The Audi RS Q e-tron faces its third Dakar Rally. Team Audi Sport has optimized the pioneering rally prototype, that has an electric drivetrain, a high-voltage battery and an energy converter, in meticulous detail for the toughest rally of the year. The three driver crews of Mattias Ekström/Emil Bergkvist, Stéphane Peterhansel/Edouard Boulanger, and Carlos Sainz/Lucas Cruz are facing the most difficult task of the year with optimism, but also respect.
Audi was the first manufacturer to develop a T1U model for the Dakar Rally. The aim: the electrically powered prototype is to prove that a low-emission vehicle can master one of the toughest motorsport events and be competitive at the same time.
The drivers, co-drivers, and management of Team Audi Sport agree: A particularly challenging edition of the Dakar Rally lies ahead of all participants. Twelve special stages during 14 days in Saudi Arabia cover 4,727 kilometers. Including all of the liaison stages, the route results in a total distance of 7,891 kilometers. The teams often have to complete more than 400 kilometers a day on the special stages.
