Redesigning of Karting Livery

“For us, it’s like a brand new car in many ways. We’re sticking with the tested backbone chassis with a central tube, independent suspension and drum brakes, but the new automatic gearbox and the new engine required some changes in electronics. It also changed the truck balance and the centre of gravity. Also lowering and lightening of the body structure, modifying our cooling system and other little details have had an impact. There are so many changes that it’s basically a new truck,” said Aleš Loprais ahead of his 14th Dakar Rally.

Praga V4S DKR uses an Iveco engine, which has almost 1,000 bhp. The team had to pay close attention not just to the technical specifications, but also to serviceability.

“We have a really decent engine that’s not overpowered. That’s not our target. The only important thing is torque and how you can use it. Having a less-powerful car means having less heat, which means also better reliability and a chance that the car survives longer,” said the 39-year-old racing driver.

The team had its first tests at the beginning of the November and the results were positive. Already the first drive showed how big advantage is to have the automatic gearbox and also the modified suspension.

“I was expecting the most from the automatic gearbox and yet, it was even better! And there was also a nice surprise to see what we were able to achieve with the modified suspension,” said Loprais about the work of his teammates.

“The automatic gearbox works great. For the first time ever, I was really enjoying the drive in a truck and all I need to do is to adjust the ‘course‘. And the truck’s stability makes it even nicer. I really like how the truck is handling banking. It is not so easy to put it on two wheels anymore.”

Nowadays, it is impossible to run a top motorsport team without a solid technical and financial backing. It comes as no surprise that Instaforex Loprais Team was also trying to secure a proper factory backing, enjoyed by the biggest Dakar teams.

“In Dakar, who wants to be in front, they must have at least partial factory backing. After Dakar 2019 I tried to contact many partners. I’m glad that it was Praga who presented the best kind of offer in the end. We’re sticking with a Czech brand that has

been around since 1907 and still has something to offer. Praga is working on many interesting projects, in the aviation industry or super sports cars. We might not have a typical assembly production line behind us, but we have certain technologies that we would not be able to have otherwise. And who knows, maybe we can work together and even make a successor to the legendary Praga V3S,” said Loprais

The Dakar Rally 2020 starts on Sunday, January 5 in Jeddah in Saudi Arabia. The race ends on January 17 in a brand-new modern centre Al Qiddiya. The whole route is about 9,000 kilometres long.

Driving Praga V4S DKR, Aleš Loprais will be joined by a navigator Khalid Al-Kendi from the United Arab Emirates and a Czech mechanic Petr Pokora.