For the second year running, Cooper Tires will be supplying Discoverer STT tyres for the Toyota Land Cruiser KXR driven by Xavier Foj.

The Toyota Cooper Tires Team, led by driver Xavier Foj, will once again be demonstrating that a standard vehicle and tyres are capable of doing battle with prototypes and tyres specifically made for competing in a rally as tough as the Dakar.

To achieve this, the Toyota Cooper Tires Team has conducted an intense programme of work which has intensified in the last few weeks. Xavier Foj, together with Cooper Tire technicians, has recently carried out some exhaustive tests in southern Morocco, enabling them to set up the Toyota KXR, the tyres and shock absorbers ready for the event.

Xavier Foj is the most experienced Spanish driver in the Dakar, competing in the event since 1991. He explains the versatility of Cooper Discoverer STT tyres, "With a little shaving off of the height of the lugs, we will prevent the wheel track from scraping the surface of the dunes a little less and we can optimise the engine power a little more but nevertheless, the main quality of these tyres is their tremendous versatility. I can lower the pressure to 0.6 bar without fear of the tyre coming off its rim and can even cover the odd section of track or link to another area of sand without the need to inflate again. The Discoverer STT tyres are outstanding due to their reliability and great capacity for adapting to any type of terrain, which is fundamental in a rally such as the Dakar where, in one single special stage, you can drive on very different surfaces. Last year, they definitely played an essential part in us obtaining second place in the T2 group and I hope that this year, with the small improvements we have made, they will help us go even higher".

Foj is accompanied by navigator, Argentinean Pablo Jaton who has been with the team since 2006. He is an expert in the terrain that the team will encounter during the Dakar.

Apart from the competing Toyota Land Cruiser KXR, the team will have another support vehicle, which will carry a 4x4 specialist from Cooper Tire Spain, a T4 truck in the rapid assistance race on the course and a T5 mobile workshop with support and parts.