While Peugeot is showcasing the "crude steel" Exalt concept car at the Beijing Auto Show->ke2062, its motorsport division is releasing the details on the 2008 DKR, the company's first vehicle to take on the grueling Dakar Rally in 25 years.
The French manufacturer retired from the said rally->ke2464 in 1990, after winning it four times in a row with desert-prepped versions of the 205 supermini and 405 sedan->ke142. Now, nearly a year after Sebastien Loeb crushed the Pikes Peak record in an all-carbon version of the 208->ke3444, Peugeot is announcing its return to Dakar with a vehicle based on the 2008 crossover->ke288.
Actually, we need to rephrase that to "loosely based on" the road-going vehicle, as the 2008 DKR has very little in common with the said crossover, save for the numeric name and a few design cues.
To be fielded under the colors of Team Peugeot Total in the 2015 Dakar, which is scheduled to begin next January, the 2008 DKR buggy will be driven by Carlos Sainz and Cyril Despres. Both have already won the rally, but while Sainz did it while driving a Volkswagen Touareg->ke321-based racer, Despres won the even riding KTM->ke1954 motorcycles.
Click past the jump to read more about the 2014 Peugeot 2008 DKR.
2014 Peugeot 2008 DKR
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- Model: 2014 Peugeot 2008 DKR
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2014 Peugeot 2008 DKR in detail
Compared to the production 2008, the Dakar buggy's design is quite spectacular, with muscular lines dominating the body and indicating its actual purpose. Shorter than its road-going counterpart, the 2008 DKR rides on huge 37-inch wheels wrapped in Michelin tires.
Naturally, Peugeot->ke68 chose to keep powertrain details to itself, which means we don't have any information in regards to what lies under the hood. However, we can tell you that the 2008 DKR has two-wheel drive. It may sound crazy given its difficult, South-American mission, but Peugeot says the configuration was selected following an in-depth analysis.
Considering what they did with the 208 T16 at Pikes Peak->ke1001, the French are a force to be reckoned with, no matter the drivetrain.
The Peugeot 2008 draws design inspiration from the 208 hatchback, and carries all of the traditional cues of the automaker, including the new floating grille. Under its hood is a range of gasoline engines that begin with the 1.2 VTi with all of 82 horsepower and topping off with the 120-horsepower 1.6 VTi. The diesel engine lineup starts with the 1.4 HDi that produces 70 horsepower and is capped by 1.6 e-HDi with 115 horsepower.