Holy Crap! Mitsubishi pulling out of Dakar rallying!

I'm shocked!

After watching this years absolutely amazing rally, featuring a battle of the diesel titans between Mitsubishi and VW, as well as the privateer BMW X-Raids, I'm stunned to read that Mitsu are pulling out of cross country rallying.

This was their first year running diesels (compared to Volkswagen who've run them for years), and despite some setbacks, as well as finishing off the podium, I'd sincerely hoped they'd be back to challenge VW in 2010.

Source.

Clash Of The (Diesel) Titans

The 2009 edition of the infamous Dakar Rally (formerly Paris-Dakar) kicks off in just over 6 hours from the time I'm writing this. Competing in that event will be Volkswagen with their TDI Touareg, and for the first time, Mitsubishi in the clean diesel powered Racing Lancer. They formerly entered this rally-raid event in a conventional gasoline powered Pajero. This is the first time two clean diesels will be facing off in the Dakar and it's shaping up to be an epic battle between these two powerhouses.

And just take a look at this video of the Racing Lancer!



That's about as much fun in a 4 wheeled vehicle as can be had!

Mitsubishi Preps a Bio-Diesel Powered Lancer for the 2009 Dakar

Despite the 2008 edition of the Dakar rally being a no-go due to a-hole terrorists, the relocated 2009 edition is less than 4 months away. And during the past off-year Mitsubishi have not been resting on their laurels, enjoying their previous 7 consecutive wins. No, they've been busy getting their brand new, bio-diesel powered, Racing Lancer ready to attack South America in January of next year.

While a rally-raid event isn't exactly an environmentally friendly endeavor, Mitsubishi is looking to take a few steps in a greener direction by competing with a non-food-sourced bio-diesel powered vehicle, as well as using renewable plastic in it's construction.

The Racing Lancer they'll be competing with in 2009 will be powered by a 3.0L turbo diesel putting out approximately 280 hp and over 475 pound-feet of torque. It's an engine that they've been developing and competing with in their 2008 raid vehicle, a Pajero Evolution.

You can read more about these beastly diesels HERE.