TOYOTA GAZOO Racing W2RC (TGR W2RC) will kick off its FIA World Rally-Raid Championship (W2RC) title defence with updated crews and all-new, stronger DKR GR HiLux – with bodywork designed by Toyota Design Australia – for the 2026 Dakar Rally.

TGR W2RC has won four consecutive manufacturers’ World Championships, and three driver’s World Championship titles, most recently this year with Lucas Moraes. This success emphasises the strength of the DKR GR HiLux vehicles – based on the iconic Toyota HiLux pick-up – and the performance of its drivers, navigators and team members.

The 2026 season begins with the legendary Dakar Rally, held on 3-17 January in Saudi Arabia, where TGR W2RC aims to challenge for its fourth victory following wins in 2019, 2022 and 2023.

To tackle a fiercely competitive field of multiple manufacturers, TGR W2RC has refreshed its line-up and unveiled the all-new DKR GR HiLux, created through a collaboration between Toyota Design Australia at the Centre of Excellence in Altona, Victoria, and the race team overseas.

Toyota Australia Vice President Sales, Marketing and Franchise Operations Sean Hanley said the styling work done by Toyota Design Australia on the new DKR GR HiLux showcased the ingenuity and expertise available in our local market.

“The all-new DKR GR Hilux represents the very best of Toyota’s engineering and determination to push boundaries,” Mr Hanley said. “And  the bodywork was designed right here in Melbourne by Toyota Design Australia.

“We can’t wait to see our team take on the world’s toughest rally and showcase what Toyota stands for – quality, durability and reliability.”

The Australian connection to the all-new DKR GR HiLux doesn’t stop at its design, with New South Wales-born Toby Price making his TGR W2RC debut in January’s Dakar Rally.

Price is a two-time winner of the Dakar Rally in the Motorcycles category (2016, 2019) and competed on four wheels for the first time in 2025 in a privately entered Toyota HiLux. He will compete alongside navigator Armand Monleón, who helped Lucas Moraes win the 2025 drivers’ title for TGR W2RC.

South Africans Henk Lategan and Brett Cummings challenged for the World Championship last season, winning a W2RC event for the first time on their way to third in the drivers’ and navigators’ standings. They will drive the #202 DKR GR HiLux at the Dakar Rally, aiming to go one better than their superb second place in the last edition.

American rising rally-raid star Seth Quintero demonstrated the performance and mindset required during his rookie season with TGR W2RC, earning his first stage win as well as an overall top-10 finish at the 2025 Dakar Rally. In 2026, he will drive the #203 DKR GR HiLux alongside navigator and fellow American Andrew Short.

The three talented and determined crews will have an all-new DKR GR HiLux at their disposal in Saudi Arabia. Developed by Toyota’s partner Overdrive with input from engineers Christian Loriaux and Glyn Hall, the brains behind the outgoing DKR GR HiLux, the car will initially be run by the TGR W2RC team, before it is made available to private teams in the second half of 2026.

It features a new tubular chassis for increased torsional stiffness and reduced weight, as well as improved serviceability, a crucial aspect for events like the Dakar Rally, where fast maintenance can be decisive.

The new DKR GR HiLux also includes a reinforced transmission, developed to handle extreme loads and contribute to a faster and tougher vehicle. It is undergoing a comprehensive testing program to prepare it for the punishing demands of the Dakar Rally, the longest event of the season at 15 days and around 5,000 km of timed stages and 2,500km of liaisons.

The 2026 Dakar Rally starts and finishes in the Red Sea port of Yanbu and features an extensive loop through challenging desert terrain and sand dunes across central Saudi Arabia, with only one rest day planned, in the capital Riyadh. The rally includes two marathon stages; back-to-back stages over two days with no external assistance or support, meaning crews sleep alongside their vehicles in standard-issue tents and subsist on ration packs for meals.

The Dakar Rally kicks off a five-event 2026 W2RC season which features further events in Portugal (12-22 March), Argentina (24-29 May), Morocco (28 September – 3 October) and Abu Dhabi (22-27 November).