In 2020, Tacita Motorcycles made history as the first all-electric motorcycle team to compete at the Dakar Rally. Four years later, the Italian manufacturer will make their return with two Tacita Discanto bikes competing in the Mission 1000 under the Tacita Formula Corsa name.
Their 2020 effort was technically limited to just a special twenty-kilometre route on the final day, though Diego Pederiva and his T-Race Rally bike were still allowed to take the finish as part of the Dakar Experience like those who completed the rally even if they were eliminated from overall contention by stage retirements. The team also followed the rally from beginning to end with their solar-powered trailer dubbed the T-Station.
The Dakar run came after eight years of developing a rally programme that began at the 2012 Merzouga Rally in Morocco, a year after the company’s founding.
“Tacita is an exciting adventure, and not only for the participation in the most difficult competition in the world such as the Dakar, but for the technological challenges that see us as protagonists,” said Tacita CEO Luca Oddo. “Like us, our investors had the courage, the spirit and the foresight to believe in a project that comes from far and that sees the values of sustainability and a better future merged into our brand. Innovation is our silent and discreet companion that accompanies us on this journey and that accompanies anyone riding a Tacita motorcycle.”
The Discanta will be Tacita’s flagship model starting in 2025. Each bike weighs 180 kilograms and features a more balanced weight distribution than the T-Race Rally thanks to a new chassis and battery layout. The battery packs can be replaced with a new set during the scheduled pit stop in a given stage traditionally used for refuelling. All Tacita bikes feature a five-speed gearbox and liquid cooling for the engine. Tacita conducted a test run at Château de Lastours in June as part of the 2024 Dakar Rally presentation.
Besides the Discantas, Tacita Formula Corsa plans to bring their T-Station to the race to recharge them.
Nicolas Chaix serves as team manager. A two-time Dakar stage winner, ran the Sherco factory programme before selling it to the company in 2016, branding it to Sherco Factory Racing.
“We founded Tacita in 2011. Since then, all the commitment and effort have been the tireless engine of continuous research and development that have led to today’s technological results,” commented company president Pierpaolo Rigo and vice president Dinamaria Ollino. “There are many people who have collaborated with us for our project, all with great skills but above all with a great heart and to whom we want to say a big thank you. But what is there today for us is already in the past because together we are already exploring and developing new technologies and new ways to give the strongest emotions to those who love motorcycles, travel and adventure.”
Mission 1000, consisting of vehicles using hydrogen, electric, or hybrid power, follows the Dakar Rally but competes on a 100-kilometre course separate from the main event. Six bikes are entered, including the electric motorcycle of Green Power Race. The quartet of four-wheelers mostly run on hydrogen like KH-7 Epsilon Team‘s MAN truck, Rainbow Truck Team‘s Volkswagen Amarok, and the Japanese HySE-X1.
The 2024 Dakar Rally begins on 5 January.