The Peugeot 3008 is not the car you think of when pondering the Dakar Rally. Dubious parking at ASDA, normally across the road and a disabled space, yes. Battling deserts and rocks, not so much. However, that’s all about to change. Peugeot Sport had the 2008 DKR, but now it has the 3008 DKR, and it’s a monster. Geoff and Mildred who like to pop into the dealership every Sunday won’t be amused by this. The motorsport world, however, will be.
Building on the success of the 2008 DKR, the 3008 DKR is bigger, badder and in a not to typical French eccentricity, still two-wheel-drive. You know this is for rallying across a desert, right guys? Though to be honest, with a 3.0 twin-turbo V6 it should have the speed to glide over the terrain. Plus, the 2008 DKR won in January, and that had two-wheel-drive. Peugeot knows what it’s doing.
Ready for adventure
The 3008 DKR has it all. The engine has been re-worked, to deliver low end torque, where it’s needed most. This has come at a cost – 20bhp has been lost. However, it’s better to have a bigger power band that’s accessible rather than one that isn’t. Having more driveability will more than likely secure faster times over the massive stages, too.
The suspension has been heavily revised over that of the 2008 DKR. The previous car was good, but with changes to travel, damping and geometry – all applied after looking at the performance of the 2008 DKR, the 3008 DKR should find the varying terrain – ranging from salt flats to rocks – far more manageable. Handy, as you don’t want to be stuck in the middle of nowhere.
“The new 3008 symbolises the next step,” said team director Bruno Famin. “Our goal with this car was to take the weaker points of the existing car and make them stronger, while capitalising on all the existing strengths to improve them still further. There are also some new regulations, which we obviously needed to comply with.”
Before the Dakar itself, Carlos Sainz will test the new PEUGEOT 3008 DKR in race mode against other Dakar competitors and Cyril Despres in the PEUGEOT 2008 DKR, during Morocco’s Rally in October from October 3rd to 7th.
The potent combination of Peugeot, Red Bull, Total, Sparco, BF Goodrich and the most successful Dakar driver line-up in the world: Stéphane Peterhansel, Carlos Sainz, Sébastien Loeb and Cyril Despres, is well and truly back. Look out for the first videos of the new car in action, coming soon.
