If we had a nickel for every time a Dakarian got in legal trouble for hooning their race vehicle, we’d have two nickels—which isn’t a lot, but it’s weird that it happened twice, right?

In 2017, the Stadium Super Trucks were briefly exiled from Australia after Robby Gordon did some burnouts outside a nightclub in Darwin. While the series boss had gotten approval from the bouncer to let the truck rip, the Confederation of Australian Motor Sport and Northern Territory authorities weren’t too pleased. A few court cases later, he received a fine and suspension of his CAMS license for a few months. It wouldn’t be his last run-in with CAMS-slash-Motorsport Australia, but that’s a story for another time.

What Gordon did was called “hooning”, or reckless behavior while operating a vehicle such as street racing and donuts in public. While the term has Aussie roots, the act obviously transcends Oceania. Many can attest to seeing or hearing kids pull up in tuners and ricers at night for sideshows and other illegal antics. Of course, you’re lawfully able to do it with permission from the right people—Gordon figured he was one of them, but apparently not.

The 12-time Dakar Rally competitor wouldn’t be the first of his kind to land in hot water for such a demo either. With last month’s announcement that the DAF TurboTwin II will race the 2027 Dakar Classic, let’s take a look back at what happened 40 years ago. And we don’t mean when it won.

Jan de Rooy and the TurboTwin II

As the name suggests, the TurboTwin II is the second in a line of twin-turbo DAF 3600 trucks. After finishing runner-up in the 1985 Paris–Dakar Rally with the DAF Bull, Jan de Rooy cranked things up a notch by introducing the TurboTwin in 1986. That race didn’t end as hoped as the front end broke and forced him out.

Still, there was a good platform to build upon. In the following months, DAF and lead designer Wim Hendriks created the even more powerful TurboTwin II.^[1]

It relies on two turbodiesel DKZ 1160 motors that produce 495 horsepower each, one sending power to the front axle and the other to the back. The engines are situated side by side to improve the truck’s center of gravity. A pair of eight-speed gearboxes, which shift pneumatically, are mounted at the back of each motor. The engine power was unchanged from the TurboTwin I, but the gear ratio was lengthened so de Rooy didn’t have to shift as much. Parabolic leaf springs are used for both the front and rear suspension. The truck can reach 200 km/h on pavement and 130 km/h on dirt, faster than its predecessor. It’s also lighter by 2,500 kilograms thanks to the aluminum wheels and chassis along with the fiberglass-reinforced plastic bodywork.^[1][2]

Besides the flagship truck, DAF entered two DAF FAV 3600 support trucks piloted by Peter van Maris and Leon Dieker. Both relied on the same engines as the TurboTwin I. Should de Rooy not finish the race, the service trucks would continue in his stead as competitors.

That scenario never materialized as the TurboTwin II proved to be every bit the monster it was claimed to be. It obviously didn’t go top speed from start to finish, but averaging 105 km/h and troubles hitting his opposition allowed de Rooy to easily pull away.

He was so far ahead in the Truck classification that his goal shifted to beating fellow Dutch team Kees and Mieke Tijsterman’s Mitsubishi Pajero in the overall. De Rooy even briefly led the race outright during Stage 8. During a post-race analysis, team engineers found the DAF actually had a higher average speed than Ari Vatanen’s winning Peugeot 205 T16.^[3]

“Personally, I find it not as tough as previous times,” de Rooy remarked to Algemeen Dagblad while in Timbuktu.^[4]

Of course, the rally was still no walk in the park. There were moments like when he and the leaders fell behind schedule on Stage 16 (Tidjikja to Chinguetti) because of a massive sandstorm that stranded several drivers, while potholes were a major obstacle. In Stage 9, Vatanen got stuck because of three tire punctures until de Rooy tried to pull him out, only for his truck to be trapped as well; the lost time cost him a shot at the overall stage win, which was claimed by Kenjiro Shinozuka.^[5]

Also helped that Guinea was no longer on the itinerary since de Rooy wasn’t a fan of its jungles and humidity.^[1] Compared to 1986, the 1987 course was shorter—roughly 12,000 total kilometers versus the previous year’s 15K—and much faster through the sands of Mali and Mauritania, the perfect environment for the TurboTwin II to strut its stuff.

