TATRA BUGGYRA RACING sets off for 2016 DAKAR Rally

24 November, 2015

TATRA BUGGYRA RACING team with the new special racing TATRA PHOENIX along with Martin Kolomý's already proven "Fat Boy" special TATRA 815 Buggyra symbolically started to 2016 DAKAR Rally from the town of Most.

The task of this new special truck TATRA PHOENIX along with its crew composed of Jaroslav Valtr (4x Dakar participant, twice champion of the Czech Republic in OffROAD Marathon), Josef Kalina (twenty-four active seasons, three-time winner of Dakar Rally) and newcomer Jiří Stross will fully complement his team mate Martin Kolomý who will be driving the TATRA 815 truck and jointly they support the efforts of the TATRA BUGGYRA RACING team for the best possible finishing position.

TATRA 30 years at DAKAR Rally

The first race of the new racing PHOENIX at the 2016 DAKAR RALLY, along with the new TATRA PHOENIX Euro 6 range, represents a certain symbolism as it follows the 30th anniversary of the start of the first TATRA truck at the world's heaviest long-distance rally in 1986. For this significant anniversary TATRA TRUCKS are preparing a series of accompanying events, including, for example, an edition of a book depicting this rich racing history, or thematically focused Technology Days in Kopřivnice, which are always visited by thousands of fans of the TATRA brand and other vehicles presented at the test track in Kopřivnice in early June.

New accompanying vehicles

A regular 6x6 vehicle TATRA PHOENIX Euro 6 with an 11-litre 320 kW engine, supplemented with the Contsystem superstructure formed by a container carrier with a MULTILIFT XR hook loader will set off for the Dakar Rally as an accompanying vehicle. This vehicle is designed to transport materials and spare parts, especially tyres. Another accompanying vehicle will be TATRA PHOENIX 8x8 with four-door cab that ranks among the largest accompanying machines of the race.

Demanding stress tests form a part of the preparations for the climax of this season
In preparation for the DAKAR Rally, demanding testing of racing vehicles took place at the "Slovak Sahara" in the training area of Senica at the turn of October and November, attended also by TATRA TRUCKS executives, including CEO Petr Karásek and Engineering Director Radomír Smolka, who personally tested the new racing PHOENIX behind the wheel.

"A part of the chassis, and many technological features of the new PHOENIX are based on Martin Kolomý's proven special truck TATRA 815, nevertheless the overall concept has undergone major evolutionary modifications. "For TATRA TRUCKS, this unit is also an opportunity to test various technical solutions for the serial chassis of TATRA PHOENIX," says Radomír Smolka, who applies the findings from Dakar in the development of assemblies while intensely involved in the development of Dakar specials for the TATRA BUGGYRA RACING team.

More about TATRA PHOENIX vehicle

Type designation: TATRA 158-8P0R21.43 4x4.1
Engine: Gyrtech, in-line, liquid-cooled 6-cylinder with a capacity of 12.5 litres
Transmission: ZF, 16-speed transmission with hydraulic gear shifting
Auxiliary transmission: TATRA TRK 1.30, single-speed
Chassis: The "Tatra" concept with the central back-bone tube and swinging half-axles; front and rear axles with disc brakes; front and rear air bellows suspension, supplemented with Reiger shock absorbers and front anti-roll bar; tyres 14.00. R20, Hutchinson aluminum wheels, inflating system from the cab
Cab: three-seat, suspended with four Reiger shock absorbers with anti-roll bar
Dimensions: wheelbase – 4,290 mm, length – 6,500 mm, height – 3,250 mm, width – 2,550 mm