Yahoo Autos Visiting the Original Dakar Route, A Decade After the Rally Left Africa
Dakar is the capital of Senegal, a West African country that used to be home to the Paris-Dakar Rally's finish line. Before reaching that point, the drivers and riders had to beat Morocco's toughest roads. That might be ancient history now-since 2009, the race has taken place entirely in South America, avoiding its namesake city entirely. But the old routes are still there, begging the question: how deep can you go into the wilderness in a standard Nissan Navara pickup truck with a 2.3-liter turbodiesel? According to Drivetribe's Henry Catchpole, deep enough.
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The Dakar Rally might have left Africa for South America ten years ago, but those who live by the original stages won't forget their motorsport heritage. Driving across the challenging terrain and drifting through the dunes today with a regular pickup (unlike Nissan's last Dakar contender) is a road trip definitely worth trying. Just remember that when you hear something loud and see a huge cloud of dust approaching fast, there's no need to worry. It will only be Peugeot, testing for the 2017 edition of the South American race, in the best possible place.
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