Vaidotas Žala will run his second Dakar Rally in a truck next January. This time, he will do so as NØRDIS Team after picking up sponsorship from the air conditioning manufacturer.

NØRDIS is one of the most prominent HVAC makers in Europe, offering services such as installing ACs, heat pumps, and variable refrigerant flow (VRF) systems. Headquartered in Poland, it operates in multiple countries including the Baltics, Scandinavia, Germany, and as eastward as Moldova and Ukraine and westward as France and Iceland. Žala’s native Lithuania has two NØRDIS clients in Kaunas.

Žala has raced the Dakar Rally since 2016, almost exclusively in a car. For his tenth Dakar in 2025, he opted to try out truck driving.

Competing under the Skuba Team de Rooy FPT banner, he was consistent en route to a fifth in class. While set back by mechanical issues in Stage 5, Žala ran as high as second in Stages 3 and 7; he also initially finished second on the eighth leg but was penalized for jumping the start.

For 2026, he will once again be in an IVECO PowerStar from Team de Rooy. It is a brand new truck with multiple upgrades from the 2025 model. Inside is a new manual gear mechanism that consists of two levers (one for high gera and the other for low) and a better digital dashboard. It also has a redesigned steering damper system that should withstand larger bumps better. The mounts for the three spare tires is also different.

On the outside, the truck features a redesigned front that improves airflow by 30%. The engine cover is now made from carbon fiber as well to reduce weight.

Many of the upgrades will also be present on de Rooy’s other PowerStars like Aleš Loprais‘.

Featured image credit: Vaidotas Žala