The action-packed 8th edition of Maruti Suzuki Dakshin Dare event has finally ended with an adventurous journey of 2,200 kms traversing through undulating terrains of South India. With Mobil as the official lubricant partner, the journey had the rally racers drive their vehicles through tough routes and it finally concluded in a grand finale in Goa.The six-day event was flagged off from Bengaluru. 190 rally drivers took on the off-roads of Coorg, Shimoga and Goa marking the highest ever number in the history of Maruti Suzuki Dakshin Dare. Mobil has collaborated with Maruti Suzuki on the premise on Mobil’s high performance lubricants and technology leadership.
As one of the world’s leading synthetic engine oil, Mobil 1 features a proprietary Multi-Layer Anti-Wear technology that is claimed to provide performance beyond conventional engine oils and allows Mobil 1 to exceed the toughest standards – delivering exceptional protection against engine wear, even in challenging driving conditions … Now bring on the slush!
In the Ultimate Cars category, Suresh Rana and co-driver Parminder Thakur took away the title. They completed their journey in their Grand Vitara. Following Rana-Thakur, the top honours in the Ultimate Cars category were grabbed by Sandeep Sharma and co-driver Karan Arya in their Maruti Gypsy at a close second and Jasmohan Saini with co-driver Vikram Thakur in their Maruti Gypsy at third position.
Ganesh Moorthy & T Nagarajan leaded in the Endurance Cars category. Raghu Nandan & M Prakash stood second to Moorthy in the Endurance Cars category followed by Karthick Maruthi & Sankar S Ananad at third position. T Natraj won the Ultimate Bikes category covering the distance in his TVS Apache. In the Ultimate bikes category, Febin Jose in his TVS Apache stood second, giving a tough competition to Nataraj. The third place was followed by Akash Aithal riding his Royal Enfield 500.
The men in the rally were given a tough competition by 16 women motor enthusiasts including Bani Yadav along with her navigator Pankaj Rai. The duo, driving from the Ultimate Cars category led among women participants, with a 9th position overall.
Vinay Pant, Assistant Vice President, Marketing, Maruti Suzuki India Limited, said that Maruti Suzuki Dakshin Dare has grown tremendously over the years, gaining a very strong foothold in motor sport in South India. Record breaking participation numbers with longest rally route are certainly in agreement to the claims. They are elated to see exceeding female participation in allies as well, which also serves the company’s purpose of reaching and influencing a larger audience each year.
Speaking on the glorious win, nine-times Raid De Himalaya winner – Suresh Rana said, “We have won with a lead of just 00:06:06, which shows the high level competency witnessed at this year’s Dakshin Dare. It’s not just about the vehicle anymore, but about presence of mind and driving styles. Sustaining the lead throughout stages is taxing. It’s our first win at Dakshin Dare and we hope the winning streak remains in the forthcoming editions as well.”
Final results:
Ultimate Cars:
1. Suresh Rana & Parminder Thakur – 06:51:15
2. Sandeep Sharma & Karan Arya – 06:57:21
3. Jasmohan Saini & Vikram Thakur – 07:07:21
Ultimate Bikes:
1. T Nataraj – 05:26:33
2. Febin Jose – 06:12:18
3. Akash Aithal – 06:16:07
Endurance Cars (TSD) day-end penalty:
1. Ganesh Moorthy & T Nagarajan – 00:16:49
2. Raghu Nandan & M Prakash – 00:18:08
3. Karthick Maruthi & Sankar S Ananad – 00:19:55
