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Loprais’ expectations of the Dakar 2018

no comment Posted by smitkees

Rally Dakar 2018 is going to be the nearest future. InstaForex Loprais Team is entering the race with the new evolution of TATRA truck QUEEN 69 REBORN.

After several hard test session starting with hot startup during Silk Way Rally, Moravian Sahara Circuit in Czech republic and further in the desert district area in Poland we are now focusing at the most important challenge of the season called DAKAR.

Ales Loprais about Rally Dakar 2018:

The 40.th anniversary of Rally Dakar is expected to be in the name of extreme, uniqueness and full load of adventure. It is especially Peru which is promising to be a hard desert event with many dune fields which are making the race to be a REAL DAKAR race. Extra BIG volume of luck, experience and constant drive without technical failures together with perfect navigation will be needed in this difficult marathon race. It is complicated now to talk about goals, there is high quality competition now and we have to count with everybody there. We are entering into this event with a BIG respect of all participants. We wish and we want to drive or better say to follow our dream as fast as possible. Dakar is a great challenge and we would like to THANK to our sponsors that we can be a part of it.

Race crew under the wings of InstaForex for DAKAR 2018:

Ales Loprais
pilot
(Czech republic)

Ferran Marco Acayna
navigator
(Spain)

Lukáš Janda
on board mechanic
(Czech republic)

crew

Race number 504 is the number of the InstaForex Loprais Team!

http://www.loprais.cz/dakar/en/news/508-dakar2018

January 7th, 2018

Buggyra’s & Kolomy’s preparations and expectations for the 2018 Dakar

no comment Posted by smitkees

Dakar2018KolomyPreparation

http://www.rallyraidnetwork.com/rrn/index.php/latest-news-top/racing-news/racing-news-2/1352-dakar-2018-kolomy-plans-to-fight-for-dakar-bedouin.html

January 7th, 2018

2018 Tatra Dakar starting numbers and positions

no comment Posted by smitkees

Dakar2018KolomyStage1

Ales Loprais:  http://www.dakar.com/en/competitor/504

Martin Kolomy   http://www.dakar.com/en/competitor/505

Martin Soltys:    http://www.dakar.com/en/competitor/532

PAVEL VRNAK   http://www.dakar.com/en/competitor/541

January 7th, 2018

A T 600 urban legend?

no comment Posted by smitkees
Legendary T600 1953 EVO V8 is going to Le Mans
The picture is the legendary T600 1953 EVO V8, the only car of its kind in the world, originally donated to Hanzelka and Zikmund’s traveler on February 13, 1953. This is the EVOluce transition from T600 to T603.
T600EVOV81953J.Smarda
According to severeral sources this T600 from 1953, named by its owners Tatyra T 600 EVO V8, is an evolution model between the T 600 and the T 603, donated to Hanzelka and Zikmund in February 1953, something that could not be confirmed by the Tatra Museum.  In restored form it was believed that it would compete in the Le Mans Classic race as a rarity. Drivers named are Duncan John Arthurs, Josef Smarda and Austen Wells
Austen Wells is an experienced British classic racer.
Duncan John Arthurs is known in the UK for his outings with his T 11 sports car.
T11-1925DuncanArthurs
Question is: Is it an original T 600 transition model? Personally I do not think so though more stories would be welcome.  There are too many odds in the present story. The T 603 is said to have 180 hp. Impossible in 1953 imho. The claimed fact that it is an ex Hanzelka-Zikmund car could not be confirmed by the curators of the Tatra Museum either. Further, Tatraplans fitted with a T 603A engine had louvres in the rear bonnet (on the same position as the T 87) and not louvres low down as on the T 603.
Published under History, Racing & Rallying
October 12th, 2017

Silk Way Rally 2017 Part 2. Kolomy finishes 11th and wins three stages.

