Giti Truck Racing Team Completes 1,300km Cross Country Poland Rally on One Set of Tires
Giti-sponsored Truck Team Holten has successfully finished one of the world’s leading extreme off-road events, the Rallye Breslau in Poland, requiring only one set of Giti tires.
Described as the ‘Dakar of Europe’, the Netherlands-based team entered a modified Mercedes 1622 800HP and a Scania 4x4 630 in a field of 28 vehicles in the 'Extreme Trucks' category. The event comprised of a five-day, 1,300km cross country rally program across some of the most difficult terrains imaginable.
Driving on Giti GAO897 Off-Road tires in size 14.00R20, both units managed to successfully navigate Monday’s course, but severe damage to the front axle of the Scania finished its race on Tuesday.
On Tuesday night, the Mercedes successfully navigated the dunes stage to stand in 9th place, and on Wednesday travelled cross country to the second base at Gwda Wielka, holding in 12th position.
The tires, vehicle, and drivers faced worsening conditions on Thursday, when clear skies gave way to rainy weather. This made conditions treacherous, but despite a broker rear suspension which lost 20 minutes, the team finished in 7th place.
After a long night fixing the truck for the final stage, Friday saw an outstanding performance which resulted in an overall standing of 8th place at the highly competitive event.
Stefan Fischer, Managing Director - Product Technology at Giti Tire Europe, said: “It is almost impossible to describe what the tires go through at the Rallye Breslau. With deep mud, craggy rocks, mountains, sand, and rivers, plus extreme forces they are subjected to, they really do face every object imaginable."
“So to say that we suffered no critical tire damage or punctures the whole race and that the drivers were really happy with the tires in both wet and dry conditions is a huge achievement and testament to the quality of Giti tires."
“As with track motorsport, we will now take these tires and study their condition to see exactly what we can learn, and this information will be considered across not just our truck and bus ranges, but our light truck and passenger car portfolios as well.”
About Giti Tire
Giti Tire Group (headquartered in Singapore) has roots in the tire business going back to 1951 and is now one of the world’s largest tire companies. Giti Tire produces a broad range of tire products, serving major original equipment vehicle manufacturers, auto-service outlets, motorsports teams, tire dealers, and consumers in more than 130 countries worldwide. The company has six production centers in three countries, including a full passenger car and light truck tire factory in South Carolina, USA.
In addition to its wide network and motorsports presence, Giti Tire is also heavily focused on green production and community efforts, including participation in local education and environmental efforts to create a better society.
Find out more at www.giti.com