Nissan Navaras Coming to Dakar 2015....

Coming to the 2015 Dakar will be a handful of new South African built Nissan Navaras possessing a V8 engine.  These trucks are still in a bit of a development/testing phase as they have only run a handful of races in SA in '13 but they are now coming of the jigs on a regular basis and being sold across the world.  We'll see how they compare to the Toyota HiLux run by Giniel de Villiers during the South African offroad season as Thomas Rundle (who finished the Dakar this year in his borrowed HiLux) will be running the V8 Navara all season long.  If you would like to purchase one, learn more about them or perhaps race one in South Africa you can contact Terence Marsh at: terence@redlined.co.za

Some info provided by Terence here:
 

We have built 4 of these to date with the 5^th one currently on the jig which is for a German customer and is scheduled for delivery in February 2014 (update--already delivered in late December/early January). The 6^th chassis which is currently at laser cutting is for an Australian customer and is scheduled for delivery in July 2014.

The base model race unit which is built to FIA and Dakar specification sells for $295,000 US dollars.

·       This unit includes the mounting points for the on-board jack system but excludes the system itself – it uses the same system as the Toyotas.

·       The unit comes with 8 Reiger dampers which are then available in 3 different variances/options.

·       The price listed above excludes the air-conditioning system which is an optional extra.  Fiberglass body is produced in house.

These cars have been purposely built with Dakar in mind and we will have at least two at the 2015 Dakar and 3 or 4 race cars at the 2016 Dakar. Three of our race cars have successfully been tested in our local championship this year and have covered in excess of 8,000 km of rugged and tough terrain with ease. We have worked closely with our Partners at Reiger suspension to get the optimal performance and handling out of the race car and can comfortably say we have achieved this. We have introduced several performance upgrades for the engine package through the year and are now comfortable that are perfromance is up there with the best in the world – the Infiniti FX50 engine has proved to be exceptionally strong and more importantly very reliable!

Please feel free to visit our website at www.regentracing.co.za to get some more insights and photos of the race cars as well as have a ‘virtual view’ of the race car within our video section.

Should any of the guys on your side require any further information or assistance regarding the above they can feel free to contact me on my email address or my mobile number which is listed below.

We are also happy to accommodate international drivers who would like to come out to South Africa and compete in one of our National events – we basically provide a ‘arrive and drive’ package for these customers which includes all the necessary testing together with one of our Championship events in a V6 powered Nissan Navara (ex Dakar car).

Technical specs:

Engine: Nissan VK50VE (from the Infiniti FX50)
Engine Capacity: 5.0L V8
Power Output: 390hp @ 6500rpm and 500nm @ 4400rpm
Gearbox: Sadev 6 speed sequential
Suspension: Double wishbone front and live rear axle
Shock Absorbers: Reiger
Engine Management System: Motec M800
Competition weight: 1975kg
Fuel Capacity: 480L
Wheels: 16 x 7 Evo Corse
Tyres: BF Goodrich