no comment Posted by smitkees

S.14 Despres and Sotnikov score doubles at Xi’an

  • 07/22/2017
S.14 Despres and Sotnikov score doubles at Xi’an

Arriving in triumph and bright sunshine at the ancient capital of the Middle Empire, at the end of over 700 kilometres of liaison, the competitors on the 2017 Silk Way Rally were all smiles. Cancelled following heavy overnight rain in the Zhongwei region, the last 100,67 km special was transformed into a lap of honour for the competitors and their assistance, coming to the end of 15 days and nearly 10.000 km of racing that was varied and demanding for both man and machine. Pulling into the parc fermé, that marks the end of this 2017 edition, at Xi’an’s exhibition centre, Cyril Despres and David Castera (Peugeot 3008DKR n°100) take a second consecutive victory in the car category, while Dmitry Sotnikov, accompanied by his Kamaz Ruslan team co-drivers Akhmadeev and Ilnur Mustafin (Kamaz-Master n°303) also takes a second victory in the truck class (after their first in 2013), at the end of a fierce battle with their Kamaz team mates.

Sotnikov proves the new Kamaz

With the best teams at the start, the 2017 Silk Way Rally promised a fierce fight between the four Team Kamaz-Master trucks and their principle rivals from Team Iveco De Rooy, Mammoet Riwald, MAZ and Tatra. Once again the experience and team work of the men from Tatarstan proved decisive at the end of the 10,000 km leading to Xi’an. Patient in Russia and Kazakhstan, the blue armada held back until crossing the border into China. The only one able to carry on the fight was the Czech Martin Kolomy (Tatra Phoenix n°311) who finally let go in the Gobi Desert. And it was there, in the heart of the cathedral dunes, that Sotnikov, Shibalov and Mardeev let rip to share the spoils. Keeping a cool head all the way to the finish in his 100% new Kamaz, equipped with a ‘small’ 13.5 litre Cummins engine, Dmitry Sotnikov fought off the attacks of the young and talented Anton Shibalov to take a second Silk Way win. “I can’t remember such a tough race,” commented Sotnikov, “We had to fight for each second and every day the battle became more intense. I am happy that Anton Shibalov kept up the pressure because it really bought out the best in us. Unfortunately there can only be one winner. Anton could very well have won the race, as the gap between us was tiny and shows the degree of competition at this level of racing.”

Special Stage wins: Sotnikov (4): SS5, SS7, SS8, SS13. Kolomy (3): SS1, SS4, SS11. Mardeev (2): SS9, SS12.

Vladimir Chagin (General Director of the Silk Way Rally): “Thank you all!”

“This Silk Way Rally has once again proved itself worthy of its status as an international sporting event. In each country crossed there were many spectators at the side of the route. The race was even tougher than last year due to the rain that has followed us from Moscow, adding an extra degree of difficulty for the competitors. But nothing stands in the way of sport, courage and passion. I would like to thank all the competitors on this 2017 edition for their determination, that is the mark of all great sportsmen and women. I would also like to thank all the members of the organisation, as well as our partners, without whom this fantastic sporting and human adventure would not exist. Thank you all and see you next year.”

Stage 14:

Due to the storms and heavy showers that have hit the Zhongwei region , the Silk Way Rally’s Race Directors cancelled the 14th Special Stage between Zhongwei and Xi’an, a decision approved of by all the competitors.

All competitors in the race, will therefore leave in liaison, following the assistance route, in order of the overall rankings, for the parc ferme in Xi’an, so as to be able to take part in the finish celebrations and the final podium, which will be held as initially planned.

As the Sporting Stewards have decided to cancel SS14, the results are those of the end of the 13th stage of 21 July 2017.

Cyril Despres and David Castera (Peugeot 3008DKR n°106) in the cars and Dmitry Sotnikov, Ruslan Akhmadeev and Ilnur Mustafin (Kamaz-Master n°303) in the truck class will therefore simply have to reach the parc ferme in Xi’an to be officially declared winners of the 2017 edition of the Silk Way Rally in their respective categories.

