Hello everyone, I am Uncle Xu Qun of 40,000, and welcome to the new issue of "40,000 Cars". Whether it's a motorcycle, a car, an ATV, even if you're a fan of trucks or classic cars, as long as you like racing and you want to have the enjoyment of watching a drama, you can't miss the Dakar Rally, which lasts for more than ten days every January.
This year's Dakar Rally officially ended on January 19, and the 61-year-old veteran Carlos Sainz and navigator Lucas Cruze won the overall championship of the 2024 Dakar Rally after 14 days, 12 stages and a total of 7,800 kilometers. 
Although this is the fourth Dakar championship for Sainz, I think this year's victory in the car class has a special significance. In addition to being the Audi brand's first overall title since its entry in 2022, and more importantly, the Dakar Rally has won the title for the first time since 1978 with a new energy car. 
As you can see, I love the Dakar Rally, and what fascinates me is that it accommodates almost all of nature's challenges to human civilization and technology in the complex course of thousands of kilometers. Another point is that this event is unpredictable, unpredictable, and the uncertainty is particularly fascinating. 
For example, in the early days of the route from Europe to Africa, the safety of the route always affected the course of the race, and even led to the direct suspension of the race in 2008 because the terrorist group bluntly threatened to attack the riders and staff. After the Dakar race moved to South America, although there was no need to worry too much about safety, the negative impact of the local high altitude environment on the driving power and the driver's body was really a torture. 
In order to promote tourism resources, the organizing committee of the 2020 event was invited by Saudi Arabia**, and Dakar was arranged from South America to the Middle East. Although it is no longer the scale of being able to travel through several countries all the way, the route carefully planned by the whole of Saudi Arabia remains the same, whether it is challenging, spectacle, or the uncertainty that is indispensable to competitive sports! Personally, I prefer the Dakar in Saudi Arabia to the South American environment, because the desert high-speed stage here is the most authentic! Most like what it looked like in the African desert back then, the Dakar Rally is incomplete without the desert! 
Let's take a look at this year's RS Q e-tron race car, which should be said to be the most mature generation, with subtle adjustments to the weight distribution and redesigned cabin details to improve safety; Improvements to the steering and drivetrain to optimize reliability. And Uncle 40,000's favorite is the appearance of the RS Q e-tron racing car, which is really handsome. 
The most important thing about an off-road rally car is that the suspension tuning strikes the perfect balance between weight, performance and the adaptation of new components, and the powertrain has been slightly improved within the rules. On top of that, the car's maintainability has been significantly improved, which is so important for drivers and navigators who often have to change tires or make minor repairs themselves! 
In addition to the full hardware conditions, the team also spent a lot of thought on tactics, arranging Carlos Sainz to be responsible for the championship, and Peter Hansel and Exrom to be responsible for the response, focusing on a "huddle" and "cooperation". The tactic proved its worth at the end of the race: in stage 10, after suffering three punctures, Sainz ran out of spare tires and maintained his advantage over Sebastien Loeb, the most dangerous contender, after getting two of his team-mate Exrom's used tyres in time. 
And Exrom sacrificed his own results, but he made his teammates the best chance of winning the championship. Not only was it a flawless tactical execution, but it also proved that the Dakar was all about cooperation and individual heroism could shine, but it couldn't make the difference between winning and losing. 
Some viewers may say, Uncle 40,000, you said that the Dakar Rally is so lively, and the RS Q e-tron car is indeed amazing, but for Audi users, what is the point? In fact, Audi is a brand that excels at empowering production models with racing technology, and the technology used in this RS Q e-tron race car can really be experienced in Audi's future electric vehicles.
For example, Audi's PPE electric platform and the second-generation 800-volt architecture used in the RS Q e-tron race car are derived from the Audi Formula E racing car, both of which have higher power output and faster charging speeds. Then there's the e-tron GT and the upcoming Q6 e-tron, both of which use the Quattro electric all-wheel drive system from the same origin as the RS Q e-tron racing car. For example, the front and rear axles are completely decoupled, the torque output is intelligently adjusted, and the response speed is far beyond the characteristics of mechanical four-wheel drive, and the racing car is exactly the same as the production car!
In addition, the E-tron GT's stable and consistently high output characteristics and its thermal management system are also influenced by Dakar racing technology. It's not a problem to be able to withstand the test of this level of competition and cope with the daily needs of a few daily catapult starts. Speaking of which, the Dakar Rally, the big auto event drama at the beginning of this year, is almost over.
Finally, Uncle 40,000 would like to congratulate the Audi Dakar team on winning this year's championship with the RS Q e-tron. I believe that this is just the beginning, and when the new energy rally car really becomes the mainstream in Dakar, Uncle 40,000 will have a good chat with you. At that time, perhaps these oil-burning rally cars that we are familiar with now will be grouped into a special group. Or in a few years, maybe it will become a classic group. I hope that in 2024, there will be more exciting events to look forward to, and I wish the Audi team another good result in the Dakar Rally next year.