TEAM MITSUBISHI'S
CROSS COUNTRY RALLY 1995 SEASON
Since mid-January 1995, from the end of the last Granada-Dakar, the essential
task for Team
Mitsubishi Ralliart has been to perfect the T3 prototype Pajero with a view to
its engagement in the
next running of the big trans-African classic. This is because victory in
Dakar remains the primary
objective for the Japanese manufacturer. But the work behind the scenes, the
long test sessions, the
racing trials, must not be allowed to overshadow the succeses obtained by
Mitsubishi across many
categories and over all terrains during 1995.
A brief look back....
GRANADA-DAKAR RALLY -1/15 January 1995
Mitsubishi Pajero T3 triple places- a double in T2
At the arrival in Dakar, after more than 10,000 kilometres of sand, the
ghostly trails and broken roads
across Spain, Morocco, Mauritania, Guinea and Senegal, Team Mitsubishi
Ralliart was able to report
that the three official Pajero T3s were classified in the top four, and the
two T2 s took a double victory
in the category for modified production vehicles. The roll present leaving
Granada found themselves to
be all present at the finish! This was far from being the case for the other
manuafcturers! Reliable and
successful in its performance, the Mitsubishi Pajero was once again able to
show the extent of its
qualities.
Bruno Saby-Dominique Serieys, Kenjiro Shinozuka-Henri Magne and Jean-Pierre
Fontenay-Bruno
Masmarra drove themselves into the top places behind the Citroen ZX of Pierre
Lartigue and Michel
Perrin.
As for Siriwattanakun Pornsawan-Suwaranat Tull and Hiroshi Masuoka-Andreas
Schulz, they
completed a superb double in the T2 category, in ninth and tenth place
overall. This made the third
consecutive T2 success for the Pajero on the 'Dakar'.
Forming the only female crew that made it to the finish, the German Jutta
Kleinschmidt and Swede
Dagmar Lohman returned their Pajero T1 in 12th position overall, and second in
the category for
production cars. This was a unique acheivement all the more so when one knows
that Jutta was
driving a Mitsubishi Pajero for the first time, after many African experiences
on the back of a motorbike!
TUNISIA RALLY - 6/16 April
Space Runner in a sand event-A Mitsubishi double in T1!
The Mitsubishi Team skipped this event and didn't enter any T3 prototypes; on
the other hand it lined
up, for the first time officially in competition, the new monospace 4x4 Space
Runner. Jean-Pierre
Fontenay and Bruno Musmarra were given the task of discovering the African
desert in this car,
homologated in category T2. But faced with various problems associated with
its early stages of
development, Fontenay was forced to retire on the fourth out of seven days of
the race.
Jean-Pierre Strugo upheld Mitsubishi honour by bringing back a very emphatic
win in T1, flying in his
Pajero, with which he finished in a convincing sixth place. And with the
German Sven Quandt, eighth,
Mitsubishi was guaranteed the double in the category.
ATLAS RALLY 20-29 May
The tests in the race....
Wishing to prepare itself for the next Granada-Dakar in the best conditions,
Team Mitsubishi Ralliart decided to enter two Pajero T3 prototypes for Morocco, in slightly different
versions, for Bruno Saby-
Dominique Serieys and Kenjiro Shinozuka-Henri Magne. As for Jean-Pierre
Fontenay and Bruno
Musmarra, they lined up a Pajero T2-which finished in 8th place.
Over very selective terrain, the team was able to test, in the hard conditions
of full competition, various
configurations-mechanical-suspension, chassis,etc... to put them progressively
into practice and to
improve them. Although 'Shino' unfortunately had to retire, the Japanese
driver was able to continue
nevertheless until Marrrakech to test his vehicle; Saby failed by only 32
seconds to land third place
on the podium, after having won two special stages and twice scored second
place...
Tests in race conditions all finished at this point; the Pajero T3 had begun
its competition life, but there
were certain areas still to be improved. Rich in learning, the Mitsubishi Team
started back to work on its
return from Morocco, in order to prepare for 'Dakar' 96.
PARIS-MOSCOW-PEKING RALLY 5-26 August.
Two successes for Mitsubishi!
After all the trials and tribulations, consequences, in particular the fragile
political state of countries to be
crossed, Rene Metge successfully carried off the second running of his long
event-more than 10,000
kilometres, through regions of often inhospitable weather and terrain. Few
competitors had responded
to the call of Metge, and none of the major manufacturers entered into this
big adventure.
Jean-Pierre Fontenay and Bruno Masmarra thus arranged a semi-official
Mitsubishi Pajero T2. It is
recognised that the two Frenchman had at their disposal the material best
adapted to this long route,
and had the most experience; it was therefore a strong probability one would
have thought that they
would arrive in the Chinese capital with a handsome victory. An easy win?
