Dakar – The Renault Duster comes out with honors

The presence of Renault remained rather discreet in the Dakar, the Losange only lining up two Dusters through Renault Argentina supported by Renault Sport Technologies. But the French manufacturer's cars powered by a V8 have not been unworthy, as proven by the 21st place taken by Emiliano Spataro and his co-driver Benjamin Lozada. After losing time due to a mechanical breakdown during the marathon stage, the crew of Duster no. 316 finished in style by completing the special stages in the first qualifying stages.

“This Dakar, the first big rally of the Renault Duster, represents real satisfaction for the entire team?, commented Christophe Chapelain, the technical manager of the competition at Renault Sport Technologies. “Despite very hot weather and teething problems, the Renault Duster reached the finish without ever ceasing to achieve feats. The level of performance and reliability is very satisfactory for a first. Emiliano Spataro has fought for a long time to get into the top ten, and his brilliant performances at the start and end of Dakar leave us with great hopes for future editions. Thanks to the experience and data collected over two weeks, it is now up to us to rectify the small problems and work to offer a brilliant future to the Renault Duster! »

José Garcia and Mauricio Malano, the crew of the second Renault Duster entered, retired due to back pain in the co-driver.

Discover the Dakar report in issue 1995 of AUTOhebdo, available this evening in digital version on all platforms, and on newsstands from Wednesday.