Porsche 911 Dakar: off the beaten track

Ask any Porsche enthusiast to list all the variants of the 911, and chances are that even they will miss one. After all, the 911’s offerings are incredibly varied. Yet all variants of the 911 have in common that they are low on the road. In fact, the Porsche 911 Dakar is a lot higher on the road than its sportier brothers. In doing so, Porsche is paving the way for an entirely new kind of use case for the 911.

Origin 911 Dakar

The exact specifications of the 911 Dakar are yet to be announced at the Los Angeles Auto Show Nov. 16, but it is already clear why Porsche will build such a variant of the 911. Indeed, the 911 Dakar is a tribute to Porsche’s rallying past. Indeed, in 1984, a specially modified, four-wheel-drive 911 won the Paris-Dakar rally.

Porsche has covered more than 10,000 off-road miles with the 911 Dakar, from snow to desert. Among others, famous rally driver Walter Röhrl was impressed by the off-road capabilities of the 911 Dakar. Even at high jumps, the 911 Dakar reportedly does not let itself go crazy and everything stays in one piece. The photos shown by Porsche are quite impressive. It is rather extraordinary to see how a modern 911 can make its way among the piles of rocks.

A new trend?

The 911 Dakar seems to be the symptom of a new trend: making sports cars off-road. Indeed, Lamborghini is working on something similar with the Huracán Sterrato, and tuners such as Singer and Gemballa are also working on their own off-road 911s. If the 911 Dakar is to provide a bit of an answer to all this violence, Porsche would do well to spoon the minimum 550-hp six-cylinder boxer from the 992 Turbo into the back of the 911 Dakar. We will know what it will finally be on Nov. 16, when Porsche will pull the curtain off this special 911.