Amarok

Interview on the Amarok and on the Dakar

Preparations for the 2012 Dakar Rally are well under way. From January 1 onwards Thomas Wruck and Michael Winkelsesser (pictured) will be where the action is, helping to ensure that the Amaroks perform their task as official rally support vehicles without incurring any technical or mechanical problems. In the interview, the two Volkswagen technicians describe a typical day during the world’s best-known desert rally, and how they have prepared themselves – and the Amaroks – for the event.

Mr. Wruck, Mr. Winkelsesser, you’re travelling out to the 2012 Dakar Rally as technical staff for Volkswagen Commercial Vehicles. When exactly do you start? What personal preparations do you have to make, and what are your specific tasks during the rally?

Michael Winkelsesser: I leave on December 24, 2011. I’m one of the first group that flies to Buenos Aires to make sure that the vehicles are unloaded in the docks without any incidents and get customs clearance without problems. My only personal task is to get used to the idea that the family will be celebrating Christmas without ne!

Thomas Wruck: I fly to Argentina with the second group on December 27, 2011, which is fortunate for me because I can spend Christmas at home. Otherwise my main personal preparation is to sleep well every night during the countdown to the 2012 Dakar Rally, so that I’m ready for whatever challenges that may face us during the rally. 

Our job is to keep the 53 vehicles that Volkswagen Commercial Vehicles has supplied fully operational. That may involve no more than changing a bulb, but in a real emergency we have to be ready to install a complete engine or gearbox.

Have you already had to work in extreme conditions (for instance heat, sand, humidity, low temperatures or thin air at high altitudes) and what problems did this cause?

Michael Winkelsesser: One of the major differences is of course that it’s summer in the Southern hemisphere. But because we follow the rally route, we cover some very long distances and the weather situation varies all the time. In Buenos Aires it will be warm and humid, but at high altitudes in the desert the temperature at night often drops below zero. The big difference between temperatures in the daytime and at night can be difficult to cope with. 

Another factor that needs getting used to is working at an altitude of several thousand metres above sea level. It’s more difficult to concentrate, you get tired more quickly and the work itself needs more effort. Good physical condition is therefore all the more important, and one has to drink a lot of water. For emergencies, we carry cylinders of oxygen with us.

Thomas Wruck: The Amarok is in fact an extremely sturdy, reliable pickup. I can’t recall it having had any teething troubles in earlier years. We rely on the drivers to bring us the vehicles as often as they think fit.

During your repair work, have you already had to display a talent for improvisation because of the enormous time pressure that you’re exposed to during the rally?

Michael Winkelsesser: If you can’t improvise, you’ve lost out! 

Thomas Wruck: One mustn’t forget that some of the Amarok’s components are not the same as those on series-production vehicles. A talent for improvisation is not only useful but extremely important in such cases, though of course the electrical components on modern vehicles for instance provide very little scope for improvising. 

How does the series-production Amarok have to be modified to make it suitable for desert driving?

Thomas Wruck: As far as the electronics are concerned, the vehicles are equipped with a navigation system, GPS transmitters, trip distance meters and two-way radio. We also modify the engine electronics so that the engine is supplied with the best possible fuel-air mixture and therefore runs reliably even at high altitudes. 

Michael Winkelsesser: There are off-road and on-road Amaroks. Mechanical changes to the off-road Amaroks, which in most cases follow the same route as the competitors, are the extra-strong off-road suspension, an air intake ‘snorkel’, a rollover protection cage and bucket-type seats. There are also some further minor changes compared with the series-production Amarok, with the aim of protecting certain sensitive components against dust and dirt. 

Have you already driven the Amarok across hot desert sand? If so, how did it feel?

Thomas Wruck: As you can imagine we can’t resist trying the Amarok out ourselves to see what it’s capable of. I’m constantly amazed how easy it is to handle even across difficult terrain. But since safety has top priority for us as well, we have both gone through a driving-safety training programme so that we have a well-developed sense of what the vehicle can do. If I’m not mistaken, Michael has taken part in a genuine off-road trial, which calls for a high level of skill.

This is the third Dakar Rally for both of you. Is it turning into a routine task or is it a fresh experience every time?

