The passenger, Belgian Maxime Frére, was injured and transported to the National Guards Hospital in Jeddah, the statement added.
The French driver was chief mechanic on the 205 Turbo 16 racing the Dakar classic, according to the statement.
Separately, two days before the beginning of the rally on December 30, a car exploded, severely injuring its French pilot, Philippe Boutron. The blast hit a support vehicle belonging to French team Sodicars soon after it left its Jeddah hotel for the race route prompting French prosecutors to open a terrorism investigation.
There are traditionally five major vehicle categories in the Dakar Rally: cars, motorbikes, trucks, UTVs and quad bikes.