Team Completes Preparations for the Second Half
Both rally trucks have been fully refreshed

On January 11, Dakar Rally 2014 contestants took a day of rest at Salta, Argentina. There was no competition this day and all teams focused on refreshing their race vehicles, turning the bivouac that was set up in an outdoor exhibition venue on the outskirts of the city into a huge outdoor maintenance shop. Despite of the rain that began falling around noon, HINO TEAM SUGAWARA mechanics were busy carrying out thorough inspections and servicing tasks on their two HINO500 Series trucks. Crew members also rested or studied their road books in preparation for the second half of the rally which will begin tomorrow on January 12.

As of the conclusion of the first half of the race on January 10, HINO TEAM SUGAWARA's Car 2 piloted by Teruhito Sugawara and Hiroyuki Sugiura ranked at 13th overall and 1st in the Under 10-litre Class, and Car 1 crewed by Yoshimasa Sugawara and Katsumi Hamura ranked at 26th overall and 2nd in the Class with a 4 hour 05 minute 21 second lead over the 3rd place truck piloted by Marco Piana and crew (Mercedes Benz Unimog).

The second half of the rally will kick off on January 12, first taking the contestants through a loop course starting and ending in Salta, and then over the Andes Mountains before crossing the border into Chile. From there on, contestants will have to overcome a variety of grueling sections - including desert terrain and sand dunes in high-elevation areas that the Atacama Desert is known for - as they aim to reach the finish line in Valparaiso. There are seven more stages to go before the goal, and of these, the four stages starting with the stage ending in Iquique are expected to be crucial.

Yoshimasa Sugawara: Having concluded the first half, suspension settings on the new truck is starting feel really good. It looks like we will be coming up against challenging sections starting tomorrow so I will be using caution as we see how things go.

Katsumi Hamura: We just received the road book for tomorrow and there were a lot of (last minute) changes made. This rain might also be a factor in the race. The new truck has lots of torque and it's starting to feel more comfortable to ride in.

Teruhito Sugawara: The areas around the Atacama Desert are difficult both in terms of the course and navigation. I think these will be the crucial stages of this year's rally. I'm looking forward to these stages as these are the stages that we focused our preparations on.

Hiroyuki Sugiura: Although tomorrow's course, the first stage in the second half, appears to be high-speed oriented, there are a lot of instructions in the road book, so navigation is going to be hectic. I will give it my all to keep up with the truck's speed.

Seiichi Suzuki: After checking the trucks, we have decided not to do any major work - such as transmission or transfer replacements - on either truck for this race. Water temperature, which was a problem last year, remains in the lower range, and we have found almost no cracks in either of the trucks' frames. With relatively few problems, we made sure to inspect the trucks that more thoroughly.

Katsuyuki Nagoshi: As a member of the field team in this year's rally, I've been making modifications to the engine control software almost on a daily basis. Car 2's settings are almost complete, and we will be making some changes to Car 1's software as we head out for the highlands from here on. Just as we had expected, it is easier to get direct driver feedback, and work quicker with fewer errors by actually working with team in the field.

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