After a chaotic début in January, P-Rally hopes to have a stronger sophomore Dakar Classic in 2025. The team unveiled their programme for the upcoming Dakar at Automechanika in Frankfurt, where they stated their plans to field the Porsche 924 once more.
The Porsche 924 was used only once at the Paris–Dakar Rally in 1981, which Guy Chasseuil and Olivier Gauvain failed to finish after their suspension broke just three days in. Forty-three years later, P-Rally brought two models dubbed the Porsche 924 Turbo to the Classic with Tomasz Staniszewski and Łukasz Zoll as drivers.
Both cars were plagued by mechanical problems throughout such as Staniszewski’s engine mount breaking in Stage #3 while electrical failures repeatedly bit at Zoll’s machine. A damaged rear suspension in the sixth leg forced Staniszewski to be towed to the finish by another competitor. By the end, Staniszewski was forty-third overall while Zoll was fifty-fourth outright.
After Dakar, P-Rally went back to the drawing board to figure out their 2025 gameplan. They unveiled their new 1985 Porsche 924 at Automechanika, which uses a 2.5-litre engine without a turbo as opposed to the two-litre turbo motor of its predecessor. The roll cage has been pushed back by ten centimetres to improve the centre of gravity.
The cooling system was also completely rebuilt with what Staniszewski called “the largest possible radiator, with special cutouts beneath it and special ducts.” Two additional fans were also installed to improve air quality. With such an emphasis on driver comfort, cooling aftermarket vendor NRF became a cotitle sponsor for the team and dubbed them NRF DEXT P-Rally Team, joined by Diverse Extreme Team.
“The role of the co-driver during the rally is extremely important, which is why we designed our cockpit to make their work as efficient as possible,” explained Staniszewski.
Staniszewski is the founder of the Enduro Rally and P-Series Rally races in Poland, and he had 2021 FIA Trophy for Historic Regularity Rallies champion Stanisław Postawka as his navigator at the 2024 Classic. Zoll is a rallycross driver who had brother and motocycle rider Michał Zoll by his side, though both plan to run the main Dakar Rally in an SSV instead of the Classic.
The 2025 Dakar Classic runs concurrent with the Dakar Rally on 3–17 January.