Kolomy, in the only Tatra left, came home 11th overall with three stage victories in his bag!

Stage 13:

Sotnikov, finishes on top

While it was almost certain this morning that it would be a Kamaz that would take the final victory on the 2017 Silk Way Rally, it was still unclear who would be on the top step of the podium tomorrow in Xi’an. With just a little over 3 minutes in the lead, Dmitry Sotnikov knew that his leadership was threatened by his young team mate Anton Shibalov. Attacking hard, Shibalov actually took the virtual overall lead at the end of the first special by just 2 seconds, but Sotnikov fought back in the second to actually increase his overall lead to 06:04. The last special tomorrow might be short but it isn’t expected to be easy, so while it would be very unwise to declare Sotnikov the winner, after a shaky start earlier in the day, he is looking marginally more comfortable this evening than he was this morning. Mardeev, 3rd on the special, and overall, led in the Belorussians Viazovich (MAZ n°304) and Vasilevski (MAZ n°309) and the Kazakh Ardavicius. Bad day on the other hand for his team mate Gerard De Rooy (Iveco Powerstar n°302), forced to drive to the bivouac at Zhongwei by tarmac, before the start of the second special, after running into steering problems.

STage 12:

Trucks

Sotnikov loses power

For the Kamaz-Master armada the objective of this 12th stage was perfectly clear: to counter the charge of Kolomy and his Tatra, that until now was stubbornly holding onto their 3rd place overall. Starting first on the road this morning, after yesterday’s victory, the Czech driver didn’t hold onto the lead for very long. Yet it wasn’t the Kamaz that were the cause of his problems, but like Despres, a problem with his power steering that bought his Tatra Phoenix n°311 to a halt in the middle of the dunes. More than enough to encourage Airat Mardeev (Kamaz-Master n°300) to get on the gas. The winner of the 2016 Silk Way Rally 2016 nevertheless took the time to pull out Sotnikov, his leader, losing power and stuck on the crest of a dune.  At the finish Mardeev takes his 2nd stage win, 2m15s ahead of Shibalov. Coming back respectively to 3m04s and 17m54s to Sotnikov overall, both can still hope for final victory in Xi’An. All of which promises a great battle between team mates tomorrow in the dunes of the Tenger desert, as beautiful as it is redoubtable…

Kolomy would finish last, loosing more than four hours.

SilkWay2017Kolomystage11

Stage 11 – Dunhuang-Jiayuguan: “The fort of the fertile valley” – 783,84 km

Trucks: Kolomy keeps attacking

Driving in tight formation since arriving in China, the Team Kamaz-Master drivers would appear to be managing the race. Not that they would entertain the idea of letting a stage win slip from their grasp without a struggle.

One of the principle actors in the truck race since the first special in Russia, the Czech driver Martin Kolomy and his Tatra Phoenix n°311, knew therefore that he’d have to get on the gas if he wanted to get this 3rd win and defend the third place overall that Airat Mardeev would so like to get his hands on.

Beaten to the line yesterday, after a puncture less than 50 kilometres from the finish, Lady Luck decided to shine on Kolomy a little brighter today. Fighting over mere seconds with the Kamaz-Master of Shibalov and Sotnikov that started just behind him, the Czech driver finally finished 49 seconds ahead of Anton Shibalov. He returned to the third overall spot.

Third on the stage at 1m07s, Dmitry Sotnikov and his new generation Kamaz-Master maintain an almost 15-minute lead overall.

Stage 9 continued:

Loprais retires

After a day off, the Loprais team set off on a stage that contained about 50 km of dune fields. Ales likes the dunes, but this time he entered them with doubts. The first half was successful, the chassis worked great, the Tatra overtook a lot of cars and trucks, but the Tatra was caught by the same problem once more.  The Queen began to boil again, so we were forced to get out of the dunes and continue to the bivouac.

