We drive the limited edition 2018 Hilux Dakar

4x4s provide the ability to go anywhere, but if you’re like me, the only time you go off-road is when you’re at a 4×4 facility or on a course.  I find it admirable when people go “off the road” and explore uncharted territories like the Camel Men of old.  But with every more restrictive law around where we can drive this is getting harder still.  I couldn’t help admire the driver of the burnt orange Hilux Dakar 4×4 when I first started watching this video.

But my admiration soon turned to disdain as he slowly started driving deeper and deeper into the water. It then became clear that he wasn’t only being fueled by diesel and his friend’s chants. There was definitely liquor involved. And even at slow speeds, booze and driving don’t mix well.

The Toyota Hilux Dakar has a wading depth of 700mm, by my summation this driver went more than double that.  A fool’s errand.

What followed was a joyous drive followed by tragedy.  There are two videos floating around the internet. One of a triumphant exit and another of the car being towed out with the engine clicking as the driver tried to turn it over. My summation is the dreaded hydraulic lock, as water might have got into an engine,  and as any 4×4 expert will tell you, it just takes one spoon full of water to ruin an engine.

The Dakar

My time with the Dakar was much less dramatic. The Hilux Dakar is limited to just 5000 units and costs around R601 000.  For your 600k you get a bunch of cool new things, inside and out. The engine is the same powerful 130kW with 420Nm found in the other GD6 models.  The car I had on test came fitted with the manual gearbox and this was not my favourite as I’d driven the automatic on launch and it was much smoother with not much drive-train losses as found in some other 4x4s.  Our famed intern, Alex took the car for a drive and being the hardcore 4×4 nut,  he is couldn’t stop raving about the manual gearbox. Fuel consumption is claimed at 8.5l/100 which is achievable especially when cruising on the highway.

Extras

The Dakar is pretty much a special edition Hilux with lots of extras to warrant the higher price tag.  Inside you get a new Satnav system which everyone agrees is not very user-friendly, but other than that the interior enhancements make Dakar feel quite premium and even sporty inside.  A new instrument cluster with orange needles, black interior accents and Dakar branding everywhere make this vehicle feel like something special. Outside Dakar comes with that striking orange paintwork, gloss black grille which might very well be an indicator as to what the next model will look like.  It’s a very attractive bakkie.

Verdict

So now there is one less Dakar on our roads, and it’s a pity.  This limited edition car will no doubt grab the attention of Toyota bakkie owners seeking for something different, and that’s straight from the factory. Hilux Dakar stands apart in a sea (pun intended) of double-cab bakkies on our road. For my money, I’d go for the automatic version, but then again I probably wouldn’t even drive through a puddle in my own 4×4!