Day 3: 8 Jan

On Jan 8, racers will race a 342 km SS near Pisco, and head southward on a liaison segment before reaching San Juan de Marcona.

On Jan 8, took contestants on a 342 km SS (Special Stage) in the deserts near Pisco before traveling southward on a 203 km liaison to the finish line in Marcona. This day's SS was longer than in Stage 1, impressing on the teams that full-scale racing had finally begun. HINO TEAM SUGAWARA's Car 2 crewed by Teruhito Sugawara and Katsumi Hamura experienced problems with its center differential lock early in the stage so the crew stayed extra cautious for the rest of the day. Starting out of the gate at 19th position, they climbed to 16th by the time they hit CP (checkpoint) 1. They raced the soft sand dunes towards the end of the stage without any problems, finishing at 14th overall and top in the Under 10-litre Class. This brings the truck to a cumulative ranking position of 15th overall and top in the Under 10-litre Class.

Meanwhile, the Yoshimasa Sugawara and Ahito Sakurai duo on Car 1 raced at a careful pace out of the gate. However, they suffered problems with their steering system early in the day which forced them to stop on the course. The crew had to drive their truck off course onto paved road and meet up with their mechanics to have the problem repaired. They arrived at the Marcona bivouac past 11 pm without further problems but, much to their frustration, were forced to retire from the race as they were not able to pass the checkpoints or cross the finish line as dictated by regulation.