Loprais commented: We are sorry, but the measures we have taken are insufficient. Moreover, it is clear that we will not solve the problem any better and will not look in the dunes in this year’s competition. We cannot risk a more extensive problem. After considering all the possible options, we decided to conclude our participation at this year’s Silk Way rally. We thank everyone for the support, and we believe that we will manage to fine-tune the Queen and eliminate all technical problems and meet you all at the Dakar rally 2018.

August 15th, 2017

Silk Way Rally 2017

no comment Posted by smitkees

SilkWay2017Route

On July 8, 2017 the seventh Silk Way Rally set off from Red Square in Moscow and head east. The competition will take place in three countries – Russia, Kazakhstan and China – and will link the three capitals of Moscow, Astana and Beijing. Crews will cover a distance of 10,000km over two weeks, and almost half will be on special stages.

The truck category could welcome both Ales Loprais and Marin Kolomy, both on Tatras.

Silkway2017RedSquareStart

August 9th: The Czech drivers sprang a surprise in the first stage. Martin Kolomy (Tatra Phoenix n°311) and Ales Loprais(Tatra 815/2 n°305), became first and second respectively on this first special. Clearly more at ease over the slippery tracks, the ‘small’ Czech vehicles came home ahead of Dutchman Ton Van Genugten Iveco and the MAZ of Belorussia Siarhei Viazovich. Gerard De Rooy and his new Iveco completed the top 5, more than 4 minutes behind Kolomy. Considerably further back, the Kamaz team made a surprisingly discreet debut on what could be considered a warm up special.

First of the ‘blue armada’ trucks in was that of Anton Shibalov (Kamaz 4326 n°312) who this evening is in only 8th place, 4:18 behind the day’s winner.

Kolomy quote”“We are used to driving in these conditions, at home in the Czech Republic. Of course it means opening the piste tomorrow. It won’t be a problem for me, but more for my co-driver, who comes from WRC and hasn’t raced in rally-raid before…”

Silkway2017KolomyStage1

It was Martin van den Brink (Renault Sherpa n°301) and Gerard De Rooy (Iveco 4×4 DRNL n°302) who led home the Silk Way Rally truck race on the second stage on August 10th. Taking advantage of a certain amount of over-enthusiasm from the Tatras of Kolomy and Loprais, as well as Viazovich in his MAZ, all of whom made errors on this particularly tricky special, the Dutchmen came out on top. And while van den Brink took 2m04s off De Rooy on the stage, overall he is only 13 seconds ahead of his countryman. The Kazakh Ardavicius (Iveco 4×4 DRNL n°310) takes the third spot just ahead of the first Kamaz of Anton Shibalov (n°312). Loprais had a disastrous day. In today’s speed trial he stood three times. Twice for a broken hose, and for the third time it was a fatal breakdown: shattered clutch.  He could not shift anything out of the neutral, so had to wait for towage. No one, of course, stopped by, only the pilot Boucou in the end, but in such a difficult terrain it was impossible for him to help.

Silkway2017LopraisStage2

In the third stage, After having nearly taken victory on three previous occasion, thanks to their driver Siarhei Viazovich, the factory MAZ team from Minsk finally realised their dream of winning a rally-raid special on this 3rd stage of the 2017 Silk Way Rally. Second, less than a minute behind, the Czech driver Kolomy (Tatra n°311), Saturday’ winner, takes the overall lead, ahead of a trio of Kamaz led by Anton Shibalov (n°312) ahead of his team mates Sotnikov (n°303) and Mardeev (n°300). Discreet up until now, the Kamaz look ready to pounce. Not such a good day however for yesterday’s front runners. Starting first this morning, Martin van den Brink (Renault ‘Sherpa’ n°301) ran into mechanical problems at the end of the special, losing nearly 30 minutes, while Gerard De Rooy (Iveco Powerstar n°302) gave away 17 minutes opening the piste. Loprais did not start in the 3rd stage as the clutch was heavily damaged. It was eventually fixed  to fix it in the workshops of Kamaz until six o’clock in the morning, which was followed by a short rest and further hard work on the Tatra.  Loprais had to give up the start in the stage and move to the bivouac in Kostanay, Kazakhstan.

