Zarooq Motors Unveils Sand Racer

The slick looking off-roader has been designed specifically keeping the UAE's terrain in mind but can legally be driven on-road as well. The car weighs just 950Kg and features a 3.51-litre V6 engine that delivers between 300bhp and 500bhp.

"The UAE are famous for amazing deserts, extreme safari motorsport and dune racing, but the performance of US and Japanese cars just wasn't good enough. So we decided to assemble a team to design and build the car we have all dreamed about, specifically made to race in the desert", says Director of Zarooq, Mohammed Al Qadi.

The car features an air conditioned closed body-shell designed by Anthony Jannarelly, the man behind the design of the Lykan Hypersport hypercar. The car is equal parts sporty and equal parts aggressive to look at thanks to its aerodynamic coupe-like profile, tall stance, and chunky off-road tyres. The car will be manufactured in the UAE in partnership with Jannarelly and Julliot Special. Since it's first and foremost intended to be a proper dune-basher, it has been fitted with a high performance chassis developed with help from Campos Racing GP2. The engine is mounted in the rear-centre of the car to help tackle the dunes and suspension travel to the tune of 45-cm will help maintain the cars balance while jumping. For the sake of weight saving purposes, the interiors are made of carbon fibre.

Mohammed Al Qadi also stated, "There's a huge demand today for a potent sand racer, tailored for our desert. You have big 4x4s which are bulky and you have buggies that are open and not the safest or most practical, or you have recreational ATVs (all-terrain vehicles) that are not initially made for racing. We have everything we need in the UAE to build the ultimate high performance desert racing car and make it an international success."

In addition to the creation of a sand-dune-centric off-roader, Zarooq is also in the process of laying out its own circuit called 'Dubai Off-roading Circuit' which will offer people the chance to try the Zarooq Sand Racer in a state-of-the-art facility designed to bring out its best. The circuit will offer 'arrive-and-drive' as well as corporate packages and may also feature an off-road driving school.