Giniel positive after first test of Hilux Evo

Giniel de Villiers and navigator Dirk von Zitzewitz have put the revolutionary two-wheel-drive Toyota Gazoo Racing SA Hilux Evo to its first test session in the Northwest Province of South Africa with highly encouraging results.

“It is always exciting to put a completely new concept to the test,” Toyota Motorsport boss Glyn Hall explained. “And the Toyota Hilux Evo is just such a concept. “Now we’ve had a chance to see it in action over terrain that matches certain parts of the Dakar and we are highly encouraged.”

The new Hilux Evo will allow the Toyota team to compete on a more even footing and driver de Villiers was impressed on his first taste. “The Evo is significantly faster over the rough stuff,” the former Dakar winner confirmed. “Granted, it takes some getting used to, and it certainly doesn’t feel the same as the four-wheel-drive, but man, it is quick!”

The Toyota Hilux Evo has a target weight that is nearly 600 kilograms lighter than the current race vehicle, and even though attaining that target is nearly impossible, the new vehicle will certainly have a significantly better power-to-weight ratio. Read more about the Hilux Evo here.

“Now that we’ve proven the concept, we’ll go back and refine the vehicle as much as possible,” Hall explained. “We have a lot of data on the dampers and settings from the four-wheel-drive, so we’re not starting from scratch. With that said, we’ll need a lot more testing before we ship the vehicles off to South America in December.”

In the meantime, the fabrication crew is constructing two more Toyota Hilux Evos at the team’s HQ in Barbeque Downs, near the Kyalami Racetrack in Gauteng, South Africa. These vehicles will be allocated to Leeroy Poulter and Rob Howie; as well as the team’s latest signings, Nasser Al-Attiyah and Matthieu Baumel.

This article was first published by Michele Lupini on www.motorsportmedia.co.za