Silkway2017BuggyraStage4

The 4th stage saw a new victory of Martin Kolomy, extending his lead overall. The longest stage of the rally also saw some major upsets in the truck class, while up at the front of the race Gerard De Rooy (Iveco Powertsar n°302) and Martin Kolomy (Tatra Phoenix n°311) fought it out tooth and nail. In the beginning it looked like it was the Dutchman who was going to come out on top, but in the end it was the Czech who took both specials to finish just 21 seconds ahead. Overall Kolomy increases his lead on De Rooy to more than 11 minutes. On home ground, the Kazakh Artur Ardavicius (Iveco Powerstar n°310) took third place, both on the stage and overall. Loprais again did not start to give his crew some time to rest.  He will start in stage 5 however.

Silkway2017Lopraisteam

Playing a low profile since the start in Moscow, last Saturday, the Kamaz choose this first long special to get on the gas. A decision that saw Naberezhnie Tchelny’s blue monsters take the first three places on the day. Winning ahead of Shibalov and Nikolaev, Dmitry Sotnikov (Kamaz-Master n°303) also takes the overall lead 48 seconds in front of Anton Shibalov (Kamaz-Master n°312) and 15m27s ahead of the Czech driver Kolomy (Tatra Phoenix 311), who lost more than 50 minutes after getting stuck on the going. The day after their fellow countrymen’s disastrous run of bad luck that saw all three Team Mammoet / Riwald trucks out, it was the turn of Team De Rooy Iveco to suffer. Starting second today, Gerard De Rooy (Iveco Powerstar n°302) was forced to leave the special at CP2 (Km 260) when his cabin chassis broke. Team mate, the Kazakh driver Artur Ardavicius (Iveco Powerstar n°310), managed to finish the stage but only after giving away nearly an hour to Sotnikov after getting stuck.

July 13th, 2017

TRD Rally Nahetal

no comment Posted by smitkees

Just one week after the 120 years Tatra rally, the TRD held its annual event, at the last weekend of June, in the valley of River Nahe.  About thirty cars were present, some of them just returning from the Czech Rally. Of of the fellow competitors, Raimund Bartl arrived at the hotel just after midnight where he had a drink with other Tatra owners. He, however, had sudden pain on the breast and was reanimated, first by Tatra colleagues with a medical education, then by ambulance personnel and finally by a practitioner. It was to no avail though as he passed away under the hands of his reanimators.

It does not take much imagination that everybody was shocked the next day. Out of respect, the rally organisation provided all competitors with a mourning ribbon and a rose.

The rally itself was nicely organised and the route was splendid.

TRD20172

TRD20173

TRD20174

TRD20175

TRD20171RaymundBartl

Silent witness.

Raimund Bartl’s ivory T 603 was left behind, only the flowers witnessing that something had happened.

BartlTraueranzeige2017

Raimund Bartl will be buried on July 14th 9.30 at Friedhof Letter(Hölderlinstrasse 6, 30926 Seelze)

July 12th, 2017

2017 Tatra Veteran Memorial Rally Bratislava – Vienna – Brno – Koprivnice Part 3

no comment Posted by smitkees

The Hajdusek family gave a demonstration with their T 603B5 and their Ecorra T 700 as part of the 120 years rally.

It was a great honour to be invited to be a passenger in the B5.  We circled the Polygon several times and that sound of the ejector cooling! Wauw…. We also drove down the middle section where we had regrettably had a low-speed collision with the T 700 as Stanislav Hajdusek suddenly turned right and with the T 700 following closely, a collision was unavoidable.  Both cars were damaged, but could continue, the T 700 repaired with tape.

