3 with no problem.

The route for Day 3 took the contestants from San Rafael to San Juan. This 200 km mountain route snaked through the Andes Mountains, and featured a diverse range of road surfaces including river crossings and rocky terrain, as well as elevations approaching 3200 m making for an SS characteristic of South America. Many parts of the route consisted of extremely dusty single track roads, so this was another SS that made for difficult overtaking.

Car 2 finished this SS 17th overall and 1st in the Under 10-litre class, bringing its overall standings to 18th overall and 1st place in the Under 10-litre class, replacing Johan Elfrink of Mercedes Benz Axor who had been at the top position until the previous day.

Car 1 also put in a solid performance at 29th overall and 3rd in the Under 10-litre class, bringing its overall standings to 28th and 4th, respectively.

On January 4, the contestants will head northward to Chilecito, drawing them closer to Fiambala Desert, arguably the main highlight of the Argentine stage which makes up the first part of this race.

Yoshimasa Sugawara: We had our windshield broken from a stone thrown by a spectator at the 35 km point during yesterday's SS. I cut my face with a piece of glass but this was not a major problem. Our air conditioner is now repaired too, so we did very well today, and were able to put in a solid performance without pushing too hard.

Hiroyuki Sugiura: We were forced to make a detour along the way at one point where a car was stuck, and the rivers were also quite deep, so we did have our share of challenges, but we were able to finish without any problems on our end.

Teruhito Sugawara: I found it easier to catch up with our rivals as the truck's potential was clearly improved over yesterday, and we were able to race a high-paced race. The stage itself was almost unchanged from 2010. I will not be thinking about standings yet, and keep my focus on racing a solid race.

Seiichi Suzuki: Most of the course was a one track road and some areas were marked with marking tapes so we made no course errors. Navigation hasn't been that difficult so far but it will be crucial once we reach wide open spaces.

(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.