Summary (1998 - Paris - Gao - Dakar)

For the second year in a row, Mitsubishi dominated the Paris-Dakar Rally and filled the first four places of the overall standings with its machines. Mitsubishi also managed to win the marathon classification for production-based vehicles once again at the 20th running of the rally. After many luckless attempts, the Frenchman Jean-Pierre Fontenay succeeded this year in winning the rally for himself, taking victory in his Off-Road Express Mitsubishi Ralliart Pajero. Everyone agreed that this Dakar was one of the toughest anyone could remember, for it led over 10,000 km through the African continent. For 18 days, the victory was fought out over 6,338 km of racing between Paris and Senegal, with the rally caravan crossing France, Spain, Morocco, Mauritania, Mali and Senegal. The worst part was the massive three marathon days, in which the cars, trucks and motorcycles had to cross the toughest terrain in the world and were not allowed to accept any help from their flying technicians. From the start, as the rally led over relatively short special stages in Europe, it became clear that the Mitsubishis would dominate this year's running of the Dakar. When the rally then crossed the Mediterranean and continued in Morocco, the French team PIAA Mitsubishi with its drivers Bruno Saby and Dominique Serieys demonstrated the full potential of the Pajero and extended its lead over the entire field considerably. Although Saby was put under pressure by his teammates Shinozuka and Fontenay, he kept the lead until the rally met the sand of the Sahara at the southern border of Morocco and the first marathon sections began. Shinozuka and Saby suffered from gearbox problems as they travelled the old trading route between Morocco and Timbuktu. They were on their way to the start of the first marathon section in the town of Zouerat in the heart of the Sahara. On this stretch, Fontenay took the lead, which he did not give up again until the finish. As the motorised competition had to struggle with technical problems, the terrain alone remained the challenger for the Mitsubishis. Near the town of Gao, Shinozuka then dropped back to fourth place after digging himself into the soft dune sand, while Saby and Fontenay, separated by only minutes, fought a thrilling head-to-head race. It was a historic battle and only 10 minutes lay between Saby and Fontenay, while the rest of the field had fallen more than an hour behind. After a sprint of just 18 km across the beaches of the Pink Lake, near Dakar, Fontenay's Pajero shot over the finish ramp first of the whole rally caravan to the applause of thousands of spectators. It was a happy moment for Fontenay and he dedicated the victory to his long-time navigator and friend Bruno Mussmarra. With the victories of the previous year and the outstanding performance at this Dakar, Mitsubishi had once again proven that the Pajero was the king of the desert.

Final standings

Pos.	No.	Driver	Manufacturer	Overall time
1		Fontenay	Mitsubishi Pajero	65.25.58
2		Shinozuka	Mitsubishi Pajero	+ 01.45.44
3		Saby	Mitsubishi Pajero	+ 01.59.01
4		Masuoka	Mitsubshi Challanger	+ 05.55.27
5		Schlesser	Schlesser Original	+ 08.10.39
6		Alliot	Nissan	+ 11.39.43
7		Housieaux	Nissan	+ 13.20.24
8		De Lavergne	Nissan	+ 13.52.15
9		Prieto	Mitsubishi Montero	+ 17.42.50
10		Ten Harkel	Mitsubishi Pajero	+ 23.28.05