Honda to tackle 2013 Dakar

A Honda motorcycle last won the Dakar Rally back in 1989, and since then most of the victories in the two-wheel category have gone to either Yamaha or KTM.

But that situation could soon be changing, because next year’s event - which takes place in January and runs through Peru, Chile and Argentina - will see the participation of a works Honda team for the first time in twenty-four years.

Competing under the Team HRC banner, the rider line-up has been named as Javier Pizzolito (Argentina), Helder Rodriguez (Portugal), Sam Sunderland (United Kingdom) and Felipe Zanol (Brazil).

Because of the unique demands of the race, a prototype motorcycle based on the CRF450X enduro is being specially developed, although just a sketch has been revealed for now. As an offshoot of the project, a kit of parts is also going to be produced for the standard CRF450X and this will be made available to selected privateer teams.

Honda Dakar Prototype 2013 (Rendering) Side

Tetsuo Suzuki, President, Honda Racing Corporation, said: “The Dakar requires competitors to cover several hundred kilometres per day for more than two weeks. It needs a totally different type of vehicle from events such as motocross, trials and road races. Honda has put a great deal of effort into designing and building a powerful and winning machine. We are aiming for the championship from this first year.”

No doubting the ambition, then, as it seems that anything less than first place will be seen as a failure…

Related posts:
Honda XTREME editions
2013 Honda off-roaders

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts:

i10 N Line versus the Up! GTI

Image
Hyundai has confirmed specifications and pricing for its sporty i10 N Line. This new variant – which arrives at dealers later this month – benefits from some cosmetic tweaks, unique suspension components and a more powerful 1.0 litre T-GDi turbocharged petrol engine.
Read more

Alfa MiTo TwinAir arrives

Image
The Alfa Romeo MiTo supermini is now available with the innovative two-cylinder TwinAir petrol engine. Although its capacity is only 875 cc, a turbocharger and the MultiAir electro-hydraulic valve control system mean it produces a respectable 83 bhp (62 kW / 85 PS) and 145 Nm (103 lb/ft) of torque. Performance might not be scintillating - the 0-62 mph (100 km/h) sprint takes 12.5 seconds and maximum speed is 108 mph (173 km/h) - but the TwinAir’s trump card is efficiency. Carbon dioxide emissions are only 98 g/km, a level that brings numerous benefits for UK drivers including zero road tax, a full discount on the London Congestion Charge and qualification for the lowest company car benefit-in-kind rate. Fuel economy is also decent and, according to the official figures, a TwinAir-powered MiTo will manage 67.3 mpg (4.2 l/100km) on the combined cycle. Impressive maybe, but still some way off the 78.5 mpg (3.6 l/100km) of the existing 1.3 JTDM-2 diesel MiTo. However, any
Read more

Honda WSB team launch

Image
Honda has unveiled its works team for the 2011 World Superbike championship . The announcement of Castrol as title sponsor means the return to a very familiar colour scheme for the pair of CBR1000RR Fireblade bikes, which will be ridden by Jonathan Rea and Ruben Xaus. As in recent years, Honda has entrusted Dutch concern Ten Kate Racing with running the factory WSB team. First thing on the Castrol Honda agenda is a two day testing session at the Motorland Aragón circuit in Spain later this week. The 2011 WSB season comprises thirteen rounds with Phillip Island, Australia hosting the opening race on 27 February.
Read more

Aston Martin Vantage GTE

Image
Aston Martin Racing has announced that it’ll be entering a V8 Vantage in the GTE Pro category of the 2012 FIA World Endurance Championship. Aston Martin V8 Vantage GTE. Scroll down for more images and a video. Painted in Gulf blue and orange, the car’s driver line-up has been confirmed as Adrian Fernandez, Stefan Mücke and Darren Turner. The plan is to contest all eight rounds of the WEC, which commences with the 12 Hours of Sebring on the 17th of March. For the third race - June’s Le Mans 24 Hours - a second Vantage is going to be run, but its drivers have yet to be named. In preparation for the season’s premier event the team also intends to compete in the Long Beach and Laguna Seca rounds of the American Le Mans Series. The V8 Vantage GTE is a development of the Vantage GT2. Although the engine can trace its origins back to the one used in the road-going V8 Vantage, the usual gearbox is replaced with a six-speed, semi-automatic, sequential transmission that has its own oi
Read more