TOKYO, Aug 11, 2023 - (JCN Newswire) - Mitsubishi Motors Corporation (hereafter, Mitsubishi Motors) announces that Team Mitsubishi Ralliart, for which it provides technical support, will be taking on the Asia Cross Country Rally 2023 (hereafter, AXCR) in Thailand and Laos. In this competition, scheduled for August 13 to 19, the team will be driving three new Triton rally cars (T1 cross-country prototypes).
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| Team Mitsubishi Ralliart |
The ceremonial start of the event will be held on August 13, the first day of the event, in Pattaya, a resort in southern Thailand. The following day, August 14, the team will drive east along the border between southeast Thailand and Cambodia, racing towards its goal near Prasat Wat Phu, one of Laos's World Heritage sites, on the 19.
In preparation for the start of the rally, on Thursday, August 10, Team Mitsubishi Ralliart conducted a shakedown test of the new Triton rally cars that will actually be driven in the AXCR using the test course of Mitsubishi Motors Thailand Co., Ltd. (MMTh) in the Si Racha district of Thailand's Chonburi province. Unlike last year, this year's AXCR will be held in August, during the rainy season, so the course is expected to be the type of difficult course typical for AXCR, with muddy roads and river crossings. To step up to this challenge, Team Mitsubishi Ralliart has verified the reliability and durability of the new Triton through two durability tests, covering a total of roughly 2,000 km, conducted in Japan and overseas. The team made final adjustments to the engine and chassis to produce powerful driving and sporty handling. Team Mitsubishi Ralliart confirmed during the shakedown that the Triton rally cars will provide the performance expected of them.
On August 13, a ceremonial start will be held on Pattaya's Walking Street for the 63 teams that will be competing in AXCR (21 moto, 1 sidecar, and 41 auto category competitors). The following day, August 14, the rally will start in earnest, with Leg 1. Until reaching Ubon Ratchathani, the goal of Leg 3 of the rally, on August 16, competitors will be driving tough roads, including muddy courses and roads piled with rock debris. During Leg 4, on August 17, competitors will cross the border between Thailand and Laos, and then from Leg 5, starting August 18, the rally will all take place in Laos. The course in Laos is expected to pass through tree-filled highlands and rice paddy areas. These legs are located in the south of Laos, which experiences heavy rains, so course conditions are expected to further decline due to squalls. Leg 6, on August 19, will end with the final goal near the World Heritage site of Prasat Wat Phu.
"To lead the Team Mitsubishi Ralliart to victory as team director, I've been leveraging the expertise I've built up through my past rally experience, shaping up the team and putting the finishing touches on the rally cars. The base car of the new Triton rally car has been improved, and on top of that we've used the results from last year's rally to make them even faster, stronger, and more durable. We've confirmed that it's met our higher expectations through the shakedown test," said Hiroshi Masuoka, team director of Team Mitsubishi Ralliart. "We've created a solid service system to support the team, and we're providing emotional support as well so that the drivers and co-drivers can give 100%. Team Mitsubishi Ralliart is more than ready to take on this tough challenge. We'll do our best to claim a second consecutive win."
[Daily reports streamed on the special AXCR site]
From the first day of the race, Sunday, August 13, to the final leg of the race on Saturday, August 19, Mitsubishi Motors will post up-to-date daily reports on the company's AXCR special website.
www.mitsubishi-motors.com/en/innovation/motorsports/axcr2023/
About Mitsubishi Motors
Mitsubishi Motors Corporation (TSE:7211) -- a member of the Alliance with Renault and Nissan--, is a global automobile company based in Tokyo, Japan, which has about 30,000 employees and a global footprint with production facilities around the world. Mitsubishi Motors has a competitive edge in SUVs, pickup trucks and plug-in hybrid electric vehicles, and appeals to ambitious drivers willing to challenge convention and embrace innovation. Since the production of our first vehicle more than a century ago, Mitsubishi Motors has been a leader in electrification --launched the i-MiEV - the world's first mass-produced electric vehicle in 2009, followed by the Outlander PHEV - the world's first plug-in hybrid electric SUV in 2013.
For more information on Mitsubishi Motors, please visit the company's website at
www.mitsubishi-motors.com/en/
Source: Mitsubishi Motors
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