BMW 1-Series Trio ready to tackle Dakar

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While Bimmerphiles are still unwinding from the excitement of the launch of the 1-Series coupe, and the spy shots of the upcoming 1-Series convertible, a team in France has been hard at work building a 1-Series-based Dakar racetruck.

The monster truck called the Trio is the brainchild of Pascal Boutet, and shares about as much in common with the 1-Series hatchback, whose likeness it bares, as a NASCAR stocker shares with the family sedans they're made to resemble. Under the fiberglass body, the unique chassis cradles BMW's stock 3-liter six-cylinder turbodiesel delivering 265 horsepower. The Trio will be hitting its top speed of 185 km/h (115 mph) when it hits the trail in the 2008 Dakar rally.

[Source: Carscoop]