Team Land Cruiser Toyota Auto Body Driver Akira Miura
Challenging Dakar Rally as He Continues to Think of His Driving.
Team Land Cruiser Toyota Auto Body is a team that continues to challenge the Dakar Rally with Toyota Land Cruisers produced in-house at Toyota Auto Body. Akira Miura, a full-time employee of the company and the driver of the car competing in the Rally, looks back on his journey leading up to the world’s most grueling rally.
“The Paris-Dakar Rally”, has been long contested across the African continent; with various start and finish points, the rally has relocated to South America from 2009 and to Saudi Arabia since 2020. Though renamed “The Dakar Rally”, it remains renowned as the world's most grueling rally raid, covering approximately 10,000 kilometers over two weeks annually during the end to the beginning of the year.
Akira Miura profile
A big motorsport fan since childhood, he learnt during his job search that Toyota Auto Body competed in the Paris-Dakar Rally and employed their own employee as navigators.
After joining the company in 2005, he applied for an internal recruitment and transferred to the team as a candidate in May 2006. In 2007, he made his debut as a navigator in the Paris-Dakar Rally, which was the last edition to cross the African continent, racing from Lisbon to Dakar.
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The 'first victory' he wanted to run away from
The vehicle Miura currently drives in the Dakar Rally is the Toyota Land Cruiser. Team Land Cruiser Toyota Auto Body (then known as Toyota Team Araco) began competing originally in 1995 with the Land Cruiser 80. From 1999, its successor model, the Land Cruiser 100 was introduced. When the event moved to South America in 2009, the car was switched to the Land Cruiser 200, and from 2023 onward, the latest Land Cruiser 300; continuing their challenge with Land Cruisers across generations.
"I took the open recruitment exam in my first year at the company and was transferred straight into the team in my second year. That essentially meant I had no prior professional experience. A student suddenly joining a professional team, where most staff were professional contracted drivers. I didn't even grasp the meaning of 'doing a job'. It wasn't a language barrier; I genuinely didn't understand what anyone was talking about or what was even expected of me. You realize that you are the only person in the room that is totally lost in conversation or notions. I always held that fear of being lost and alone."
The rally, is not just about the driver; a navigator who sits in the passenger seat must also play crucial part. While driving, the navigator read the roadbook, giving the driver instructions on the route and driving. When the vehicle gets stuck, the driver and the navigator work together on emergency repairs to continue the rally.
When asked which Dakar Rally was the toughest for him, Miura, who has competed for many years, recalls his debut year as a navigator.
"It's actually not a story I’m proud of, but before I knew it, the event was upon us. I kept thinking 'tomorrow, I’ll do better’ – and then we'd reached the finish. Those two weeks felt neither long nor short. I just had this sense that the rally was already over before I knew it. But we'd won, you see."
"The one thing I was absolutely certain of was that this team was made up of true professionals. There were only about 20 to 30 members back then, but every single one did their job meticulously. I knew that it didn’t have to be me sitting in that navigator's seat, we still would have won. Knowing I'd contributed absolutely nothing, yet being asked 'How did it feel to win?', and having to answer... I hated it, I absolutely hated it...I developed an aversion to something I loved, unlike anything I'd ever felt before. All I could think was, 'I just want to get out of here as quickly as possible.'"
"But then I realized that if I ran away from something I loved, I'd never be able to try anything again. I came to the conclusion that I had no choice but to build my skills here. So, in a way, that was the starting line for me."
Miura was Toyota Auto Body's sixth employee navigator. He stepped down from navigating in 2010, the year after the Land Cruiser 200's debut rally.
He then returned as a navigator in 2013 while handling corporate public relations duties. Furthermore, in 2015, he transitioned to driver while remaining an employee, becoming Toyota Auto Body's first ever employee driver.
"To be honest, when I joined the company, I never dreamed I'd become a driver. But when I was a navigator, and during the interview I was often asked that if I always wanted to be a driver, am I happy to be where I am? And it got me thinking. Well, there’s a point. And around that time, coincidentally, the company was approaching its 70th anniversary, and an opportunity arose to propose new activities or challenges. It was merely a chance. I raised my hand that I wanted to become a driver, and somehow things just fell into place."
The Late-Blooming Driver's Weapon:
'Just Always Think', and Building Confidence
"When I was first given the chance to challenge as a driver, I was incredibly pumped. But the pressure was immense. At the start of that first stage, my legs were shaking like a leaf when I was stepping on the clutch. I was worrying whether I will last until the end."
"It was my navigator Laurent (the late Laurent Lichtleuchter) who said, 'Nothing ever goes perfectly from the start. You've trained hard to get here and now that you’re finally here, but you can only prepare for the Dakar Rally here at the Dakar Rally. With every stage you complete, you'll make leaps forward that others won't see. So, focus on that and drive.' I was so grateful he really supported me."
