Imagine a TopGear Africa Challenge, But Real...

...and to be fair to TopGear, by real we mostly mean without a giant support crew and budget.

We've featured the Amsterdam-Dakar Challenge before, in case you missed it think crazy Dutch people on a Paris Dakar from the very early days mixed with ChumpCar.  500 Euro for the car and off you go 7000 km though Africa, what could possibly go wrong?

Integral to the event is charity and the Amsterdam-Dakar Challenge has raised a rather amazing 3.5 million Euros since 2004.  Well done!

7000 km through Africa in a $700 car.

Think a mix of the original Paris Dakar spirit and the 24 Hours of Lemons, run though a route the real Dakar deemed too unsafe  and moved to South America.    Exhilarating and terrifying at the same time.

The Amsterdam to Dakar Challenge  rules are pretty limited:  You vehicle must cost up to Eu 500 and you can make an additional EU 250 of mods to it.   That's pretty much it.

Impossible?  Yeah,  the "rules"  do allow you to get sponsorship to say,  throw in parts and tires but think more Bill Caswell than Red Bull.   Thankfully, there is an abundance of old Mercedes Taxis and gypsy vehicles to pull from in Europe.   To top it off, it's for a good cause, the Amsterdam-Dakar has raised over $3.5 million since it started in '04.

If Bill's not too busy,  the next 2013 challenge kicks off February 9th.  Rolling from Amsterdam through Marocco with a bunch of crazed Dutchmen....what could possibly go wrong?

The Ultimate Roadtrip - Amsterdam Dakar Challenge 2012 from Beyond Borders Media on Vimeo.