Dakar to Darling – SafariProjek’s Epic Road Trip

Born of Porsche’s lauded exploits in off-road racing, South African company SafariProjek offers its customers the ultimate test drive – derived from Dakar and on the way to Darling, writes Stefan Kotze.

Image: Stefan Kotze

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A brand with a proud motorsport heritage, while it didn’t take long for the original Porsche 911 to arrive on the start line of prestigious annual cross-country race meetings, events like the Rallye Monte Carlo – won overall for the first time by a Porsche in 1968 – remain suited to relatively low-slung, dynamically-inclined sportscars fitted with road-going (including snow studs) rubber. Not content with these “limitations to entry,” while track-based and on-road plaudits continued, Porsche’s ambitions would turn towards the world of gruelling cross-country competition, including the East African Safari Rallye. More than the credible fifth place it achieved in this first attempt at competing in Kenya’s harsh and unforgiving terrain, international headlines were all but guaranteed thanks to the modifications made to the five factory-built 911 ST entrants ahead of the start of the 1978 event. These included 254 mm of ground clearance, underfloor protection, auxiliary lighting and timing equipment.

Fresh from his victory behind the wheel of a Mercedes-Benz 280 GE at the 1983 Paris-Dakar Rallye, a visit to Weissach by legendary racer Jacky Ickx that coincided with testing of the all-wheel drive 959 “Gruppe B” prototype sparked a conversation about Porsche “ramping up” its rallying prospects. After covering more than 11 000 km in 20 days, a striking Rothmans-branded Porsche 911 Carrera 3.0 4×4 (type 953) driven by René Metge and Dominique Lemoyne emerged as the somewhat unlikely winner of the 1984 edition of the Paris-Dakar Rallye.

“Engaging a 911 against four-wheel drive, classic off-road vehicles in the Ténéré desert and the high plateau of Assekrem in Algeria looked absolutely crazy to people. Nobody would have bet a penny on it,” said Ickx, who would bring his 953 home in sixth place, overall.

While the 992-generation 911 Dakar introduced in 2022 offered customers a timely reminder of Porsche’s rich and varied motorsport pedigree, enthusiasts like Johan de Bruyn and Phillip Visser have long since admired the exploits and, indeed, capabilities of raised-ride-height 911s. A passion project started during the Covid-19 pandemic, when off-road racer de Bruyn and engineer and car builder Visser were forced to down tools from their respective everyday careers, research into the prospect of building off-road conversion kits using 996-generation 911s quickly spawned the company SafariProjek.

“Enthusiasts have been looking down on the 996 for a very long time, but I like the lights and overall design of the car,” says de Bruyn. “I started doing some research, and while you can buy nearly any aftermarket off-road, rally-inspired part for most Porsche 911s, I discovered little to no ‘love’ for the 996-series cars.”

The duo began developing a Carrera 4S, modifying its suspension, expanding the car’s track widths, and fitting all-terrain tyres. They also engineered underbody protection and custom-fabricated a fit-for-purpose body kit. “The top mounts for the MacPherson struts are moved out by 60 mm to accommodate bespoke Reiger shock absorbers. Custom suspension components were manufactured from 7075 aircraft-grade aluminium and fitted with chromoly rod end bearings on all pivot points. Combine the Reiger shock absorbers with the suspension changes, and you get a car with around 200 mm of wheel travel front and rear, says Visser.

Image: Stefan Kotze

Having expanded its offering to include the 997-generation 911 and Cayenne SUV, SafariProjek currently has close to 40 builds on order, including from the UK, the Netherlands and the US.
“Each car then has some cutting involved to accommodate our bespoke parts, including widened arches, custom bumpers and aluminium underbody protection,” explains Visser. “The rear suspension geometry gets altered, and the front and rear tracks are widened to fit Falken Wildpeak A/T Trail all-terrain tyres. These can be fitted to 17- or 18-inch Evo Corse wheels, or SafariProjek’s Fuchs-inspired items.”

“When it comes to the engine, Porsche engines are already so reliable and offer adequate performance, so it’s one of the components we barely touch. We add a set of performance headers and de-cat the exhaust system before fitting signature tailpipes. A Quaife limited-slip differential is also added to the package,” adds Visser.

Dubbed the SafariProjek Cape Rally, what better way to celebrate the success of this passion project than an epic five-day, 2 000 km all-terrain rally around the Western Cape in fourteen of its creations? With a starting point provided by Supercar Cellar Storage (SCS) in Paarl, our fleet of 911s and Cayenne project cars, complete with striking livery, auxiliary lighting and roof-mounted spare wheels set course for Langebaan, via Bainskloof Pass, Wolseley and an obligatory lunch stop in Darling. The 500 km second day included several sections of rough gravel guaranteed to test the credentials of each SafariProjek build present. Indeed, the only casualty of this route was a failing roof rail mount, quickly repaired by the expedition’s resident mechanic. A lunch stop at Lutzville Vineyards provided an opportunity to indulge in some banter and great photography opportunities before the beautiful town of Clanwilliam welcomed our battle-hardy convoy for the night.

With more than 700 km to cover on day three, the promise of open gravel sections through the Tankwa Karoo, the beauty of the Prince Alfred Pass and the spectacle of the Knysna Forest – routes an owner of a regular 911 wouldn’t dream of tackling – was as welcome as the prospect of a refresh for participating cars and their occupants in Knysna. Here, it was decided to remove the aftermarket roof rails for fear of more mounts failing; the spare wheel was instead accommodated behind each car’s front seat, mimicking the placement of a 150-litre supplementary fuel tank in the ’84 911 Paris-Dakar winner. Consequently, SafariProjek is in the process of engineering a more robust bespoke roof rail setup. With a return trip to Cape Town incorporating an overnight stay at the charming Old Mac Daddy Luxury Trailer Park in Elgin, on reflection, in the same vein as companies like Singer and Tuthill in the UK, I love the fact that passionate Porsche people, including SafariProjek, are finding ways to keep these vehicles on the road and in the hands of fellow enthusiasts.

Image: Stefan Kotze

Based in Centurion, Gauteng, SafariProjek offers customers the option of customising an existing purchase or sourcing a donor car on their behalf. Mechanicals aside, each build relies on input from the owner on paint finish, decals, accessories and interior finishes. A 3D rendering helps prospective owners to visualise this decision-making process.

Depending on the final specification, a build can cost around R1 million, excluding the donor car, with a three-month timeline for completion. All work completed by SafariProjek carries a 24-month warranty, with the workshop qualified to carry out mechanical servicing and repairs on the donor car, should it be required.

Find the full feature in the May 2025 issue of CAR Magazine.

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