Jalopnik asserts the modded MINIs the X-Raid Team used to win at Dakar are not Minis. It argues they are X-Raids:
What Mini calls a Countryman is actually a custom tube-frame special built by two German companies: X-Raid and Heggemann Autosport. Heggemann makes the tube-frame chassis and X-Raid fills in everything else. The engine is a 3.0 liter BMW diesel straight six, an engine you will not find in any Mini showroom anywhere in the world. The clutch and brakes are from AP Racing and the differential comes from Xtrac. None of this stuff is secret — Car and Driver gave a full breakdown of these amazing offroaders last year and X-Raid details everything on their own website.
