7/4/2024
No.20240704_1

Team Mitsubishi Ralliart Takes on Asia Cross Country Rally 2024 with Four AllNew Triton Rally Cars
Tokyo, July 4, 2024 – Mitsubishi Motors Corporation (hereafter, MitsubishiMotors) has announced that Team Mitsubishi Ralliart, for which the company
provides technical support, will be competing in the Asia Cross Country Rally(hereafter, AXCR) scheduled for August 11 to 17 of this year. The team will becompeting with four all-new Tritons in AXCR 2024, which will be held insouthern and central Thailand.
This will be the third year that Team Mitsubishi Ralliart takes on the challengesof the AXCR with the Triton pickup truck. The first year, it claimed an overall
victory, and the second year, the team switched to a new model and came inthird place overall. In both rallies, the Triton demonstrated a high level ofdurability and exceptional maneuverability and road handling on rough roads.
This year, the Triton's driving performance has been significantly increased,
and the team will be aiming for another overall victory, its first in two years.

Team Mitsubishi Ralliart
AXCR Special Website
https://www.mitsubishi-motors.com/en/brand/ralliart/axcr/Team Mitsubishi Ralliart is owned by Tant Sport (Thailand) and helmed by Hiroshi
Masuoka, a team director from Mitsubishi Motors who claimed two consecutive
victories in the Dakar Rally. Mitsubishi Motors engineers will develop the rally cars andaccompany the team to provide technical support during the competition.
As with last year, the drivers and co-drivers will be Chayapon Yotha (Thailand) andPeerapong Sombutwong (Thailand), who took the overall victory in AXCR 2022, andJapanese duo Katsuhiko Taguchi and Takahiro Yasui, who came in eighth place, thehighest of any team of Japanese drivers, in the AXCR 2023. They will be joined by theteam of Sakchai Hantrakul (Thailand) and Jumpol Doungthip (Thailand), highlyexperienced rally drivers with a deep knowledge of Mitsubishi vehicles, and Mitsubishi
Motors’ test driver Kazuto Koide (Japan), and co-driver Eiji Chiba (Japan), who hasachieved a podium finish in the past AXCR. Together, the team will be aiming to claim
the championship with the T1 prototype, a modified cross-country model, of the allnew Triton.
Reflecting on last year's results, the Triton's driving performance has been greatly
increased to enable it to compete against vehicles with high-displacement engines inhigh-speed stages. A new racing transmission with a high torque capacity has also
been selected to improve both durability and maneuverability. Further, the tread sizehas been increased, and the rear suspension has been switched from rigid/leaf
springs to rigid/4-link coil springs. This will allow the vehicle to absorb major shocks
on rough roads and improve its traction on extremely bumpy road surfaces,significantly enhancing its road handling on rough roads.
From June 21 to 27, Team Mitsubishi Ralliart conducted high-stress endurance testsof the Triton rally cars, envisioning actual rally conditions, on an off-road course near
Khao Yai National Park in Thailand. The reliability and durability of the rally cars'
bodies, chassis, and engines, which acceleration performance has been further
improved, were confirmed by driving roughly 800 kilometers (km) over the course of
the seven-day endurance test, and adjustments were made in preparation for theactual competition.
"Last year, we tried for a second consecutive victory with the all-new Triton, which
had just gone on sale, but we were unable to bring out its full potential, ending inthird place," said Hiroshi Masuoka, team director of Team Mitsubishi Ralliart. "Withthis year's Triton, we have made major improvements primarily to driving
performance and rough road handling, further enhancing our four-vehicle team as
we aim to reclaim our position as champions. This year's drivers will also include
Kazuto Koide, a test driver who I have worked with in developing Mitsubishi vehicles
for over two decades. At Mitsubishi Motors, we leverage our experience in gruelingmotor sports for vehicle development, so I hope to pass on this tradition to the nextgeneration."
Profile of Team Mitsubishi Ralliart
Team Director: Hiroshi Masuoka (Mitsubishi Motors)
Team Principal: Chayut Yangpichit (Tant Sport)
Technical Director: Kopong Amatayakul (Tant Sport)
Technical Support (body, chassis): Noriyoshi Aiba (Mitsubishi Motors)
Technical Support (engine): Tetsuya Makita, Masataka Tsuiki (Mitsubishi Motors)
Drivers and co-drivers:Chayapon Yotha
From: Udon Thani Province, Thailand
Born: August 16, 1987 (36)
Career: Chayapon Yotha competes in numerous rallies and races in Thailand. He led
Team Mitsubishi Ralliart to its first victory when it competed in the AXCR for the first-2-

