Dacia Sandriders offensive in Argentina: The manufacturer from Mioveni defends its world supremacy in Desafío Ruta 40

After an absolutely brilliant start to the season, the Dacia Sandriders team is moving its headquarters to South America. The Romanian manufacturer has officially confirmed its participation in Desafío Ruta 40, the third round of the 2026 World Rally-Raid Championship (W2RC). With resounding victories already in the Dakar Rally and the Rally of Portugal, the team leaves for Argentina as the undisputed leader, with one clear objective: victory.

A 3.000-kilometer adventure along the Andes Mountains

Scheduled for May 24-29, 2026, this year’s competition promises to be the most spectacular in a decade. The rally’s name is inspired by the famous National Highway 40 (Ruta 40), the longest thoroughfare in Argentina, which winds parallel to the majestic Andes mountain range.

The drivers will have a total route of 2,993 kilometers ahead of them, of which 1,726 kilometers are special stages, against the clock. The rally structure includes 5 fire stages, with the central start and finish point being the city of San Juan, but the route will extend for the first time in many years to the province of Mendoza and the town of San Rafael.

The crews will be put to the test on extremely diverse terrain: from dry riverbeds and rocky mountain roads, to the famous and deceptive sand dunes of El Nihuil, all at altitudes that will sometimes exceed 3,000 meters.

Three heavy "assaults": The Dacia Sandriders line of pilots

To ensure its dominance on Argentine soil, Dacia is lining up three world-class factory crews at the start, the cars being powered by sustainable synthetic fuel developed by Aramco:

• Sébastien Loeb & Édouard Boulanger (No. 219): The Frenchman comes to Argentina as the leader of the world drivers' standings, boosted by the magnificent victory recently achieved in Portugal.
• Nasser Al-Attiyah & Fabian Lurquin (No. 299): The recent winners of the 2026 Dakar Rally are well-versed in the South American terrain. Al-Attiyah is the overall winner of the previous Desafío Ruta 40 editions and is considered the main favorite.
• Lucas Moraes & Dennis Zenz (No. 223): Brazilian Moraes is playing almost “at home” on his native continent. Coming off a solid 4th place in Portugal, this crew is perfectly capable of pulling off a surprise and fighting for the ultimate podium.

Dacia dominates the world hierarchy

Before the start in San Juan, the championship equation looks excellent for the Mioveni manufacturer. In the manufacturers' standings, Dacia Sandriders has already broken away in a breakaway that is giving big headaches to its historical rivals from Toyota and Ford.

Position	Manufacturer / Constructor	Points Accumulated
1	Dacia Sandriders	250
2	Toyota	167
3	Ford	129

With a comfortable 83-point lead over Toyota, Dacia cannot afford to relax. The Japanese are sending a veritable "army" of Hilux models to Argentina to block the Romanian advance, while Ford is counting on a strong line-up that includes the legendary Carlos Sainz.

The engines are ready to be revved to the max in Mendoza and San Juan, and motorsport fans in Romania will have all eyes on the technical and sporting effort in South America, where Dacia Sandriders is writing its history in world motorsport with golden letters.