Clients saw the Dakar special go up in flames
16.9.2016
An unforgettable experience! In fact, even more intense than anyone could have imagined. Clients of the Renault Trucks and MKR Technology event week saw the Dakar special catch fire right during one of the concluding exhibition drives. Luckily, no one was harmed.
‘In general, we’ve managed to ensure absolute safety during the event. In drives like this safety is a number one priority, because the technology is under extreme strain and naturally even unexpected things may happen. Client drives like this are a loading test for us and we acquire a great deal of valuable data which we apply in the next stages of development. Paramedics were on the spot and the fire brigade immediately put the fire out. Not that I’d want to make light of the situation in any way, because when technology fails, it’s a major blow for the team,’ commented the disappointed MKR Technology manager Klára Kress.
The unpleasant incident took place right in the middle of the experience week for Renault Trucks clients and journalists organized jointly by MKR Technology and others in Senica, Slovakia. Among other things, the local military area is used for testing Dakar technology. The teams make use of the ideal conditions for simulating driving in the desert and sand dunes here. The event was attended by a number of guests from around Europe who could enjoy the attractive programme including a drive in a Dakar special. The MKR Technology development team brought their three trucks with them, two K520s and the one-of-a-kind Sherpa, with whom the Dutch pilot Martin van den Brink recently won a sensational bronze medal in the world’s longest rally, the Silk Way. Unfortunately, it was this prototype that went up in flames on Wednesday afternoon. ‘It’s still very fresh for us. We need to analyze what happened and why. On one hand, we’re continuing full-fledged test drives and thanks to that all technology keeps moving forward; on the other hand though, accident like this one disrupts our plans and the racing schedule. It’s still too soon to say what the impact will be on the Dakar and composition of the racing team,’ concluded sadly Mario Kress, chief constructor and boss of the MKR Adventure project who has built trucks for the Dutch Mammoet Rallysport and Riwald teams and also designs racing power trains for the Czech Bonver Dakar project.
