- Porsche 911 Dakar: why supercars and off-roaders are blending
- Proper off-road creds
- Sounds great… when can I see the proper details, pictures and specs of the 992 Dakar?
Porsche 911 Dakar on test
The 992 Dakar is like the Allroad of Porsches
Development programme took 911 Dakar on 300,000-mile endurance tests
New Porsche 911 Dakar goes dune-bashing in the desert
Porsche took the Dakar testing in Morocco and Dubai
Winter testing with Walter Rohrl in Arjeplog, Sweden
Frozen lakes used to test 911 Dakar’s grip on frozen snow
Raised ride height, butch bodykit for 911 Dakar
The best kind of disguise: sand!
Porsche test drivers and engineers swap notes
See the new Porsche 911 Dakar at the 2022 Los Angeles auto show
A tougher 911: the new Porsche 992 Dakar
► The Porsche 911 Dakar is confirmed► A higher-riding, off-road 911
► Full debut, more details at LA show
There’s a new trend afoot: off-road supercars – and Porsche is never far behind the latest vogue. Hence the new Porsche 911 Dakar, confirmed as a production reality and ready to be unveiled at the Los Angeles auto show later this month.
It’s a simple concept: take one Porsche 992, make sure it’s the all-wheel drive derivative, pump up the ride height, fit off-road tyres and give it a sturdy rally-raid makeover to ensure it lives up to the Dakar name.
That badge nods to Porsche’s impeccable pedigree in the Paris-Dakar rally; it won the 1984 event with a specially modified 911 – a project that led directly to the all-conquering 959 techfest supercar.
Porsche 911 Dakar: why supercars and off-roaders are blending
Stuttgart describes the Dakar as ‘the first two-door sports car to offer outstanding off-road capabilities.’
It is not alone; Lamborghini is also preparing the Huracan Sterrato, a multi-purpose muddy supercar first shown as a concept car in 2019 and now nearing production.
The 911 Dakar will beat the Lambo to market. This is a production-ready Porsche that will be unveiled in the coming days before going on sale in 2023 for an as-yet-undisclosed (but likely hefty) premium.
Proper off-road creds
No production pictures of the final 911 Dakar just yet, but Porsche has shown prototypes testing in the desert, spitting roosters of sand high into the desert air as it rips up 50m sand dunes. It’s part of a punishing development programme that has seen the model complete more than 300,000 miles of testing, including 6000 off-road.
Porsche test drivers based themselves at the Château de Lastours test track in southern France, a regular haunt for Dakar rally-raid practice owing to its network of gravel tracks and off-road courses. ‘All Dakar teams come here to test their cars in Europe before the rally,’ said Porsche works driver Romain Dumas. ‘I knew what a 911 could do on the road, but I was absolutely stunned by how well the car performed here on the loose.’
The development cycle also took the new 2023 Porsche 911 Dakar to the 45C deserts in Morocco and Dubai, as well as the frozen lakes of Arjeplog, Sweden, where the 911’s higher ground clearance, all-terrain tyres, recalibrated brakes and tuned suspension are designed to find grip in improbably tough conditions.
It’s a punishing development schedule and one that’s certainly made for some stunning imagery, even if most customers will be more likely to traverse the fields of Glastonbury rather than the Gobi.
Frank Moser, vice president for the 911 and 718 ranges, said: ‘Especially here, the 911 Dakar can make the most of its conceptual advantages – the combination of low weight, higher ground clearance, a powerful rear-mounted engine and the short wheelbase make for an exhilarating driving experience.’
Sounds great… when can I see the proper details, pictures and specs of the 992 Dakar?
Expect the Porsche 911 Dakar’s world debut at the LA motor show on 16 November 2022. We will update this page live from the show, with all the news, insights and analysis from the CAR team.
Keyword: Porsche 911 Dakar – the sand-bashing rally-raid 911 is here