Michael Winkelsesser: I’m certainly not as worked up as I was the first time I went over for the Dakar Rally. I now know what to expect. The procedure is fairly similar every year, though of course it’s impossible to forecast how many vehicles will need attention on a particular day. In actual fact every day is different, and it’s not really a question of routine as such. For me, this is what makes the rally so fascinating. 

How many Amaroks altogether are you taking to Argentina, and how big is the technical staff to look after the entire fleet?

Michael Winkelsesser: The team supports the rally organisers with 3 Amaroks, 8 T5 PanAmericana, a Crafter 4MOTION and two trucks. If we include the ASO press and organisers’ vehicles, this year’s total – Thomas already mentioned the figure – is 53 altogether. To look after this fleet, we have 14 electricians, mechanics and technicians.

There’s certainly a vast amount of work for vehicle mechanics and electricians during the rally. Can you describe a typical day out there in the South American desert?

Thomas Wruck: To be honest, it’s difficult to know where to begin, because sometimes one day just follows another without a real break. We can only go to bed when all the vehicles are in proper working order. Sometimes the next day starts as early as four in the morning, when the helicopters take off to accompany the motorcyclists. When we are up and dressed, we gather up all our equipment and stow it in the cars or trucks. After this, we grab some breakfast before we set off to the next camp. We try not to lose time during the journey. Every day we have to cover between 500 and 700 kilometres, and the later we start out, the later we arrive and the more time we lose before we can tackle the necessary repairs. This can reduce our chances of getting a good night’s sleep. Of course, if we have to repair a vehicle somewhere along the route, this can interfere badly with our time schedule.

When the day’s stage has been completed, our work begins in earnest. We set up our work areas and get to work as quickly as possible on any repairs that may be needed.

Michael Winkelsesser: We have to check every vehicle thoroughly that the drivers bring in to us, in case it needs more extensive repairs. And since the whole fleet moves on next morning, we have to repair all the damage and defects during the night. We get no rest until the very last vehicle is in good shape for the next day’s driving. Then the whole process starts again, with us hoping to catch up on lost sleep.

By the way, it would be wrong to imagine that the camp is some kind of open-air hotel. It’s a hive of industry all through the night. Somewhere somebody is always wielding a wrench or a grinding wheel, sounding a horn or just talking together. The diesel generators run all night too, so that we have the electric power we need. If you’re a light sleeper you can expect to be woken up frequently! 

To be on the technical staff of a company taking part in the biggest rally in the world is certainly not an easy task. What was the biggest challenge that faced you so far during the Dakar Rally?

Michael Winkelsesser: At the top of my list I would put the eight-hour task of changing an engine or a gearbox out in the desert, miles from anywhere.

The toughest and most dangerous task facing me was removing an Amarok’s fuel tank on a exposed road at an altitude of about 4,200 metres. It was already dark, a strong wind was blowing and the temperature dropped as low as minus 7 degrees Celsius. The air is thin at that height, which didn’t make our work any easier. The fuel tank was full, so we had to summon all our strength to remove it from the vehicle. I was lucky – the diesel oil missed me but spilled out on to a colleague’s overalls. They still smell of diesel although they have been washed several times since.

Thomas Wruck: If you ask me, the challenge amounts to more that handling specific situations. The whole Dakar Rally is one big challenge. You see, we have a great responsibility towards the people who drive our cars. It’s our task to keep the vehicles reliable and safe to drive – even after 16 days without a proper night’s sleep. And when we set off for the next camp each morning, whoever is driving has to concentrate very hard: just imagine the extra work we would have to put in if we damaged our own vehicle!

Unlike the two previous events, the 2012 Dakar Rally doesn’t start in Buenos Aires but in Mar del Plata, and finishes in Lima, Peru. Has this influenced the preparations or the way the vehicles have to be set up?

Thomas Wruck: The biggest difference compared with the two previous events is that this year the vehicles for the Dakar Rally were fully prepared in Germany. This naturally calls for careful planning and flexibility if anything fails to operate as intended. In previous years we were based at the VW factory in Pacheco, so that we didn’t have far to go if we needed a spare part. This year the preparations have to be so perfect that the vehicles we collect from the dockside are ready for use without any further work.