Renault Trucks Take On The Silk Road

27th January 2005

In Epic 20,000 Kilometre Driving Challenge

Renault Trucks is to follow in the footsteps of Marco Polo by setting its trucks the challenge of taking on the legendary tracks of the Silk Road, famous for being one of the most significant trade routes in history.

On 2 April, 2005, a caravan of Renault Trucks will set off to take on the challenging terrain between the two silk capitals, Lyon and Peking, aiming for a June arrival date.  

Eight teams of Renault employees will take the controls of the six Renault Kerax and two Renault Sherpa trucks, in what will be an exceptional technical challenge and a unique human adventure.  Covering an incredible 12,500 miles (20,000 kilometres) through Europe, Turkey, Iran, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan and China, including Mongolia, Silk Road 2005 will be an exciting real-life demonstration and test of the robustness and sheer endurance of the Renault Kerax.  

The expedition will be the first time that Renault trucks have covered such a distance and areas as harsh as the famous Gobi desert and the Taklamakan desert, which means “he who goes in, will not come out”.

Of note recently, twenty-one Renault Kerax were used as support vehicles on this year’s Dakar Rally.  The same vehicles also competed in the T4 category of the two-week Barcelona to Dakar challenge which finished on January 16th.

Fleishman-Hillard has been appointed to support the Silk Road Project, however, for specific information on Renault Trucks, contact Penny Randall at Renault Trucks UK Ltd. on 01582 479 619.

Background

Silk Road 2005 will confirm the position of Renault Trucks as a major international player in the world of heavy vehicles.

Renault Trucks’ relationship with China goes back to 1959 – when its trucks were manufactured under the Berliet banner.  In 1965, 11,250 trucks were delivered to China and a manufacturing licence contract for four vehicles was signed.  In 2002 Renault Trucks signed an engine technology transfer contract with the Dongfeng Motors group and laid down the foundations of a future partnership to produce trucks together locally. In January 2004, the signature of a Joint Venture project solidified the merger of these two companies. At the beginning of 2004, Renault Trucks created the commercial subsidiary Renault Trucks China with a view to establishing its brand in China and to eventually becoming a key market player.

Silk Road Background

Throughout history, the Silk Road has involved a custom of caravanners offering a piece of Lyonnais silk to the Mayors of the capital cities through which they passed.  Marco Polo (1254-1324), is probably the most famous Westerner to travel on the Silk Road. His journey through Asia lasted 24 years.

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