Hero 911 Dakar Owner Treks 20,000 Miles Through Asia on Epic Road Trip

The trip from Vietnam to the Gobi Desert and back took 75 days.

2023 Porsche 911 Dakar first drive exterior

Anthony Alaniz

By: Anthony Alaniz

Jan 16, 2025 at 4:20pm ET

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Porsche only built 2,500 examples of the 911 Dakar. Keep it as an investment instead of off-roading it like Porsche intended, and it'll hold its value forever. Thankfully, Nguyen Hoang Anh doesn't seem to be the type of owner who is too concerned with a return on investment. Within weeks of taking delivery of his Dakar, Nguyen left his home on a 20,000-mile road trip to the Gobi Desert and back. That's one way to break in your new 911.

Nguyen's journey started in September 2023 in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam, with two friends in a truck and an SUV. They set off without any set route, heading toward Laos and the Chinese border with a list of cities they wanted to visit.

Nguyen and his crew entered China by the end of the month, but that was just the beginning of the long trip. They reached the border between Mongolia and China a few weeks later and the Gobi Desert by the end of October.

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The journey wasn't without its perils for the 911, though. Nguyen had to visit a repair shop nearly two months into the trip after he hit the rear bumper on some rocks, making a quick stop in Mongolia's capital to get it fixed. This detour happened after the desert's harsh terrain and sharp stones sliced two of their tires and slowed down the crew. Thankfully, they had two spares.

Nguyen returned home in early December after 75 days on the road, putting his Dakar through various trials. His trip got Porsche's attention, which invited Nguyen to visit the Porsche Museum and meet Achim Lamparter, the 911 Dakar's project manager. That's not a bad deal for simply taking an audacious road trip in your new Porsche.