- Can’t swing $223,450 for a Porsche 911 Dakar? Here’s an off-road Porsche with seating for the whole family.
- Only 285 Transsyberia Cayennes were built worldwide, and it is one of only three North American versions with a manual transmission.
- With five days before Bring in Trailer auctions Ends Friday, February 10, $36,500 on this highly collectible and highly capable Porsche.
Porsche says it has no intention of entering its new 911 Dakar in competition, but a decade ago, it did with the special edition Cayenne S. On sale this week at Bring a Trailer (which, like Car and Driveris part of Hearst Autos) is the rare Cayenne, one of the few built to celebrate Porsche’s win at the 2007 Transsyberia rally. If you’re sticking with that new Dakar for lack of rear seats, here are some rally-ready Porsches for the whole family.
The Transsyberian Rally runs over 4000 miles from Moscow just across from Mongolia. Porsche swept the podium in 2007 with a trio of Cayennes, then decided to show off its SUV capabilities with a civilian-spec version. This is one of 285 special editions made.
Just as the 911 Dakar is essentially the 911 GTS underneath, so too is the Cayenne Transsyberia based on the Cayenne GTS. Power comes from a 4.8 liter V-8 producing 405 horsepower at 6500 rpm, and the interior features a luxurious blend of leather and Alcantara.
But, like the orange accents throughout the clues, this isn’t a mall-crawling Porsche SUV. The Transsyberia also gets height-adjustable air suspension, 18-inch wheels designed to take on thick off-road tires, and skidplating underneath. The Transsyberias also comes with the rarely chosen Cayenne off-road package, which includes special programming for Porsche stability and traction control.
As if all that wasn’t ground-pleasing enough, peek between the front seats: it’s an honest manual transmission. Only three manually equipped Transsyberias are known to have been shipped to North America, all originally sold to Canada. Makes sense, considering many parts of Canada are a bit like Siberia, and those Canucks love the handling of their sticks.
This Transsyberian is currently located in Vancouver, British Columbia, but could easily be imported into the United States. With an odometer of 133,000 km—roughly 83,000 miles—this isn’t a Porsche that needs to be kept parked to maintain its value. However it is something of a collector’s item. The previous owner removed the admittedly flashy orange Transsyberia sticker, but it was available from Porsche and had to be reapplied for resale. Thorough undercarriage blasting and protective coating application should be on the to-do list.
With these tasks completed, one lucky bidder will own a mighty V-8-powered Porsche that’s just as capable as the dune-surfing variant of the 911, but with enough room for a family of five (or a group of friends to help push you off the sand). if you get stuck). Being so rare, it will definitely appreciate in value too. With five days remaining, the bids totaled $36,500. That’s ridiculously cheap by Porsche off-road standards; don’t miss your chance.
