X-raid driver Guillaume de Mévius believes the upgraded petrol engine Mini JCW Rally has what it takes to fight for victory on the Dakar Rally.
De Mévius finished a surprise second in the 2024 edition of the Dakar in a customer Overdrive Racing Toyota Hilux before joining the semi-works X-raid outfit in the summer.
The German team, which has won the Dakar six times between 2012 and 2021, has historically run diesel engines since the company was founded in 2002 but has now made the switch to a three-liter petrol engine.
De Mévius finished third in October’s Rallye du Maroc using the older diesel engine while team-mate Guerlain Chicherit ran the petrol version.
The former had tested the new model extensively and believes the performance gains with petrol versus the diesel will give X-raid a fighting chance in Saudi Arabia.
“The main difference is that the diesel engine produced a lot of torque, which made it very easy to drive in the dunes and the torque response was good,” de Mévius told DirtFish.
“But overall, when you are looking for higher top speed and response on the high-speed tracks, the petrol engine was so much faster.
De Mévius is confident the Minis can be in the race to win the classic rally raid
“I could see on the timing splits, when I was in the dunes, I was really fast but as soon as I was on the fast tracks, I was missing some power and that, for example, Guerlain was a lot quicker than me.
“So, it’s basically two different philosophies of engine, but I think on the test we did before the race, the overall performance of the petrol car is better.”
A key element of the 47th running of the Dakar Rally is that the event finishes with three days of special stages exclusively in the dunes.
While de Mévius acknowledges the advantage the previous generation diesel car has over the current petrol example, the Belgian is unconcerned that the difference will have a significant knock-on effect.
“Looking at the whole Dakar route, the petrol engine will probably be the quicker option because, even though we have three days of dunes at the end of the rally, there are a lot of fast tracks on the overall mileage that we will have to deal with, and this is where petrol can make the difference,” he said.
“And in the dunes, it’s not such a huge difference between diesel and petrol, for sure there is a bit more torque [with diesel] but it’s not such a big advantage.”
X-raid had looked on course to bag a double podium finish in Morocco with both de Mévius and Chicherit setting regular top five stage times.
Despite final stage issues for de Mévius that dropped him to third and Chicherit out of the top 10, it is the level of consistency that has given X-raid cause for optimism.
“We were still in a bit of a development phase in Morocco; I was using the diesel and Guerlain the petrol and we were trying things out still,” de Mévius explained.
“There are still some things we need to work on with the car but overall, the performance is really good and the reliability also.
“OK, we don’t know what the performance will be like from Ford, but compared to the others, Dacia and Toyota, it looks like we are ready to fight.”
Baumel influence helping to keep pressure off
One of the biggest stories following last year’s Dakar was Nasser Al-Attiyah’s split with navigator Mathieu Baumel, with whom he won four of his five editions.
With experience at a premium on an event such as the Dakar, it wasn’t long before Baumel was snapped up and, after a one-off rally with Chicherit, he and de Mévius joined forces, winning the Baja Aragón together in a Toyota Hilux.
Baumel (left) has already made a positive impact in the X-raid camp
“It was a bit of a surprise to everyone when Mathieu and Nasser split,” said de Mévius. “But after that, it went quite easily, we discussed it a couple of times and decided to try something.
“I really appreciate his advice and all the experience he has, he’s also really easy to get along with as well, so it’s been good so far.
“The main difference I feel is his reaction whenever we have a doubt over the route; he is really quick to find a solution and it’s really impressive.
“And now, for him it’s a bit tricky to navigate in French with me because for a long time he was speaking English with Nasser, so we are learning how to work together from this side too.”
De Mévius’ rise to the Dakar podium in 2024 came as something of a surprise, not least to the driver himself. As such, managing expectations and forgetting the past results has been a key element of de Mévius’ preparations for 2025.
“Last year, I started the race with almost no pressure and this year it is a bit different, but I am trying to do the same,” said de Mévius.
“I did a crazy result last year and I am really proud of it, but I know that I am still young and have a lot to learn. I don’t have the same level of experience as Nasser or Séb [Loeb] so the plan is to go into this Dakar like I did last year.
“I don’t have so much pressure, I just want to enjoy and be in the hunt. If I am in the top five, then anything is possible.”
