• Rebelle Rally lasts a week, with two-person women-only teams covering 2,000 km
  • Navara's "tough and smart" credentials put to the ultimate test
  • Unique-in-segment five-link rear suspension means refined ride in dunes and dirt tracks

PARIS, France – Nissan's award-winning Navara is taking a trans-Atlantic trip to the spiritual home of the pickup truck later this month. There it will do battle in a grueling off-road event that will push its "tough and smart" credentials to the limit.

The rugged Navara – current holder of the prestigious International Pickup Award – is taking part in the Rebelle Rally. An annual week-long stage-race, it's a 2,000-km test of driving and navigation skill through the stunning deserts of California and Nevada in the U.S.

Designed for production vehicles rather than rally-prepared racers, the event is open to women-only teams of two and attracts competitors from across the globe. It incorporates long-distance off-road driving and traditional navigation, using only topographic maps and a compass to find hidden checkpoints. GPS devices including smartphones are strictly forbidden, and time limits force competitors to make swift decisions.

The Rebelle Rally runs from October 12-21, and each day's route remains secret until a few hours before the start. Now in its second year, 40 teams representing 12 countries are taking part, using vehicles from a variety of manufacturers.

Two Nissan employees from Nissan France – Karen Rayrolles and Florence Pham, who work in the Communications and Marketing teams respectively – are driving a Navara in the event and are looking forward to a unique challenge.

"The Navara's tough and smart character makes it the perfect choice for the Rebelle Rally," said Rayrolles. We're thrilled to be taking part in this amazing event. Anyone can track our progress via the live link at rebellerally.com or at nissan.fr."

Rayrolles and Pham are using a Navara Double Cab model and competing for the Bone Stock Award. This category is open to teams using standard vehicles where the only modification is a set of off-road tires.

The Double Cab will be perfectly at home on the sand dunes and dirt tracks of the desert. The epitome of tough and smart, this Navara blends go-anywhere ability with the latest driver assistance technologies. The result is a level of refinement, style, comfort and quality that's on a par with Nissan's acclaimed family of crossovers – the Juke, Qashqai and X-Trail.

The Navara is the latest in a long and highly successful line of rugged Nissan pickups stretching back more than 80 years and 12 generations. Globally Nissan has sold more than 14 million pickups since 1934. The Navara is not sold in North America, where Nissan's three-strong pickup range is the Frontier, TITAN and Titan XD.

 

Happy Tuesday – one of the best days of the week in our opinion! Not only is today a #RebelleTeamTuesday, but today kicks off our #RebelleTeamWeek where we will be featuring one of our incredible new teams every day!  Teams this incredible cannot be contained on Tuesdays alone. 😉 • Up first on our Team Week is Sedona Blinson (@donacruiser) and Leah Heffelfinger (@leahheffelfinger) of @team.wild.grace, #106! While the name is a bit mysterious and leaves us wanting to learn more, for those who know Sedona and Leah, it sums them up perfectly. Piloting a @nissan Frontier PRO4X in the Rebelle, this dynamic duo is up for a wild ride – with a dash of grace, of course! • Head over to our blog to get the lowdown of their team! bit.ly/SedonaAndLeah #rebellerally #jointheRebelle

A post shared by Rebelle Rally (@rebellerally) on

A team from the U.S. is also competing in the rally. Leah Heffelfinger and Sedona Blinson will drive a Nissan Frontier. Blinson competed in last year's inaugural Rebelle in a Nissan TITAN. Heffelfinger, no stranger to off-roading, is immersing herself in navigation training. Among other things, this involves learning how to plot latitude and longitude points on a map, finding headings with a compass and reading detailed topographic maps. The two have named their Nissan Frontier PRO-4X "Piper" because Piper falls into the "Bone Stock" category of the Rebelle; the only upgrades this Frontier will receive are new off-road tires.

 

 

 

Contact

Richard Yarrow
Manager – Product Communications (Content)
richard.yarrow@nissan.co.uk
Phone: +44 (0)7966 507759

 

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Issued by Nissan