You can find the detailed Reels from the Rallye Breslau 2026 on our Instagram channel. There you will find even more insights into the stages, the camp, the repairs and the small moments between mud, service and rally life.
From the prologue straight into the mud hole
The prologue was the first real test for team and truck. For the crew, it was about getting familiar with the Mercedes-Benz 6x6, coordinating communication and roles and checking the vehicle under rally conditions. It started strongly right away: 3rd place in the prologue, 2nd place on the first stage and temporarily 1st place in Stage 2.
After that, the Rallye Breslau quickly showed its true face. On the first race day, the route went through water, mud and a huge hole that became more difficult with every vehicle. Around 20 vehicles had already driven through the passage, and then rain was added on top. An already difficult obstacle turned into a mud hole that even stopped large trucks.
The Mercedes-Benz 6x6 of Team VÖLKEL also got stuck deep in the mud. Shortly afterwards, an 8x8 from another team suffered the same fate. In the end, both vehicles had to be recovered with external help. Moments like these show exactly why the Rallye Breslau has its reputation: when water, mud and several tonnes of vehicle weight come together, power alone is not enough. Then experience, recovery work, teamwork and the calmness to solve the problem properly are what count.
Five real tool moments from the rally camp
From VÖLKEL’s point of view, the most exciting part did not only happen on the stage, but also in the camp. Because that is where it becomes clear whether a tool only looks good or really helps.
At the Rallye Breslau, threading tools were not unpacked for a clean product demo, but because something was broken. Because a thread no longer gripped properly. Because a vehicle had to drive again. Because a neighbouring team needed help at 1 o’clock in the morning.
Here are five situations in which threading tools made the difference.
1. Alternator on the Mercedes-Benz 6x6
After a muddy day, the alternator had to be removed and cleaned thoroughly. The fan was damaged, and one thread had also been completely affected.
The thread was recut using an M16 x 1.5 hexagon die nut. The advantage: a die nut is particularly suitable for making a damaged external thread run cleanly again. After that, the alternator could be reinstalled.
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2. Mudguards on the Mercedes-Benz 6x6 Support Truck
After work on the exhaust system, the mudguards on the Mercedes-Benz 6x6 Support Truck had to be reinstalled. During this, two damaged M8 threads were noticed.
An M8 HexTap S with hexagon drive was used. This was practical in this situation because different driving tools can be used depending on space and accessibility. That is crucial in a rally camp. Not every repair takes place conveniently at eye level.
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3. Exhaust manifold on the Support Truck
Two leaking exhaust manifold gaskets had to be replaced directly in the camp on the Support Truck. During reassembly, the last bolt could no longer be screwed in. The thread was damaged.
Instead of removing the manifold again, an extra-long VÖLKEL tap was used. The length was the decisive point here because the thread had to be reached while the component was still installed. Since it was a blind hole, Form C with right-hand spiral was used. This design helps guide the chips out of the blind hole during cutting.
This is a good example of why it is not only the thread size that matters. Sometimes the correct tool design decides whether a repair can be completed quickly on site or becomes much more time-consuming.
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4. Unimog of a neighbouring team
At around 1 o’clock in the morning, another team needed help. On the oil filter housing of a Unimog, the replacement solution did not match the thread of the oil pressure sensor. So improvisation was needed.
An old bolt was drilled, then an M14 x 1.5 fine thread was cut with a HexTap. After that, the bolt was cut to length, the sensor was screwed in and the solution was mounted back on the vehicle.
The HexTap DS was particularly helpful here because it combines taper tap and finishing tap in one tool. That saves time and reduces effort, especially when a working solution is needed in the camp at night.
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5. VW Iltis from the Media Team
The Media vehicle also had to work reliably. The VW Iltis was used to reach the stages and filming locations. In dusty off-road conditions, regular cleaning of the air filter is simply part of the job.
When opening the air filter housing, a stiff-running nut was noticed. The external thread was recut using a matching hexagon die nut. Small repair, big effect: the nut ran smoothly again, the air filter could be serviced and the Iltis was ready for the next rally day.
In everyday rally life, it is exactly these small things that matter. They seem unspectacular until they hold everything up.
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When service becomes a team effort
The Rallye Breslau 2026 also showed how many people work in the background to make sure a vehicle can even get back to the start. Driver team, service crew, media team and support do not work side by side separately, but toward the same goal: get through, repair, keep going.
The Mercedes-Benz 6x6 Race Truck is naturally the centre of attention when it fights its way through water, mud and forest sections. But directly afterwards, the second stage of the day often begins: cleaning, checking, retightening, repairing, preparing. That is exactly where the VÖLKEL threading tools were used again and again.
Not as show products, but as problem solvers.
What we take away from the Rallye Breslau 2026
The Rallye Breslau showed what threading tools have to achieve in real use. Not on a clean workbench, but in the camp, in the dust, in the mud, at night, under time pressure and with the next stage looming.
Of course, there were also the typical rally moments in between: a cameraman who had to move out of the way a little faster than planned, generators as sleep aids and a beer tap that was briefly declared the most important machine in the camp. Fair enough. After days like these, that is part of it too.
In the end, this is exactly what remains: Rallye Breslau 2026 was tough, dirty and unpredictable. And precisely for that reason, it was a good place to show that tools must not only work in theory, but outside. Where it counts.