He easily won the Truck class by 14 hours and 25 minutes over Karel Loprais and finished a staggering 11th overall, running as high as eighth in the general ranking and beating the Tijstermans. De Rooy also received the media award handed out by the organizers. Upon reaching the finish on Lac Rose, he and bike winner Cyril Neveu celebrated on the TurboTwin’s roof together before going to sign autographs for fans.^[6]

“I’d rather drive a thousand-kilometer stage through Mauritania than participate in this charade. But it’s part of the deal,” de Rooy bluntly said.^[6]

With a Dakar crown secured, it was time to head home. Sort of. While de Rooy and his team went back to the Netherlands, the TurboTwin II was off to be displayed in Brussels as part of a truck exhibition. De Rooy resumed running his transport business.

Hoonin’ in Heerlen

On the evening of March 31, de Rooy came to Heerlen for a demonstration. He had been invited by from students at a local horecaschool (hospitality school) who were part of the Ganymedes “soos” (Dutch slang for a social club) and wanted to see his truck in action.^[7]

Between 9 and 10:30 PM, the TurboTwin II started driving up and down the Schaesbergerweg road. The truck hit speeds of 120 km/h and kicked up clouds of smoke, while the students watched or rode along.^[8]

Unfortunately, the kids weren’t the only ones going crazy that night. The local police department received several phone calls from angry residents about the noise.

“Some idiot is tearing through the street in a truck without a muffler,” one caller complained.^[6] Another compared it to a fighter jet flying by.^[9]

A police car was deployed to the scene, but it unsurprisingly couldn’t keep up with the behemoth. The cops had to wait until de Rooy turned the truck around and saw them before they could finally question him.^[10] Officer Bardoul led the interrogation as traffic prosecutor before placing him under arrest.^[8] The truck was impounded and underwent inspection the next day before being released.^[7][10]

De Rooy appeared before Magistrate Freijters on April 3 and was quickly charged with speeding on public roads. Officially, he was busted for going 109 in a 50 zone. Freijters ordered him to pay 600 guilders (about USD$310.85 today) and banned him from driving for three months. He was still allowed to run his company.^[7]

Oops.

X1 and X2

Once the punishment was up, it was back to business preparing for the 1988 Dakar Rally. With how good the TurboTwin II was, the team wanted to double up the effort.

This culminated in the DAF 95 X1 and X2. The X1’s dual engines combined to produce 1,220 horsepower, and can go from 0 to 100 km/h in 8.5 seconds with a top speed of 180 km/h; for comparison, the TurboTwin II’s 0–100 was 14 seconds. It was also lighter by weighing just over 10,000 pounds, cutting weight by building more parts from aluminum like the frame, fuel tank, and gearbox housing. Meanwhile, the X2 used an engine from the TurboTwin II.

Naturally, de Rooy had high hopes for the X1 when it was revealed:^[3]

• “It’d be going a bit too far to suggest that we can win the overall, but if it is at all possible, I won’t hesitate to do so. For the time being, our focus is on the Truck classification and winning a few stages.”
• “The more rocks and stones, the more advantageous it is for the trucks. Peugeot is still a tough opponent. In the sand, we will undoubtedly lack the maneuverability.”
• “The fact that the other trucks can’t keep up with us is an indictment of those brands. It’s becoming increasingly hard to drive the truck because it’s starting to take control every now and then. I’ve never had this before.”
• “I don’t spend a single second thinking about my business when I’m there. Everyone is on vacation, and so am I. It’s just that I’m going to play in the sandbox like a big boy for a while.”
• “I absolutely plan on continuing in the coming years. Even if DAF decides to stop, I’ll just build a prototype myself. I have enough experience by now, having raced the rally seven times now and finished in Dakar three times.”

Tragically, that last quote was prescient.