WienKopr2017T603B5kees

WienKopr2017Hajdusek2

WienKoprPolygonHajdusek

WienKoprivniceT603B5

WienKopr2017Hajdusek1

July 12th, 2017

2017 Tatra Veteran Memorial Rally Bratislava – Vienna – Brno – Koprivnice Part 1 + VIDEO

no comment Posted by smitkees

WienKopr2017Poster

Every decade Tatra celebrates the first trip of their very first automobile from Koprivnice to Vienna by organising a rally in the reversed direction. Ther last decades it was jointly organised by the TVCC Koprivnice and the Tatra Freunde International but due to organisational problems in 2007, the TVCC Koprivnice decided to go it alone but was this year supported by the Tatra Works, who did not show interest in the Tatra classic car scene in the past. With its production going quite well, Tatra stepped in and promoted their trucks en route with several (classic) Tatra Dakar trucks on the competitors’ list.

BRATISLAVA

The Slovak capital Bratislava was chosen as the place where all Tatras gathered.

WienKopr2017Bratislava

Bratislava was left on June 22nd. Finish after a one hour drive was at the Vienna Military History Museum where the 120 Year Tatra rally (the short name) officially started. Alle competitors from Bratislava made it to Vienna and were joined by competitors who had chosen Vienna as their starting point.

VIENNA

WienkOPR2017Phoenix

WienKopr2017T87andtrucks

WienKopr2017Prasident2

WienKopr2017Prasident

The Tatra Museum had brought their Prasident replica but it regrettably failed to start.

WienKopr2017StartVienna2

WienKopr2017StartVienna

The rally was opened officially and all the cars were presented to the public by a professional speaker.

Wienkopr2017T11

Off we go. The 1924 T 11 was the first car to be flagged away.

WienKopr2017T12

1932 T 57

WienKoppr2017T54

1932 T 54/30

WienKopr2017T57Prosecky

1938 T 57a

WienKopr2017T70a-2

1934 T 70a

WienKoprivnice2017LedwinkaInterview

Hans Ledwinka (grandson) was also present and interviewed

WienKopr2017T57Sport

1934 T 57 sport

WienKopr2017T57b

1940 T 57b

WienKopr2017Buggyra

Martin Kolomy and his 1996 Phoenix Dakar

WienKopr2017T87s

Two Slovak T 87s

WienKopr2017T700Wien

Not less than five T 700s participated.

This report will be continued in part 2.

VIDEO of Rally: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LM8pFBzdpb0&t=25s

July 11th, 2017

Tatra renovating 1986 Paris – Dakar truck

no comment Posted by smitkees

Tatra and the restoration of the T 815 6×6 VE “Sharp II” from the Paris-Alger-Dakar rally 1986

