Driving a Saab 900 from Amsterdam to Africa
 

Hi everyone!

Last month I drove with a 1996 Saab 900 2.0i Coupe from Amsterdam, The Netherlands to Dakar Senegal. I was part of the ´Amsterdam Dakar Challenge´. A trip where participants drive to Africa in a max. 500 euro car, raising money for local charities.

This 900 is my first (certainly not last) Saab!

I found my 900 last September. After telling my intention of driving the Challenge, the owner agreed to sell the car to me for only €100,-. Only thing that needed to be changed was the middle part of the exhaust and the battery. After that, it was good to go!

We started in Amsterdam on February 9th. From there we drove south with 28 other teams. After cruising to southern Europe we got on a ferry to Morocco. In the eastern part of the country we drove through the desert and tackled some tough riverbeds. In Mauritania we got escorted by the local army because of security. One of the best experiences there was driving on the beach at 5AM (the tide made it an obligatory early morning). A lot of potholes later we crossed the border into Senegal and finished at Dakar (also over the beach).

Our final destination was Banjul, Gambia where the car was auctioned. At the auction it got 1350 euro which we donated to a local orphan project.

On the road I created a photo series to give you all an impression of the trip: /.

Hope you guys enjoy :)

http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8097/8...b2d4f29a_c.jpg

Now this is truly wonderful! I'll make sure to share this.

Can you post details on how one would join this event if it will be held in the future? I would be very interested.

Hi there!

Most of the information is found on their website: Amsterdam Dakar Challenge.

It is in Dutch though. They organize it twice annually, in november and february. Anyone with a car and drivers license can join. You need a visa for Mauritania, other then that, you're good to go! Maybe send 'm and e-mail with special details?

Thanks for the info! How long did the whole trip take you? Were you returning by plane?

We departed on a Saturday and arrived in Banjul (Gambia), our final destination, three weeks later. The Monday after I flew back after the car was auctioned on Sunday. In total 23 days :)

Awesome. Seems like fitting an event like this into a vacation is possible. Another question is were you sponsored by some vendors along the way? It's just interesting to know the dynamics.

Mostly we were sponsored by some Dutch companies. Money that was raised went to charities in The Gambia.

The first video of the trip is finished. Hope you guys like it!: