LOS ANGELES, CA – German automotive manufacturer Porsche is set to debut an off-road capable Sports Utility Vehicle (SUV) version of their iconic 911 sports car after having conducted expensive tests in a variety of harsh environments to ensure the new vehicle lives up to the company’s lofty reputation.
The upcoming 911 Dakar off-road model is set to debut on November 16, and its design was inspired by a modified 911 that was entered into – and won – the 1984 Paris-Dakar rally that saw contestants traverse across the Sahara Desert, a true test of any off-road vehicle’s abilities.
Technical details of the new vehicle have not yet been revealed by Porsche, but released photographs of the 911 Dakar shows that it has a higher profile than its 911 cousin, in addition to all-terrain tires and underbody protection; experts are speculating that the Dakar is based on the all-wheel-drive 911 model.
Experts are predicting that the 911 Dakar will use one of the 911’s turbocharged flat-six engines and will likely come only with Porsche’s eight-speed PDK automatic transmission.
In order to ensure that it meets the high standards, the automaker noted that the 911 Dakar has endured 6,000 miles of rough off-road terrain testing and an overall 300,000 miles of real-world driving in “extreme” environmental conditions, ranging from snow and ice on Swedish test tracks to the deserts of Morocco and Dubai.
At the Château de Lastours off-road test track in France, test driver Romain Dumas said that he was floored by the capabilities of the vehicle.
I knew what a 911 could do on the road,” he said. “But I was absolutely stunned by how well the car performed here on loose surfaces.”
Porsche is preparing to reveal the new 911 Dakar at the Los Angeles auto show next week, with full details of the new vehicle to be released on November 16.
Joe Mcdermott is a staff reporter who keeps his eyes peeled for interesting automotive news. He works mainly for our subsidiary, The Published Reporter® as well as our IT firm, SEARCHEN NETWORKS®. Mcdermott, one of our first and thus veteran reporters, is also a data analyst for select independent news and media organizations in the United States.