New Porsche 911 Dakar teased ahead of November 16 reveal

Porsche has dropped teaser pictures of its upcoming 911 Dakar: a do-anything, go-anywhere version of the iconic German sports car that promises genuine off-road capability. 

The name is a nod to the first overall victory by Porsche in the gruelling Paris-Dakar rally; a feat achieved in 1984 by a specially modified 911 fitted with an all-wheel drive system for the first time in the model's illustrious history. 

Though technical specifications are still thin at this stage, photographs reveal that the 911 Dakar sports has a much taller ride height than the conventional 911 models — a modification that will help it conquer all sorts of challenging topography. Porsche has also bolted on a smaller set of alloy wheels shod with high-profile all-terrain tyres, while the ABS brakes have been optimised for stopping on gnarly gravel surfaces. 

According to Porsche the 911 Dakar has clocked up more than 500,000km in demanding test locales around the world, with 10,000km of those being exclusively off-road. The German sports carmaker also made use of the fearsome Château de Lastours test track in southern France, where its engineers could fine-tune the vehicle's suspension system. 

“All Dakar teams come here to test their cars in Europe before the rally,” says seasoned Porsche works driver Romain Dumas, who was tasked with putting the 911 Dakar through its off-road paces over everything from high-speed jumps to sweeping gravel drifts. 

“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.”

Two-time world rally champion Walter Röhrl also got the opportunity to thrash the new 911 Dakar across the slippery, snow-covered frozen lakes of Arjeplog, Sweden. 

“The car is incredibly fun to drive,” says Röhrl. “Everything works so precisely and calmly. No Porsche customer will believe all the things you can do with this car before they’ve driven it themselves.”

The new Porsche 911 Dakar will be revealed at the 2022 LA Auto Show on November 16.