time in 2022 and took third place in last year's competition.
Co-driver: Peerapong Sombutwong (Thailand)
Katsuhiko Taguchi
From: Okayama Prefecture, Japan
Born: February 7, 1972 (52)
Career: In 2007, Katsuhiko Taguchi won the Rally Japan in Group N. He has also
competed overseas, winning the FIA Asia Pacific Rally Championship (APRC) twice.
Co-driver: Takahiro Yasui (Japan)
Sakchai Hantrakul
From: Chiang Mai, Thailand
Born: November 29, 1962 (61)
Career: Sakchai Hantrakul has over 30 years of rally experience, and he is well-versedwith Mitsubishi vehicles, with a track record that includes driving the Mitsubishi
Pajero in the 1996 Dakar Rally.
Co-driver: Jumpol Doungthip (Thailand)
Kazuto Koide
From: Aichi Prefecture, Japan
Born: June 19, 1979 (45)
Career: Kazuto Koide joined Mitsubishi Motors in April 1998. As a Mitsubishi test
driver, he has experience driving vehicles such as the Pajero and the Lancer Evolution.
He also now serves as a driving instructor for Mitsubishi Motors employees and ademonstration driver at events in Japan and abroad.
Co-driver: Eiji Chiba (Japan)
Triton rally car
Overall length x overall width
Wheelbase
Tread (front/rear)EngineFuel injector
Displacement
Turbocharger
Maximum output
Maximum torque
Exhaust system
Transmission
4WD system
Differential
Front suspension
Rear suspension
Shock absorbers
Bump stops

5,320 mm x 1,995 mm
3,130 mm
1,730 mm
4N16 (intercooled turbocharger)
High-pressure common-rail direct injection diesel
2,439 cc
Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Engine & Turbocharger
150 kW or more
470 Nm or more
HKS AXCR 2024 Competition Model
6-speed sequential transmission
Moty’s gear oil
Full-time 4WD
CUSCO front and rear LSD
Independent double-wishbone with coil springs
Rigid/4-link coil spring
CUSCO adjustable front and rear twin dampers
Hydraulic-3-

Steering
BrakesWheels
Tires
Other features

Rack and pinion with power assist
ENDLESS ventilated discs with monoblock brakecalipers and pads, FORTEC racing brake fluid
WORK aluminum alloy wheels (17-inch x 7J)
Yokohama GEOLANDAR M/T G003 (245/75R17)
Carbon fiber front fenders
Carbon fiber front and rear door panels
Carbon fiber cargo outer panel

Partners (in alphabetical order, current as of July 4, 2024)
Team Mitsubishi Ralliart will compete in AXCR 2024 with the support of the following
partners.
Partners
CARROSSER Co., Ltd.

SupportSupport for development and supply of front &rear suspension and front & rear LSD

CARRY ART LLC

Activity support

ENDLESS ADVANCE Co., Ltd.

Supply of brake calipers, rotors and pads

ENEOS Corporation
Fortec Motorsport Ltd

Supply of engine oil
Supply of racing coolant, brake fluid

HANKYU HANSHIN EXPRESS Co., Ltd. Activity support
HKS Co., Ltd.
Support for development of rally engine
Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Engine &Supply of turbochargers
Turbocharger, Ltd.
Mitsubishi Motors Dealers
Activity support
Association
TPR Co., Ltd.
Supply of piston rings, activity support
TriboJapan Co., Ltd.
Work Co., Ltd.
The Yokohama Rubber Co., Ltd.

Supply of gear oil
Supply of alloy wheels (CRAG T-GRABIC II)
Supply of GEOLANDAR M/T G003 mud terrain
tires

Overview of AXCR 2024
AXCR is the ASEAN region's largest cross-country rally. This year's rally, the 29th in its
history, will begin with a ceremonial start held in Surat Thani, on the coast of the Gulfof Thailand in the south of Thailand, on August 11th. The competition will begin thenext day, on the 12th. The course has been changed since its initial announcement,
and after starting, it will work its way up the border between Thailand and Myanmar,on the Thailand side. It will pass through Hua Hin District, a resort area famous as-4-

being a vacation destination of the Thai royal family. On the 17th, the rally will finish
in Kanchanaburi, located roughly 130 km west of Bangkok. Covering approximately
2,400 km, over 1,000 km of which will be special stages, the course this year isexpected to be even more grueling than ever, with a wide range of terrain such as
mountains, jungle, and river crossings that will demand exceptional road handling,
durability, and, this year in particular, speed.
###About Mitsubishi Motors
Mitsubishi Motors Corporation (TSE:7211) — a member of the Alliance with Renault andNissan — is a global automobile company based in Tokyo, Japan, which has about
28,000 employees and a global footprint with production facilities in Japan and theASEAN region. Mitsubishi Motors has a competitive edge in SUVs, pickup trucks andplug-in hybrid electric vehicles, and appeals to ambitious drivers willing to challenge
convention and embrace innovation. Since the production of our first vehicle morethan a century ago, Mitsubishi Motors has been a leader in electrification — launchedthe i-MiEV, the world’s first mass-produced electric vehicle in 2009, followed by theOutlander PHEV, the world’s first plug-in hybrid electric SUV in 2013. With a target ofincreasing the sales ratio of electrified vehicles to 100% by 2035, Mitsubishi Motors will
deliver models that embody Mitsubishi Motors-ness and contribute to the realizationof a carbon-neutral society.
For more information on Mitsubishi Motors, please visit the company's website athttps://www.mitsubishi-motors.com/en/-5-