The X1 fared as advertised, and is remembered in Dakar lore today for its legendary side-by-side battle with Vatanen’s Peugeot 405. The fun would not last long, however.

In Stage 8, Theo van de Rijt and the X2 rolled while going over 180 km/h. Kees van Loevezijn, the truck’s navigator, was thrown from the truck and killed instantly, while Van de Rijt and mechanic Chris Ross suffered serious injuries but survived. DAF immediately withdrew following the accident and shut down the rally program. The trucks ended up in de Rooy’s possession.

Later that year, Dakar leaders Gilbert Sabine and René Metge announced the Truck category would not return for 1989. De Rooy criticized them for taking so long to make the verdict, leaving him on the sideline since he couldn’t find or prep a new ride in time. Since January was reserved for Dakar, de Rooy Transport’s business at this time of year was at its lowest in a long time. Things were so quiet that de Rooy spent two weeks in China thinking of setting up a company there.^[11]

As for the rally itself, he had little interest in following outside of checking on the Tijstermans via Teletext. He also pointed out how the TSO said the race would be made safer and the length shortened by two days, yet the “only real difference” was that the route bypassed Algeria; otherwise, the rally wasn’t any less dangerous or long as in the past.^[11]

Speaking with Het Vrije Volk:^[11]

They made the decision far too late. There wasn’t any time left for me to build something else. Sure, with some money, you can acquire a rally car from anywhere, but you surely can’t expect me to climb into the kind of car 90% of the field uses. If I’m going to compete in the Paris–Dakar, I need a machine that can win. Only the very best will be good enough for me.

I’d rather not hear or talk about the accident anymore. It could’ve easily happened to me and my truck. The outcome was terrible and it was a devastating blow for us, but you can’t dwell on it for too long. When you’re in rally racing, you know these are the risks hanging over your head.

I never thought of calling it quits after that accident. Understandably, the factory thought differently. If it had been possible, I would’ve tried again this year. I could’ve built a prototype without factory involvement. If the rally still exists next year, you’ll see me tearing through Africa again. My wife and kids never told me that they think it’s life-threatening, nor have they stopped me from going.

[…]

Paris–Dakar isn’t any more dangerous than other rallies. Almost every rally has deaths or injuries. The only reason there are more in the Paris–Dakar is because the race is longer. If you don’t dare expose yourself to those dangers, you should just stay home. But when you cross the street later today, you could get run over and die too.

[…]

It was never my primary motivation, but I noticed that the rally helped me build my name outside the Netherlands. Internationally, and especially in France, there’s been a lot of publicity surrounding me and my company has benefited from that. It used to be impossible to get large orders from France. Since the Paris–Dakar, it’s no longer a problem. Thus, the lack of publicity is probably my biggest loss.

De Rooy would not race Dakar again until 2002.

References

[1] “Jan de Rooy verheugd over wijzigingen woestijnrally”, De Telegraaf, November 14, 198

[2] “DAF doet weer mee aan rally Parijs-Dakar”, Het Vrije Volk, October 11, 1986

[3] “De Rooy scheurt door” by Hans Botman, Algemeen Dagblad, December 1, 1987

[4] “Jan de Rooy blijft nuchter” by Hans Botman, Algemeen Dagblad, January 19, 1987

[5] “Hulpactie kost De Rooy zege”, De Telegraaf, January 20, 1987

[6] “Jan de Rooy als grote triomfator extra beloond”, Het Parool, January 23, 1987

[7] “Rijbewijs De Rooy drie maanden ingetrokken”, Limburgs Dagblad, April 4, 1989

[8] “Jan (DAF) de Rooy in Heerlen opgepakt”, Limburgs Dagblad, April 1, 1989

[9] “Jan de Rooy van de weg gehaald”, De Telegraaf, April 2, 1987

[10] “Politie kan rally-truck niet bijbenen”, Algemeen Dagblad, April 2, 1987

[11] “Jan de Rooy mist de ‘zandbak’” by Marcel van der Kraan, Het Vrije Volk, January 10, 1989

Featured image credit: Peter de Jong / Limburgs Dagblad (April 4, 1989)