“Two weeks of pure meditation”
En bref
M.L.:
- The Dakar Rally is a true family affair for the Loders. The story began with their father, Josef, owner of a company specializing in modifying vehicles for off-road racing. He took part in the legendary rally in 1982 and 1985, driving one of the fast assistance cars of the official BMW factory team led by Belgian Gaston Rahier, winner of the 1985 Dakar.
- The car was the famous G-Wagon, originally designed by the Austrian manufacturer Puch and later built under license by Mercedes-Benz. For a time, both companies produced the model in parallel before Mercedes-Benz became the sole manufacturer. The two half- brothers chose this iconic car for their first Dakar Classic entry in 2024. A close friend, a retired ex-BMW F1 engineer, helped them in that project. The car was completed rebuilt and modified to 2 door setups, to resemble as closely as possible to the original one!
- The two German brothers, separated by 21 years in age, experienced the adventure of a lifetime, and now they want more. For Maximilian, cars are a central part of his life. He runs Delta 4x4, a company specializing in wheels, tires, and accessories for 4x4 vehicles, originally founded by their father. Through this, he regularly takes part in expeditions and classic races, most recently competing in the Carrera Panamericana. Perfect preparation for Dakar 2026, and likely not his last, as he is already planning to expand the team in the future!
L.L.:
- Unlike his brother Maximilian, Laurence was not born when their father, Josef, competed in his last Dakar in 1985, following a first appearance in 1982. Owner of a company specializing in modifying vehicles for off-road racing, he drove a fast assistance car of the official BMW factory team led by Belgian Gaston Rahier, winner of the 1985 edition. Laurence grew up hearing these stories and describes his connection to motorsport as “a family affair.”
- The car was the famous G-Wagon, originally designed by the Austrian manufacturer Puch and later built under license by Mercedes-Benz. For a time, both companies produced the model in parallel before Mercedes-Benz became the sole manufacturer. The two half- brothers chose this iconic car for their first Dakar Classic entry in 2024. A close friend, a retired ex-BMW F1 engineer, helped them in that project. The car was completed rebuilt and modified to 2 door setups, to resemble as closely as possible to the original one!
- An engineering student, Laurence worked hard to balance his passion for motorsport with his university studies. His discipline allowed him to manage both successfully. Classes resume on January 12, while he will be competing in Stage 8. “But after talking to my professor, who is also a Dakar fan, he immediately understood that you don’t want to miss such a unique opportunity. And luckily, most of the work was already done by our team, so I could still focus on university beforehand!”
Ambition
M.L.: “The Dakar is an incredible experience. It’s two weeks of pure meditation: you don’t have time to think about money, problems, or anything else, you are 100% focused on the race. We truly enjoyed it and doing it together with my brother made it even more special. It took us two years to return and have our own service truck. Now, we plan to create a kind of vintage race team. We’ve bought another race car and are preparing it in 2026, with the goal of entering it with someone else in 2027. As you can see, we’re fully into it! To be honest, our objective is very simple: we just want to cross the finish line. We don’t have big expectations, as finishing safely is already hard enough!”
L.L.: “Since my brother and I always heard the stories of our father, we knew that one day we wanted to drive the Dakar as well. So, we replicated his 1985 Dakar car and are now participating with that car as a tribute to him. Our first experience, in 2024, was amazing. My strongest memories are how exhausted I was every single day, and how I kept hoping that our car would survive the next stage. Every morning you wake up and think, ‘please, let the car make it through today.’ It’s a completely different world and feeling, especially being able to share this passion with my brother and enjoy that time together. After experiencing the Dakar once, you simply don’t want to miss it anymore. Our goal? Finishing safely, having a lot of fun, and enjoying the adventure with our entire team – that’s what matters most to me.”
