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Jenifer O'Brien
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DISCOVERY DRIVES CAMEL TROPHY - TOUGH LAND ROVER 4X4S CHOSEN FOR SEVENTEENTH CONSECUTIVE YEAR
The world leader in four-wheel drive vehicles and British automotive technology, Land Rover proudly celebrates its seventeenth year of involvement with the world's toughest 4x4 endurance event. The Land Rover Discovery Tdi has been chosen as the official vehicle of the 1997 Camel Trophy Adventure, to be held in May in Mongolia.
"Since 1981, Camel Trophy has been the ultimate test of Land Rover's legendary four-wheel drive capabilities, and every year, the vehicles have more than proven themselves against the rigorous demands of the event," said Charles R. Hughes, president, Land Rover North America, Inc. "Even more impressive is the fact that the vehicles used on Camel Trophy are standard production line units, quite similar to those you can buy at Land Rover retailers here in the U.S. Discovery's versatility and rugged design allow it to perform as well in routine daily driving tasks as in the toughest environments on earth."
Several Land Rover models have been used on Camel Trophy, often in their first year of production. Introduced to the Camel Trophy in 1981, Range Rover was the only vehicle thought to be tough enough to survive the 1,000-mile journey through the jungles of Sumatra. In Papua New Guinea, the location of Camel Trophy '82, Range Rover once again proved itself, tackling the narrow and remote trails from Mont Hagen to Madang. In 1983, the event ventured into Africa and the country of Zaire, where the Series III Land Rover 88 made its first and only Camel Trophy appearance. During the 1,000-mile trek from Kinshasa to Kisangani, the 88 was subjected to knee-deep mud, desert sand and temperatures that reached a searing 113 degrees Fahrenheit.
Defender 110s attempted to conquer the Transamazonica Highway in 1984, but the rainy season rendered the original route impractical. Even the alternate trail halted the entire convoy three times as teams were forced to build bridges over swollen rivers. The Land Rover Defender 90 took up the challenge in 1985 and 1986 when the event was held in Borneo and Australia, respectively. In contrast to the jungle-covered mountains of Borneo, where an improvised helicopter airlift of the vehicles was the only means of continuing the event, Australia proved to be the longest and fastest in the event's history, covering 2,000 miles in just 13 days.
Across the Indian Ocean in Madagascar, fourteen countries entered teams for 1987's 1,400-mile traverse of the island in Range Rover turbo diesels. In 1988, Land Rover's 40th anniversary, and 1989, Camel Trophy's 10th year, Defender 110s returned to be driven 1,300 miles across the formidable mountains and jungles of Sulawesi and then toil slowly through seemingly endless mud in the Amazon. Camel Trophy moved into its second decade in 1990, trading the familiar jungle backdrop for the magnificent, yet sometimes barren, setting of Lake Baikal and the forests of Eastern Siberia. The new Land Rover Discovery, only six months old when put to the test, made its debut here in a three-door turbo-diesel version, and as expected, proved itself worthy of the Land Rover name.
"The Discovery was an unrivaled success on Camel Trophy Baikal-USSR '90," commented Richard Fox, promotions and special events manager of Land Rover. "Having no dealer support in Russia, we took 10 tons of spares with us. Ninety-seven percent of those spares returned untouched."
The five-door Land Rover Discovery Tdi made its Camel Trophy debut in 1991, conquering Tanzania and Burundi, and has been the vehicle of choice for Camel Trophy ever since, leading convoys through Guyana; around the state of Sabah, Malaysia; across the South American trio of Argentina, Paraguay and Chile; into the Central American Mundo Maya countries of Belize, Mexico, Guatemala, Honduras and El Salvador; and east to west across Kalimantan, Indonesia.
Camel Trophy is sponsored by Worldwide Brands, Inc., marketer of Camel Trophy adventure gear and clothing and by Land Rover, manufacturer of premium British four- wheel drive vehicles. Land Rover North America, Inc., imports vehicles manufactured by Land Rover in Solihull, England. Land Rover is a member of the Rover Group of Companies, a wholly owned subsidiary of BMW AG.
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12/27/96