2023 Rebelle Rally

The 2023 Rebelle Rally witnessed 65 all-women teams competing in a 10-day odyssey across the California/Nevada desert. Among the roster was Team 205, led by veteran Rebelle Rally competitors Rebecca Donaghe and Sedona Blinson piloting an all-new 2024 BMW X2 compact SUV.

The Rebelle Rally is the longest off-road competition in the United States navigating over 1,500 miles of unforgiving California / Nevada desert in unmodified, stock vehicles. Teams must navigate the harsh terrain without GPS, relying on maps, a compass, and a roadbook to collect a series of checkpoints in numerical order.

As part of the rules, no outside help is allowed, making this endurance rally a test of skill and resourcefulness. This year’s event started in Mammoth Lakes, California, and ended in the Imperial Dunes near the Mexican border.

XPEL and BMW Team up for Rebelle Rally 2023

XPEL teamed up with BMW of North America, which entered the event with an all new, completely redesigned BMW X2 in the 2023 Rebelle Rally X-Cross class, consisting of vehicles with two-wheel or all-wheel drive. The rally started days after the 2024 BMW X2 made its world debut, adding to the vehicle’s presentation as it faced off against direct OEM competitors and privateer teams alike.

“This is the first time that we have entered a BMW into this competition, which is extremely demanding not only on the driver and navigator, but also on the vehicle. We are thankful to work with XPEL to help protect the look of our recently premiered X2,” said Andreas Meyer, Vice President of Product Management at BMW of North America.

In the spirit of the Reblle Rally’s competition, getting the BMW X2 ready for the event was done by an all-women team of XPEL installers: Florine Peffer, Morgan Yakiwchuk, and Alexis Maddux. At the BMW port operations in California, the X2’s exterior received several protective films to protect it against the harsh desert environment. STEATH PPF protected the BMW X2’s Frozen Portimao Blue metallic paintwork without disrupting the paint’s unique finish. XPELULTIMATE PLUS PPF protected the X2’s contrasting gloss black trim components and headlights.

With a gurgling race under the desert sun, our professional XPEL installers treated the SUV’s glass with nano-ceramic PRIME XR PLUS window film. The film’s UV protection and infrared heat deflection helped drivers Rebecca Ronaghe and Sedona Blinson stay cool inside the vehicle and away from sun exposure. It took 96 hours of labor to hand cut and install the protective films on the BMW X2 with each piece of PPF hand-laid before the rally.

Ronaghe and Blinson Place Second in X-Cross Class

XPEL is proud to say that the hard work of everyone involved in this project paid off as Team 205 Ronaghe and Blinson finished second overall at the 2023 Rebelle Rally. Congratulations to both women drivers for their achievement and the BMW X2 that got them to the finish line.

We are very thankful for everyone on our XPEL team who helped make this happen, and we look forward to next year’s Rebelle Rally.