In April 2017, world record driver Rainer Zietlow and two Russian journalists, Petr Bakanov from Auto Mail.Ru and Georgy Golubev from Klaxon, set a new world record time.
In just three days and four hours, they led the new 225 hp Volkswagen Amarok V6 on a 7,995-kilometer journey from Dakar to Moscow.
For Zietlow, it was his sixth long-distance world record and his second with a Volkswagen Amarok. The team set off from the old Hôtel de Ville in Dakar at 2:00 a.m. on April 22, following a route through Senegal, Mauritania, Morocco, Spain, France, Germany, Poland, Lithuania, Latvia, and Russia.
On April 25, at around 10 a.m., the team arrived in Moscow, the Russian capital. The Volkswagen Amarok V6, which came from the press pool of Volkswagen Commercial Cars in Hanover, Germany, had no modifications other than two additional fuel tanks and an LED high-beam light for this endurance challenge.
The most difficult part of the journey was the 3,260-kilometer stretch through Senegal, Mauritania, and Morocco. Bumpy, sandy roads; several border crossings; and deep potholes made progress difficult. Camels, goats, and donkeys were also on the road again and again.
An important stop was the catamaran ferry in the port of Tangier. It was reached on time, so hardly any time was lost waiting.
Rainer Zietlow has supported the SOS Children’s Villages through his projects since 2005. This time, he donated 1,500 euros to a Children’s Village in Dakar. On April 20, the team visited the Children’s Village to hand over the donation, amounting to around 20 euro cents per kilometer driven.