Certainly not, if one takes
into account very strong competition from drivers more powerfully armed, and
hazards peculiar to this
type of very long and drawn-out event. Jean-Pierre Fontenay had nonetheless
only two problems; a
front transmission breakage and a bump with a lorry...
Once again the Pajero T2 showed itself at the top, and the success for
Mitsubishi is all the more
brilliant since the marque also brought victory in the T1 category,
thanks,once again, to the Pajero of
Jean-Pierre Stugo, a fantastic fifth overall.
DESERT CHALLENGE DUBAI -1-4 November.
Assured 'success' evaporates...
The final tests under race conditions for Team Mitsubishi Ralliart before the
Granada-Dakar Rally
'96.... Bruno Saby entered the brand new Space Runner T3 in its final version.
Partnered by
Dominique Serieys, the man from Grenoble took command from the first stage.
And despite getting
stuck in the sand during the second day, the crew stayed at the head of the
field...until the moment a
competitor took to a special stage in the opposite direction and at high speed
hit the Mitsubishi head
on, on a ...They were on the fourth and last day of the race, ready for the
finish. Saby and Serieys
ended up with some bruises, but Al Kuwari 'the opponent' was unconscious, and
his co-driver had to
be taken to hospital. "Fortunately we were not on the attack, because we had a
certain victory....And
unfortunately for the other car the Space Runner is solid," emphasised Bruno
Saby after the
unfortunate meeting.
The victory for the Space Runner vanished, but the Mitsubishi team is
reassured by the reliability, the
competitiveness and the strength of its prototype T3! On to the Dakar!
The buggy of Jean-Louis Schlesser , was the winner of the Dubai Rally, and as
it was this French
driver who had helped extricate Saby from his second stage slip-up, here was
true reward for his
good deed!
MITSUBISHI PAJERO WINS
IN CROSS-COUNTRY RALLIES
| 1983 | Paris-Dakar | 1st Marathon
1st Group II
1st team |
| 1984 | Paris-Dakar | 1st Marathon
1st Group IV
1st Group II |
| 1985 | Paris-Dakar | 1st & 2nd overall
1st Marathon
1st Group IV
1st Group II |
| Wynn's Safari | 1st overall |
| 1986 | Paris-Dakar | 1st Marathon
1st Group II |
| Baja-Montesblancos | 1st overall |
| Wynn's Safari | 1st overall |
| 1987 | Tunisia 1st overall |
| Baja-Montesblancos | 1st overall |
| 1988 | Paris-Dakar 1st, 2nd and 3rd Group II
Tunisia 1st Group II
Atlas 1st Group II |
|
| Wynn's Safari | 1st overall
1st Marathon |
| 1989 | Paris-Dakar | 1st Group II
1st Private entry |
| Tunisia | 1st overall |
| Wynn's Safari | 1st overall |
| 1990 | Paris-Dakar | 1st Group II |
| Tunisia | 1st overall
| Atlas | 1st overall |
| Australian Safari | 1st overall |
| 1991 | Paris-Dakar | 2nd, 3rd and 4th overall |
| Australian Safari | 1st and 2nd overall |
| Baja Aragon | 1st, 2nd and 5th overall |
| 1992 | Paris-Sirte-Cape Town | 1st, 2nd and 3rd overall |
| Tunisia | 4th overall |
| Atlas | 1st and 2nd overall
|
| Paris-Moscow-Beijing | 2nd, 3rd and 4th overall |
1993 Paris-Dakar 1st, 4th, 5th and 12th overall - 1st T2
Tunisia 1st and 2nd overall - 1st T2
Atlas 1st and 6th overall - 1st T2
Baja Spain 2nd, 6th and 8th overall - 1st T2
Baja Sardinia 1st overall - 1st T2
Baja Portugal 4th overall - 1st T2
Pharaohs 4th overall - 1st T2, 1st T1
Desert Challenge 1st and 4th overall
FIA World Cup 93 Manufacturers : 2nd T3 and 1st T2
Drivers : 3rd, 6th, 8th and 11th
1994 Paris-Dakar 4th overall - 1st T2
Tunisia 11th overall -3rd T1
Atlas 2nd and 5th overall - 1st T1
Baja Spain 5th and 9th overall - 1st T1
Baja Portugal 5th overall - 1st T1
Baja Italy 4th overall - 1st T1
Australian Safari 1st overall
FIA World Cup 94 1st with Pajero T1
(FIA Marathon Trophy)
1995 Paris-Dakar 2nd, 3rd and 4th overall - 1st T2
Atlas Rally 4th and 8th overall
Paris-Beijing 1st overall
Dubai Desert Challenge 4th overall - 2nd T1
Copyright 1995 by Mitsubishi Motors Corporation.