When one imagines the Dakar Rally, it conjures images of crossing the dunes. As you climb a sandy hill rising before you like a wall of skyscraper, the sky is all you can see. You have no idea what lies beyond that dune. Like jumping off a cliff, there could be nothing. Yet if you ease off the accelerator there, the sand will catch your wheels and you'll get stuck. You must keep the throttle wide open right up to the point where you launch forward with speed. Achieving that kind of driving is no easy feat.
When asked what does it take to be a Dakar driver? Miura answers
"Ultimately, you just have to believe you can do it. I drive knowing that pushing too hard could kill me, but I think through every possible scenario right up to the limit and proceed with the conviction that I can handle it."
"Take the dunes, for instance. You can't see what lies ahead. Even when you don’t know what lies ahead, you just continue to keep thinking. Not just during the rally, but in everything. I reckon all top drivers are the same."
One of the toughest aspects of rally raids is getting “lost” (losing sight of the set course). No matter how fast you can drive, if you lose the course and end up wandering aimlessly, you won't get results.
"Having navigated myself, we try to navigate together as much as possible."
"Even if everyone else gets lost, we can work out the navigation together, so I believe our ability to get back on track quickly is something we can use as a strength."
“I just keep thinking and thinking, endlessly. When you hit one of those tricky sections and start wavering, it can cost you everything. So sometimes you focus on navigation before such sections even when you risk losing time, and I'm constantly weighing up which approach to take. That's why I've rarely felt a stage was too long. When you have so much to think about, it always seems to finish in a flash. It's just think, think, think, then the next thing, the next thing, the next thing...”
What Dakar Rally mean to Miura
"People say it's brutal, but for me it's the happiest two weeks of the year. I consider it a joy to be able to think solely about driving the car."
"I compete every year hoping the next one will be my best Dakar yet. Among those, the happiest moment so far was probably the 2022, the Land Cruiser 200's final run. I made my driving debut in a Land Cruiser 200 back in 2015, and the car compensated for my lack of skill. I truly experienced first-hand just how incredible the Land Cruiser was, and I felt immense gratitude."
"So, for that final run, I drove with the feeling that I wanted to show the Land Cruiser 200's full potential. I kept thinking about letting the car run exactly as it wanted to run, and I was able to drive with such a positive feeling. That year was really enjoyable."
This year, in 2022, the Land Cruiser 200 driven by Miura and Lichtleuchter secured a class victory, truly ending on a high note.
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The common ground between rally and G-SHOCK:
"The essence remains unchanged"
Since returning in 2013, Miura has competed in the Dakar Rally every year. He has experienced the rallies in Africa, South America, and Saudi Arabia. Some say that the current Dakar Rally is not the true Paris-Dakar. What are his thoughts on this recent evolution of the Dakar Rally?
"I understand the sentiment behind that. I feel the motorsport aspect has grown more prominent than the adventurous elements of the past, and I get why some people feel it's not what they sought. But on the other hand, things that endure over time inevitably change form while preserving their essence. Whether it's products or brands, I think that’s how it is, isn't it? Physically and mentally, making choices in extreme situations – maybe where we aim may change just slightly, but the essence remains the same. Overall, I think that it really hasn’t changed."
“In terms of essence, I feel G-SHOCK also pursues the ultimate. Whether it's cars or driving, we still seek the ultimate, but it's never easily attained. Yet that frustration of falling short becomes the energy for the next step, leading to evolution in things and ways we think. I believe it’s same with G-SHOCK.”
“Regarding G-SHOCK, naturally it's not always perfect for me; I've shared with the team at Casio of things I felt could be improved. But they do have their non-negotiables – they won't compromise on everything. That's precisely why they're so trustworthy. Having non-negotiables means there's a real soul and conviction behind the product. It's the same in rallying; no matter how much the company says no, there are things you simply won't compromise on. In that sense, there's a real camaraderie, a feeling of being comrades-in-arms, sharing the same ambitions.”
This new collaboration model with TLC is finished with night-time driving as its concept.
"The image of a desert at night inevitably conjures 'fear'. We actually drive with the notion of crossing the dunes before sunset. It's just so dark. All we have are our headlights. We see lights because it is a reflection of the lights that are emitted. When there's nothing to reflect, you're completely blacked out when you cross the dune."
"Even as you push through that invisible stretch, your mind keeps working. But with nothing to focus on, it becomes purely a gamble. So, in that moment, your heart does race a bit. Still, overcoming that kind of crisis builds real confidence. You’re scared and you hate it, but you also know it is making you stronger.”
"This collaboration model themed around night driving takes its motif from the tools we actually use during the rally, installed inside our car. So, it really evokes the Dakar Rally feeling. I think it's a design that conjures up the scenery we drive through in the Dakar Rally, especially during the night. I’m not saying this as a flattery, but out of all the collaboration models over the years, this one is my absolute favorite."
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