The French manufacturer announced last month that it will return to the Dakar Rally in 2015. It was about time it did so, after dominating the rally in the late '80s. In order to once again reclaim the much-revered Dakar title, Peugeot will use the vehicle you can see in the pictures below, which goes by the name of 2008 DKR.
In order to take on the hostile terrain of the Dakar, the 2008-based buggy has been designed and built for racing's ultimate test of endurance. And Peugeot really means business on its much-anticipated return to the Dakar Rally.
To recapture past glories at the desert classic, the Peugeot works team vehicle will be driven by Cyril Despres, five-time Dakar Rally Bike champion, and Carlos Sainz, the 2010 Dakar Rally Car Race champion.
Unfortunately, engine and other vital components details remain top secret for now. However, we can tell you that the 2008 DKR is two-wheel drive (yes, you heard us well) and it sits on 37-inch diameter Michelin tyres.
Looking back to the golden age of rallying, Peugeot achieved many amazing feats during this period. Between 1987 and 1990, Ari Vatanen and Juha Kankkunen took four straight Dakar Rally victories with the help of the mighty Peugeot 205 and 405 T16.
But what Vatanen did with the 405 T16 at the 1988 Pike's Peak Hill Climb in Colorado is a true landmark moment in the French company's racing history. Watch the world famous rally legend rip through hairpins and glide past sheer cliffs at 14,000 foot elevation from cameras inside, in front, underneath and above the car by following this link.
After a 1:43 scale model of a Ferrari 250 GTO sparked Mircea's interest for cars when he was a kid, an early internship at Top Gear sealed his career path. He's most interested in muscle cars and American trucks, but he takes a passing interest in quirky kei cars as well. Full profile
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Looking back to the golden age of rallying, Peugeot achieved many amazing feats during this period. Between 1987 and 1990, Ari Vatanen and Juha Kankkunen took four straight Dakar Rally victories with the help of the mighty Peugeot 205 and 405 T16.
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