Tatra and the restoration of the T 815 6x6 VE "Sharp II" from the Paris-Alger-Dakar rally 1986
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In September, Tatra Trucks acquired one of the first Koprivnice competition specials for the Paris-Alger-Dakar marathon in 1986 and is now revealing further progress in its renovation.
Present owners of the Koprivnice carmaker do not only pay attention to its current production and future, but it also depends on supporting and saving its history as it is an integral part of the process of brand building.
Thanks to the consistent effort of Ing. Radomíra Smolka, a member of the Board of Directors of Tatra Trucks as and its technical director, was investigated by the owner of the competition car T 815 6×6 VE Ostrý-II of the serial number TNT815P17FK030641 with which the crew Zdeněk Kahánek, Miroslav Gumulec and ing. Josef Kalina with the start number 635 -Alger-Dakar 1986.
In September 2016, this vehicle was acquired in the collections of historical Tatra trucks, and restoration and reconstruction works were started immediately. At the beginning of January this year, the renovation of an exceptional vehicle was roughly in the first third of the whole schedule. It is now halfway behind, and the Koprivnice carmaker reveals further progress.
The centerpiece of the second third of the restoration and renovation work, one of the first Tatra Tattoos in Dakar, was the preparation and production of the superstructure. At the same time, work continued on completing the cabin and chassis. The support tube, the axles, the subframe and the part of the drive train are practically ready for the final finish.
Tatra Trucks states that the cab has undergone a general overhaul with the replacement of several sheet metal parts and has been fitted with an internal security frame in the 1985 version. Little surprise, for example, was the finding that the original dimensions of the tubes for the interior frame production are no longer available on the market, But luckily, the material needed has yet to be won.
The cabin already boasts a new varnish and is currently undergoing installation of internal equipment, an electric beam starting with the coating materials ending. In its original form, the special comes thanks to the 1986 modified bumper and the unique side wind deflectors. The prototypes were original and were missing after the return.
A separate chapter in the entire renovation process of the Dakar special is the superstructure. The original, which has undergone the hell of using and rebuilding under the thirty year service to several owners, remained in France. Respectfully, Jean Philipe took it back from Koprivnice back mounted on the Phoenix 8×8 Euro 6 chassis, for which the T 815 “Ostrý-II” was replaced.
As a result, according to the manufacturing documentation for standard platforms from the second half of the 1980s, it was manufactured and modified in the same way as the original ones. The whole process, of course, was not so simple, because some of the design procedures or rather the way of thinking are practically unrepeatable.
Technical Director Ing. Radomír Smolka therefore did a huge amount of work in de facto reconstruction of the whole body, including all the interior equipment. This time, of course, in line with current trends, primarily in electronic form. Beyond the scope of his duties, the designers Helena Křížková and Jakub Machálek helped him to draw up the drawing documentation.
Production of the superstructure and their individual parts took place both in the Kopřivnice factory and in the external companies. The grid superstructure itself and tarpaulin curves with side profiles of unique dimensions were manufactured by the Ecos high-tech companies, otherwise the supplier of the Tatra Force cabins.
The final assembly is a matter of a team of colleagues at the prototype workshop and actually opens the third, final, third of the renovation of this specialty. Renovation workshop is coordinated by Petr Gilar, one of the best test drivers of Tatra vehicles, an employee of the Vehicle Examination and Homologation Department.
In the seventeenth week, the outsourced company was commissioned to produce the sail and the graphics of all advertising stickers and starting numbers were completed to complete the look of the refurbished car.
The dedicated places in the warehouse are already filled with accessories, which eventually “sharp-II” make their way to the final state.
The pedal boats that have been saved from the barn in France have undergone repassion and got the final white lacquer. The pedal plates themselves had to be made from 6 mm aluminum material all over again, as the original ones still serve somewhere in West Africa. Directly from the 3D model, spherical pans were machined to fit the pedals on the levers.
Similarly, so-called “cobras” of engine suction and a whole bunch of other little things have been rebuilt and manufactured. Michelin XS 14.00-20 tires, which were made with five pairs, will definitely take on the new parts.
The Tatra T 815 6×6 VE with the starting number 635 is also interesting for the eighties and above all ABC magazine readers. It also served as a model for the top-quality paper model made by the architect Richard Vyškovský. The 1:32 racing truck had wheels on the swinging arms and copied perfectly the terrain that was passing over.
The sister car with the starting number 634, however, was a model for the 1:48 scale Monti System, which is still available on Vista.
In September, Tatra Trucks acquired one of the first Koprivnice competition specials for the Paris-Alger-Dakar marathon in 1986 and is now revealing further progress in its renovation.

Present owners of the Koprivnice carmaker do not only pay attention to its current production and future, but it also depends on supporting and saving its history as it is an integral part of the process of brand building.

