Having spent two weeks tackling extreme conditions in South America, South Africa's Dakar Rally drivers were in good spirits when they returned home this week.

Giniel de Villiers, the 2009 champion, finished third in the grueling race at the weekend, with the all-SA pairing of Duncan Vos and Robert Howie taking 11th place.

"When Glyn [Hall, Toyota team manager] approached me at the beginning and asked me what I thought we could achieve, I just told him to make sure all the nuts and bolts were in place," De Villiers said. "If he and the technical team could do that, I thought we could finish in the top five, or even the top three, and we did that."

The team arrived to a rousing reception from a few hundred people at OR Tambo International, with most waving flags.