Yahoo Autos 2023 Porsche 911 Dakar Is Laugh-Out-Loud Fun in the Sand
"Aired Down a Porsche 911"has never appeared on any bingo card we've ever held, and yet here we are, deflating our 911 Dakar's tires before play commences on a massive Moroccan sand dune formation called Erg Chebbi. It's not immediately clear how well we'll fare in the big dunes, a visit to which normally requires a rented Toyota Land Cruiser Prado or a local camel-caravan outfitter. Thus far, we've been traversing desert hardpan and gaping like tourists at the odd meandering single-hump dromedary while attempting to avoid rocks and well-intended cairns hidden behind persistent hanging curtains of choking dust.
Earlier, while we cruised through dusty towns that seemed to be the inspiration for Star Wars's Tatooine, kids sometimes waved (that was a wave, wasn't it?) as we passed by in our shiny Land Speeders. Then, at the last checkpoint before the open desert, the local constabulary stopped our three-car convoy, whereupon the lead driver was obligated to hand over... his Instagram handle. (The next day, on the way back, he would be required to perform... a launch control start.)
It turns out that the Erg—a dead ringer for southern California's Glamis sand dunes (which played the part of Tatooine, come to think of it)—is literally the 911 Dakar's sandbox. It makes sense, because the 911 Dakar is essentially a quarter-million-dollar dune buggy that's based on the mighty Carrera 4 GTS instead of a Volkswagen Beetle.
Like an OG dune buggy, the Dakar has a rear-mounted engine, a pan-flat floor, and broad rear tires that are proportional to the 911's inherent rear-biased weight distribution and provide handy flotation in sand. Lightweighting measures mean that its curb weight is only some 20 pounds heavier than a Carrera 4 GTS, so even though it does weigh around 3550 pounds, it makes much less of an impression in the sand than your average SUV and undercuts a base Porsche Macan by some 600 pounds.
From there this Porsche takes the dune-buggy format several giant steps forward on account of its wailing 473-hp twin-turbo 3.0-liter flat-six engine from the GTS. This engine's broad torque peak of 420 pound-feet from 2300 to 5000 rpm is even more critical. In the thick of it, whenever we glanced at the tach, usually while yelling, "I can't believe I'm doing this in a 911!" the engine was invariably grinding it out between 3000 and 4000 revs, happy as we were in mountains of dry sand.
Another incongruous element in all of this is the interior, which, despite tasteful Dakar touches and trim choices, never misses a chance to remind that you're still in a 911. The microsuede-wrapped steering wheel is one example: The wheel is in so much constant motion as you saw through the sand that the top-center hash mark seems laughably pointless. Ditto the one-piece carbon race buckets, which beat you up like a boxing opponent when you're bouncing around out there. Pro tip: Opt instead for the (no-cost) heated leather GT Sport steering wheel and ditch the hard-shell buckets for 18-way power-adjustable heated sport seats (another no-cost option).
