Tweaked route, new race director for T5.2 trucks at 2025 Dakar

T5.2 trucks, a subcategory intended for assistance vehicles that provide parts and other service to competing teams, will undergo slight rule changes for the 2025 Dakar Rally. Among these are the introduction of a separate assistant race director focused exclusively on T5.2 as well as route modifications on safety grounds.

The Truck class consists of T5.1 and T5.2, with T5.1 being racing trucks. While T5.2 is exclusively for support trucks, it is included in the final classification alongside T5.1 and drivers and crews must follow the same FIA regulations as those competing in the race. For example, teams in either class will be disqualified from the rally if they receive three stage penalties, though T5.2 trucks are not informed of their disqualification until the end of the race while T5.1 is eliminated immediately.

T5.1 and T5.2 trucks are also generally the same, the latter is limited to a top speed of 125 km/h whereas the former can go up to 135 km/h (a reduction for 2025 from 140 km/h). As such, the FIA permits teams to switch from one subclass to the other given it happens before pre-race administrative checks and scrutineering.

T5.2 crews can help competitors in distress during marathon stages, where teams are otherwise forbidden from assisting; however, they must also complete the stage in order to offer their services in the marathon bivouac. When in the Empty Quarter, all trucks will follow a different route from the other classes, though T5.2 will be allowed to break from it and rejoin everyone else to provide help. This also applies to the 48-hour Chrono Stage, where T5.2 trucks will follow a modified route from their T5.1 counterparts that avoids dunes.

The new assistant race director role will serve “as a point of contact for the crews of these vehicles, but also for their Team managers present at the bivouac.”

Thirteen T5.2 crews took part in the 2024 Dakar Rally. The 2025 edition runs on 3–17 Janaury.