The Russian Kamaz Master team, whose trucks were powered by Liebherr’s diesel engines, won the 2015 Dakar Rally
According to Liebherr officials, the Kamaz Master team opted to equip its trucks with the 8-cylinder D9508 A7 engine. Built in Liebherr Machines Bulle SA in Switzerland, the engines are distinguished by a maximum output of 770kW and a maximum torque of 4,500 Nm. The engines can accelerate from 0 to 100 km per hour within ten seconds, but at the rally, the engines reached top speeds of 140 km per hour.
For improved performance, the Kamaz team developed racing engines further for the Dakar rally. Changes were made to the charge air system to achieve higher charging pressures, alowing optimal combustion of the injected fuel quantities.
Wladmir Guba, technical director at Kamaz Master, said, “Success in racing depends not only on the performance of the engine, but the probability of failure and repair times. Here, we place trust in the engines from Liebherr that have proven their worth in similar extreme conditions, above all in mining.”
The route of the Dakar Rally, which stretches from Argentina through Bolivia and into Chile, saw drivers cross both the Andes mountain range and the world’s largest salt lake.
The first three places in the rally were achieved by trucks from the Kamaz Master team. The winners were Ayrat Mardeev’s team, while teams led by Eduard Nikolaev and Andrey Karginov and followed in second and third place respectively, stated Kamaz Master team.
Meanwhile, a truck powered by a Liebherr V8 engine ranked first at the Africa Eco Race, which was held in Morocco and Mauritius around the same time as the Dakar Rally.
