SCG's Baja Dakar Buggy can be 'put together like Ikea furniture'

In 2018, when Scuderia Cameron Glickenhaus announced the 005 Baja Boot, it was hoped that the big buggy would be priced at $100,000. However, it ballooned to $259,000 by the time the Boot was taking its second class win at The Baja 1000. Now there's finally a buggy from the New York boutique vehicle maker with a price of $100,000, that being the 008 Baja Dakar Buggy. The company showed renderings of it for the first time last year, and pitched it as a little brother to the Baja Boot — a "Mini Boot," we were told. On top of the price, we have new renderings that show some evolution from what we saw in 2021.

Before we get to that, it's important to know that the 008 arose from the idea of turning the SCG 004 sports car into what, in Porsche circles, would be called a Safari build. That explains the overall look of the car and features like the buttresses and arced wing connecting the rear fenders. So, starting with that platform, the current renderings omit the four centrally positioned floodlights and faired headlights of last year's design, replacing them with two exposed headlights and two smaller lights lower down. Someone decided it would be ideal to see items behind the vehicle, so a pair of rearview mirrors stand atop stalks on the front fenders. The mesh upper door of last year's design is now a solid door. It's possible items like the mesh doors and light package are options on the new version. 

What stays are a tubular frame, composite body panels, long-travel Fox coilover suspension, 17-inch wheels on 37-inch BFG tires, roughly 18 inches of ground clearance, and a three-seat cockpit with a central driving position. At around 182 inches in length, it's in between the lengths of a two- and four-door Jeep Wrangler.

There's one more important thing to know, though: The $100,000 price doesn't include an engine; it's rear-wheel drive, with AWD costing extra; and the kit has been designed to be built by the buyer. James Glickenhaus said it won't be any harder to put together than Ikea furniture. Also, the rig's been designed to make a 2.0-liter GM engine the heart of that high-mount exhaust. James Glickenhaus told us last year, "A lot of engines will fit. The choice is with the builder. We have a Porsche factory driver who is going to fit a Porsche engine. It could even be electric or hydrogen-powered." The versions the company take racing are powered by an LS7 V8 tuned to develop about 550 horsepower.

We're promised more pictures and info soon, which will eventually include an explanation of the kit's staged assembly that could save buyers money by allowing more off-the-shelf. SCG says it plans to sell the 008 through its site. It will begin taking $1,000 deposits soon for production slots later this year.