Thanks to the consistent effort of Ing. Radomíra Smolka, a member of the Board of Directors of Tatra Trucks as and its technical director, was investigated by the owner of the competition car T 815 6×6 VE Ostrý-II of the serial number TNT815P17FK030641 with which the crew Zdeněk Kahánek, Miroslav Gumulec and ing. Josef Kalina with the start number 635 -Alger-Dakar 1986.

In September 2016, this vehicle was acquired in the collections of historical Tatra trucks, and restoration and reconstruction works were started immediately. At the beginning of January this year, the renovation of an exceptional vehicle was roughly in the first third of the whole schedule. It is now halfway behind, and the Koprivnice carmaker reveals further progress.

The centerpiece of the second third of the restoration and renovation work, one of the first Tatra Tattoos in Dakar, was the preparation and production of the superstructure. At the same time, work continued on completing the cabin and chassis. The support tube, the axles, the subframe and the part of the drive train are practically ready for the final finish.
Tatra Trucks states that the cab has undergone a general overhaul with the replacement of several sheet metal parts and has been fitted with an internal security frame in the 1985 version. Little surprise, for example, was the finding that the original dimensions of the tubes for the interior frame production are no longer available on the market, But luckily, the material needed has yet to be won.

The cabin already boasts a new varnish and is currently undergoing installation of internal equipment, an electric beam starting with the coating materials ending. In its original form, the special comes thanks to the 1986 modified bumper and the unique side wind deflectors. The prototypes were original and were missing after the return.

A separate chapter in the entire renovation process of the Dakar special is the superstructure. The original, which has undergone the hell of using and rebuilding under the thirty year service to several owners, remained in France. Respectfully, Jean Philipe took it back from Koprivnice back mounted on the Phoenix 8×8 Euro 6 chassis, for which the T 815 “Ostrý-II” was replaced.
As a result, according to the manufacturing documentation for standard platforms from the second half of the 1980s, it was manufactured and modified in the same way as the original ones. The whole process, of course, was not so simple, because some of the design procedures or rather the way of thinking are practically unrepeatable.

Technical Director Ing. Radomír Smolka therefore did a huge amount of work in de facto reconstruction of the whole body, including all the interior equipment. This time, of course, in line with current trends, primarily in electronic form. Beyond the scope of his duties, the designers Helena Křížková and Jakub Machálek helped him to draw up the drawing documentation.

Production of the superstructure and their individual parts took place both in the Kopřivnice factory and in the external companies. The grid superstructure itself and tarpaulin curves with side profiles of unique dimensions were manufactured by the Ecos high-tech companies, otherwise the supplier of the Tatra Force cabins.

The final assembly is a matter of a team of colleagues at the prototype workshop and actually opens the third, final, third of the renovation of this specialty. Renovation workshop is coordinated by Petr Gilar, one of the best test drivers of Tatra vehicles, an employee of the Vehicle Examination and Homologation Department.

In the seventeenth week, the outsourced company was commissioned to produce the sail and the graphics of all advertising stickers and starting numbers were completed to complete the look of the refurbished car.

The dedicated places in the warehouse are already filled with accessories, which eventually “sharp-II” make their way to the final state.
The pedal boats that have been saved from the barn in France have undergone repassion and got the final white lacquer. The pedal plates themselves had to be made from 6 mm aluminum material all over again, as the original ones still serve somewhere in West Africa. Directly from the 3D model, spherical pans were machined to fit the pedals on the levers.

Similarly, so-called “cobras” of engine suction and a whole bunch of other little things have been rebuilt and manufactured. Michelin XS 14.00-20 tires, which were made with five pairs, will definitely take on the new parts.


The Tatra T 815 6×6 VE with the starting number 635 is also interesting for the eighties and above all ABC magazine readers. It also served as a model for the top-quality paper model made by the architect Richard Vyškovský. The 1:32 racing truck had wheels on the swinging arms and copied perfectly the terrain that was passing over.
The sister car with the starting number 634, however, was a model for the 1:48 scale Monti System, which is still available on Vista.
May 11th, 2017
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