GAZOO Racing has finished building the DKR GR FC Hilux, a hydrogen-powered fuel cell electric rally-raid car that will race in the 2027 Dakar Rally. Saudi driver Dania Akeel will drive it in testing and at the event, where it will run in the Dakar Future Mission 1000 category for experimental vehicles. Toyota says this is its first full-fledged motorsport entry with a hydrogen fuel cell vehicle.
Toyota’s GAZOO Racing has moved its hydrogen Dakar project into a new phase. The DKR GR FC Hilux, a fuel cell electric vehicle (FCEV), is now fully built. Before its competitive debut it is going through a dynamic test programme. The car will run in the Dakar Future Mission 1000 category of the 2027 Dakar Rally, a class set aside for experimental vehicles and new technologies.
The company describes the project as its first full-fledged motorsport entry with a hydrogen-powered FCEV. It is part of Toyota’s Multipath strategy, which explores several alternative powertrains side by side instead of betting on just one. According to Toyota, the aim is to gain knowledge that could help cut tailpipe CO₂ emissions in both motorsport and future road cars.
A familiar chassis with a new powertrain
The fuel cell car is based on the DKR GR Hilux that Toyota already races in rally-raid. It keeps the same tubular frame, safety cell, suspension and brakes. The big change is under the skin. A high-output unit combines two fuel cell stacks into a single system, and the hydrogen is stored in the same high-pressure tanks used in the Toyota Mirai road car. Together the tanks hold 8.4 kg (18.5 lb) of hydrogen.
The car also gets its own e-axle, an IAV Dragoon ECU and a new electronics system. Toyota is trying out natural fibre panels in place of some carbon fibre parts, along with a new high-voltage cooling system. The car runs on TOYO TIRE OPEN COUNTRY tyres.
The manufacturer says the car produces no tailpipe CO₂ while driving. Toyota itself notes that this does not cover the full picture. The hydrogen can be made from various energy sources, including fossil ones, and emissions can also come from building, maintaining and scrapping the vehicle, and from tyre and brake wear.
Who built it
Toyota says development was short and intense. Its European R&D centre near Brussels, Belgium, led the work together with Overdrive Racing, which runs the TOYOTA GAZOO Racing W2RC team and developed the DKR GR Hilux. TOYOTA RACING GmbH in Cologne and Toyota Motor Corporation also took part. Official sponsor Jameel Motorsport and partners DENSO, TOYO TIRE, IAV and PRF support the project.
Dania Akeel takes the wheel
Saudi driver Dania Akeel has driven in rally-raid since 2021. She finished in the top 10 of the T3 class on her first Dakar and won a Dakar stage in the Challenger category in 2025. She has won several stages in the 2025 and 2026 W2RC seasons and took the Challenger class win at the W2RC Abu Dhabi Desert Challenge. She also won the FIA Middle East Baja Cup in 2024 and 2025, both times in a Toyota Hilux entered by Overdrive Racing.
“This is a great opportunity for me to learn how new technologies are brought to life in the automotive world. To witness such a pioneering venture from the driver’s seat is a truly unique experience, which I hold as both a privilege and a pleasure. And to be able to share my feedback as a driver into the development of these technologies is very special.” – Dania Akeel
What it means
Rally-raid is among the toughest settings in motorsport for proving that a new technology is durable. Toyota already races hydrogen-fuelled cars elsewhere, but taking a fuel cell drivetrain to the Dakar puts the technology through far harsher conditions. The company says lessons learned in the Future Mission 1000 category should feed into future road cars and other fuel cell uses.
Facts: Toyota DKR GR FC Hilux
- Powertrain: hydrogen fuel cell electric (two fuel cell stacks combined into one system)
- Hydrogen storage: high-pressure tanks of the Toyota Mirai type, 8.4 kg (18.5 lb) in total
- Drive: dedicated e-axle
- Electronics: IAV Dragoon ECU, new electronics system
- Chassis: tubular frame, safety cell, suspension and brakes shared with the DKR GR Hilux
- Tyres: TOYO TIRE OPEN COUNTRY
- Driver: Dania Akeel
- Debut: 2027 Dakar Rally, Dakar Future Mission 1000 category
The DKR GR FC Hilux is now in dynamic testing ahead of its competitive debut at the 2027 Dakar Rally.
Source: newsroom.toyota.eu