Tan (left) and Wee at the handover ceremony.
KUALA LUMPUR: Edaran Tan Chong Motor Sdn Bhd (ETCM) has once again returned to the off-roading race scene with its participation in the gruelling Rainforest Challenge (RFC) 2016 with the Nissan Navara as the official car.
ETCM is providing three Navara unitrs with YD25DDTi engine that produces a maximum power output of 163PS and torque of 403Nm. Two of the three units are the 2.5L SE with seven-speed automatic transmission and one 2.5L SE with six-speed manual transmission.
The vehicles are kept standard as possible and only fitted with additional equipment as bull bars, halogen spot lights, winch, protection bars, recovery kit, extreme tyres, suspension and snorkel.
“The Navara is highly rated for its toughness, off-road capabilities and engine performance across the world that requires the ability to weather the drenching rain, mud, slippery slopes, deep ruts, gullies, flooded rivers, and landslides,” said ETCM executive director Tan Keng Meng at the handover ceremony of the vehicles to the Rainforest Challenge team.
The special 20th edition RFC 2016 will be held from Nov 24 to Dec 5, starting with contestants’ registration on Nov 24, and a media event on Nov 25 in Publika Shopping Gallery, Kuala Lumpur.
This will then be followed by technical checks and flag off session at Dataran Merdeka on the Nov 26. RFC 2016 will proceed to Pahang, starting off in Kuantan for the opening Prologue Special Stages on the Nov 27 which furthers into a nine-day hard-core adventure.
Rated among the top 10 toughest motor races in the world, Malaysia hosts the 4X4 off-road racing finale event of RFC Global Series with participation from over 30 nations.
“With the collaboration of ETCM, this event aims to live the passion of 4X4 around the world as well as to bring out the spirit of adventure and teamwork,” said RFC founder and event director Luis J.A. Wee.
“This is also in line to promote the tourism industry, where we will highlight on Visit Pahang Year 2017.
Launched in November last year, the 12th-generation Navara comes from a long line of Nissan pickup heritage spanning over 80 years, with 4 million pick-up owners in 180 countries around the world.
In addition, the Navara had recently won in the Best Pick-Up Truck category at the inaugural CarSifu Editors’ Choice Awards organised by Star Media Group.
Keyword: Nissan Navara is Rainforest Challenge official car - again