2023 Porsche 911 Dakar exists because of an African race Porsche couldn’t win

Why has Porsche debuted a new 911 Dakar? This isn’t Porsche hopping in on a trend, this is Porsche returning to a segment it created. Our guess on the timing is that the Stuttgart automaker has had a front-row seat watching off-road-focused builds mint stupendous amounts of money, so why not get back in with impeccable provenance and unmatchable brand equity?

It is certain the world hasn’t adequately appreciated the prowess and lore of Porsche 911s racing in the dirt. The Porsche 911 went into production in September 1964. The 911’s first factory-backed race was the Monte Carlo Rally, in January 1965, where it finished fifth. Privateers in 911s began winning rally championships as soon as 1967, and the #210 Porsche 911 T in the image above returned to the Monte Carlo Rally in 1968 and won. The co-driver was Herbert Linge, the same Porsche mechanic who helped the brand to a class win in the 1952 Carrera Panamericana in a 356. The butt-engined coupe’s liftoff oversteer, which would soon turn the Porsche Turbo into “The Widowmaker,” served as an Insta-Drift boon for rally drivers.

Casually, the jacked-up neun-elfers with mud-terrain tires and more fog lights than Newfoundland are called Safari Porsches. They didn’t spring from a marketing confab over weisswurst and breakfast beers, nor a tuner’s “What if?” Porsche birthed them with blood, sweat, and repeated, unsuccessful attempts to conquer a tiny corner of the African bush 51 years ago. So there were…