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Dakar 2026 - 300 v Octa
- Thread starter Rumbleandsway
- Start date
- Thread starter
- #22
“An underbody impact to the #502 car meant they had to stop at km 98 with rear suspension damage. This was before the pit-stop. They were unable to repair the car themselves, so had to wait for their assistance truck. This vehicle - race #630 - competes within the truck category but is allowed to carry spares for our cars. As the trucks start last, they were 60km behind when they stopped. On reaching them they were together able to repair the damage.”
At the pitstop no further repair work was necessary, and they safely completed the stage - finishing 02:16:41 behind Rokas.
Tomorrow’s stage is 504km in total, with 104km of untimed road sections, and a 400km timed special stage. This stage again includes a pitstop.
Remember, the co-drivers only get actual visibility of the precise route for the Special Stage AFTER the road section, and just five minutes before their Special Stage start time.”
So all the trucks are assigned other vehicles for which they are obliged to carry spares for and assist/tow as needed? I’m assuming the winner of that class is dictated entirely by this factor…
Edit: Researching a bit, I believe these trucks are in the T5 class. Can TLC also receive this assistance?
Edit: Researching a bit, I believe these trucks are in the T5 class. Can TLC also receive this assistance?
- Thread starter
- #24
General ranking after Stage 2:
The Defenders were top three in the stage results, but everyone is within 10 minutes, so pace isn't too far off. I think reliability will ultimately decide the winner, based on what we saw yesterday. Does anyone who paid attention in previous years know how many issues TLC typically run into over the course of the Dakar? I may flip through their YouTube channel summary videos from last year to get a rough idea.
The Defenders were top three in the stage results, but everyone is within 10 minutes, so pace isn't too far off. I think reliability will ultimately decide the winner, based on what we saw yesterday. Does anyone who paid attention in previous years know how many issues TLC typically run into over the course of the Dakar? I may flip through their YouTube channel summary videos from last year to get a rough idea.
2024 was pretty uneventful in this regard - a couple of punctures and a minor crash (one of the trucks was hit by another.
2025 had a bit more issues - car 501 (Basso/Garcin) had a drivetrain issue in Stage 10 (empty quarter). Think something came loose and they lost some fluid. Delayed but the truck finished (2nd maybe?).
Car 501 might be cooked. They still haven't finished today's stage. 503 made it through and is clinging onto 2nd overall, but for the stage is 17 minutes slower than the Defenders which executed flawlessly within 2 minutes of each other.
I see on the app one of the landcruisers has still not finished. How are you all keeping with the dakar? I'm using the app, but it's not exactly amazing and hardly any video.
- Thread starter
- #30
App is underwhelming. Website is better Official Dakar rankings - bike - quad - car - SxS - truck
I use their website on a desktop computer.
due to some mechanical issue - Thread starter
- #33
Long long way to go 
- Thread starter
- #34
Latest News | Team Land Cruiser [Toyota Auto Body] Tough day for the 501 with drivetrain trouble and this confirms Toyota have a support truck system - possibly similar to Defender
The Toyota's were lagging about 20-30 minutes behind the Defenders today, not much drama. 503 is hanging onto 2nd overall.
More trouble for 501 today. Not sure what happened, but they took a completely different route to the finish line than everyone else and lost about an hour. 503 dropped from 2nd to 3rd overall. I do wonder why the 300 is consistently slower than the Defender, given the regulations limit power. Is the Defender chassis that much better, being IRS?
- Thread starter
- #37
390 BHP [around] for the Defender [down from the Octa’s 626bhp in road going trim. Torque is quoted at 553 lb ft.
LC300 GR Sport [Dakar]only produces 304 BHP and 516 lb ft.
Factor in Weight - data is hard to find - half a tonne of fuel and all the other safety kit - and it appears Defender has an advantage.
Defender also have 3 cars while Toyota has limited its entry to 2.
Cynics might observe that “Defender” and “BF Goodrich” are also “Official Dakar Sponsors”…….
LC300 GR Sport [Dakar]only produces 304 BHP and 516 lb ft.
Factor in Weight - data is hard to find - half a tonne of fuel and all the other safety kit - and it appears Defender has an advantage.
Defender also have 3 cars while Toyota has limited its entry to 2.
Cynics might observe that “Defender” and “BF Goodrich” are also “Official Dakar Sponsors”…….
- Thread starter
- #39
