Road to Dakar 2024

Exactly 355 days lie between the final stage of the 2023 Dakar Rally and the prologue of the 2024 Dakar Rally, a period that Team Audi Sport has used intensively to prepare for its third Dakar participation – with test drives and rally events. The waypoints along the "Road to Dakar 2024" at a glance.

>> May 2023

Testing in Saudi Arabia

While the innovative electric drive concept worked flawlessly during the 2023 Dakar Rally, tire failures set back the three driver teams Mattias Ekström/Emil Bergkvist, Stéphane Peterhansel/Edouard Boulanger and Carlos Sainz/Lucas Cruz. In addition to the analysis carried out since January, Team Audi Sport completed its investigation of the causes in May with a test in Saudi Arabia.

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>> July 2023

Testing in Spain, start at the Baja España Aragón

In July, Team Audi Sport switched into competition mode: after the test in Saudi Arabia in May, the team combined another test in Spain with its participation in the Baja Aragón.

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>> September 2023

#DakarCityTour 2023

From the desert to the metropolises: Audi not only uses the future-oriented drive technology of the RS Q e-tron at the Dakar Rally but also specifically demonstrates it in major cities. The program included the capitals of the three countries from which the Audi factory drivers hail. Carlos Sainz/Lucas Cruz traversed Madrid, Stéphane Peterhansel/Edouard Boulanger were on the road in Paris and Mattias Ekström/Emil Bergkvist steered the innovative low-emission prototype through Stockholm.

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>> October 2023

Testing in Morocco, start at the Rallye du Maroc

Team Audi Sport was using October to thoroughly prepare for the 2024 Dakar Rally. After six days of testing the team competed in the Morocco Rally with its three Audi RS Q e-tron cars for the driver teams Mattias Ekström/Emil Bergkvist, Stéphane Peterhansel/Edouard Boulanger and Carlos Sainz/Lucas Cruz.

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>> October 2023

e-tron on track

They stand for efficiency and enthusiasm in equal measure: Five high-performance Audi models for racing and action embody the path of electrified drives. The Audi R18 e-tron quattro from Le Mans, the Formula E race car e-tron FE07, the Dakar Rally prototype RS Q e-tron and the two show cars e-tron Vision Gran Turismo and S1 e-tron quattro Hoonitron have now met for the first time.

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>> November 2023

Final test in France

The last big test before the 2024 Dakar Rally: Team Audi Sport has put the Audi RS Q e-tron through its final test in the south of France. The three Audi driver crews of Mattias Ekström/Emil Bergkvist, Stéphane Peterhansel/Edouard Boulanger and Carlos Sainz/Lucas Cruz carried out the final fine-tuning. Before Audi’s third participation in the Dakar Rally, the engineers’ priority was to further extend the endurance of all the components.

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