On January 4, 2015, the green flag dropped on Stage 1 of the 2015 Dakar Rally. Arguably the world’s premiere off-road endurance race, more than 600 competitors set off from Buenos Aires, hoping to log more than 5,600 miles across the treacherous terrain and brutal weather conditions of South America.

For the second year in a row, Cummins ISZ13 diesel engines have been installed in three rally trucks by the Ginaf Rally Power team. The extreme conditions of the Dakar Rally offer an ideal platform to showcase the performance and reliability of the Cummins ISZ13 engine.

The aim of the three-year project between Ginaf and Cummins – which kicked off prior to the 2014 Dakar Rally – is to develop a new rally truck platform that is lighter, lower, more maneuverable and more reliable than its predecessor. Following the team’s performance in last year’s rally, the trucks were evaluated and a number of improvements were incorporated to target a higher finish in 2015.

“The 13-litre Cummins ISZ13 diesel engine continues as the power source, delivering up to 900hp with a maximum torque of 3500 Nm. Ginaf engineers have worked alongside our team to upgrade the engine calibration and turbo configuration for better performance and responsiveness,” said Leen Stolk, Application Engineer Group Leader, Cummins Distribution Europe. “The driveline has been optimised with the integration of a fully automatic Allison transmission. Further improvements were made to the chassis, cabin and suspension.”

Ginaf specialises in building heavy-duty vehicles for earthmoving and mining. They use this experience to develop rally trucks capable of overcoming the toughest conditions across Argentina, Chile and Bolivia. This year, Valvoline oils joined the partnership with Ginaf Rally Power, complementing the global alliance that already exists between Cummins and Valvoline.