The Toyota Imperial Hilux team needs to shave 70 minutes off its time in the 2014 Dakar Rally to win the 2015 event. So far, the team has managed to cut around 60 minutes, estimates team principal Glyn Hall.

“We know this, because we have measured the 2015 vehicle against the 2014 car. Importantly, we have done so without adding any risks.”

The new vehicles have already completed some 800 km of testing in the North West province.

The 2015 Dakar Rally starts on January 4, in Buenos Aires, where it will also end 14 days and 9 000 km later, having traversed Chile and Bolivia.

The Toyota Imperial Hilux team has again entered two Hilux bakkies.

The 2014 rally saw Giniel de Villiers, assisted by navigator Dirk von Zitzewitz, secure fourth place, with Dakar rookie Leeroy Poulter and navigator Rob Howie finishing the race in 33rd place.

The same drivers will contest the 2015 event.

Hall says an ideal result would be to see De Villiers clinch the event, with Poulter in the top six.

“This will be the final year of the current three-year sponsorship deal, and we would like a good result. It will provide us with a better opportunity to extend our partnerships and sponsorships, or to secure new ones.”

In motorsport, lighter vehicles are normally faster. The Toyota Imperial Hilux team is set to benefit from new regulations, implemented for the 2015 Dakar Rally, which drop the minimum weight requirement for normally aspirated petrol cars by 60 kg.

Hall and his team trimmed down the Hilux racing bakkies in several places, with the biggest gain on the chassis, which is now 40 kg lighter. Reducing hydraulic hose lengths also helped.

“It all adds up to a kilogram here and a kilogram there.

“In our calculations, 60 kg equates to roughly 15 minutes in time saved over the entire event,” adds Hall.

Less weight also means faster acceleration, faster braking, and less stress on the brakes.

“In the 2014 race, we were running the brakes at over 600 ºC on a daily basis. The weight reduction will certainly influence brake performance,” says Hall.

Diesel cars, the podium winners in the 2014 race, have to increase their weight by 48 kg for the 2015 race.

However, it is not only about the weight in numbers, but also its distribution.

“By relocating the spare wheels, we have shifted 120 kg of mass to a different location on the vehicle. This has a significant influence in the handling and balance of the vehicle,” notes Hall.

Altogether, the improved performance of the new Hilux vehicles has seen the team cut 20 minutes off its 2014 performance.

A new air intake restrictor is also set to shorten the team’s 2014 race time.

“The regulations for 2015 allow us a slightly larger air intake restrictor,” explains Hall.

“Restrictors are designed to limit the amount of air going into an engine, and can be used to level the playing field between different types of engines, for example.

“In the past, we had to run restrictors of 36 mm. In 2015, we are allowed a 37 mm restrictor, which may not sound like much, but we have calculated that each additional millimetre equates to 30 to 40 minutes in time saved over the total race distance of the Dakar.”

With almost 70 minutes cut off the racing clock, all the team needs now is the perfect race, with no breakdowns and driver errors.

Hall’s racing Hiluxes have lost 150 kg in weight since the start of the Dakar programme in 2012, with no compromise on driver safety and the additional comfort of air conditioning.

“For 2015, we have refined the air conditioning system significantly and, with the help of Smiths Industries and Denso, we now have the latest compressor in the new vehicle. It weighs in at 50% of the old unit, yet delivers 30% more in terms of efficiency,” says Hall.

Except for the gearbox, engine and some electrical components, the vehicles are all made in South Africa.

“A major leap forward has come with the suspension system, which is now fully developed in South Africa.

“Costs are a challenge, and we make every item we can in South Africa.”

Hall will have a team of 24 people at the 2015 Dakar Rally to support the Toyota Imperial Hilux team.

His Midrand workshop, however, will see another nine Hilux vehicles compete in the Dakar Rally, with these vehicle supplied to various competitors, largely in kit form.

This year, South African Hiluxes have won four international FIA cross-country races, including events held in Russia and Italy.