Yahoo Autos The Ford Ranger Will Take on the Dakar Rally in 2024
Ford Performance announced Wednesday it is adding the 2024 Dakar Rally in Saudi Arabia to its race calendar. Working in collaboration with M-Sport and Neil Woolridge Motorsport, FoMoCo will take on the grueling off-road competition with a race-prepped Ford Ranger in the Rally Raid T1+ class.
Despite its impressive lineup of competitors in NASCAR, WEC, WRC, SCORE, IMSA, and its upcoming ties to Formula 1, Ford Performance has yet to take on the Dakar Rally in an official capacity. A near-stock F-150 Raptor entered privately by off-road journalist Sue Mead impressed fans back in 2011, while Neil Woolridge Motorsport more recently partnered with South Racing and Ford South Africa to run a T6 Ranger back in 2014. NWM and Ford will once again utilize a Ranger T1+ based on the outgoing model, slated to be powered by a 3.5-liter EcoBoost V-6 engine. NWM revised its Rally Raid Ranger T1+ racers back in 2022, with new carbon-fiber and aramid weave bodywork and a revised suspension setup. Output of those trucks was 402 hp and 442 lb-ft of torque. That said, Ford, NWM and M-Sport are still in the middle of development testing for the upcoming racer, which could see additional improvements moving forward.
Ahead of the main event, Ford intends to send the Ranger T1+ on a few test races to ensure the team’s preparedness in Dakar. These events include the Baja España Aragón rally in July, as well as the Rally du Maroc in October. Ford doesn’t expect to master Dakar the first time around, instead hoping to use this challenge as a development tool. Those learnings will also be important ahead of the automaker’s goals for 2025, which will see an all-new T1+ class truck based on the current Ranger Raptor.
"To lead the charge at one of the ultimate global off-road events – the Dakar Rally – has been a goal of ours,” said Ford Performance Motorsports’ global director Mark Rushbrook. “We cannot underestimate the enormity of the challenge ahead of us. We need to finish and learn first with Ranger T1+ and partners like M-Sport and NWM, who bring their expertise to bear. Together, we can do amazing things in the sand dunes of the Arabian Peninsula.”
The 2024 Dakar Rally will take place from January 5-19 across Saudi Arabia.
You Might Also Like
