Desert cowboy René Metge dead at 82

Triple Paris – Dakar winner René Metge has passed away in hospital in France. Next to his career in rally raids, Metge was also a talented circuit driver, racing in the Le Mans 24 Hours and in touring cars.

Whereas Jacky Ickx was the one who led Porsche into the desert, it was Metge who would enjoy the most success, winning twice with Porsche in 1984 and 1986. Early eighties, Ickx and Metge were the fastest and most astute drivers in the Paris – Dakar rally raid. Both could claim they were ultimately responsible for the Dakar’s transition from a hippie-esque adventurous raid to a no-prisoners-held top motorsport event where manufacturers would duel with high-powered prototypes. Budgets would quickly escalate and push the amateur drivers lower down the order.

Rover dealer/racer

Metge was the first to break the mould, winning in a not-so-standard Range Rover in 1981. At the time, René Metge was a racer, but most of all a successful Rover dealer in France (Rover, Jaguar, Land Rover). Through his connections with BL’s motorsport division, he received a Range Rover that had been tweaked by TWR, with a prototype five-speed Overfinch gearbox.

Ickx would take the game further, first by winning in 1983 with a prototype Mercedes 280 GE, and after that by convincing Porsche to enter the Dakar rally, first with a four-wheel driven 911 prototype – the 953 – in 1984, and in 1985 and 1986 with the mindblowing 959. As Jacky Ickx explained in the interview in Tazio 9: “Of course I knew I attracted a fierce competitor by asking René to join us. But this doubled Porsche’s chances of victory, so for me it was a no-brainer.”

Striking back with 959

In 1984, Metge built up a substantial lead, whereas Ickx was obliged to chase hard after electrical gremlins early in the race. He would crash out later. 1985 was a disastrous year for Porsche, losing all three cars. Porsche came back with a vengeance for 1986. It scored a one-two for Metge/Lemoine and Ickx/Brasseur, even if a massive effort was required by Porsche’s engineer Roland Kussmaul, who was driving the third 959. Both Metge and Ickx had come stuck whilst crossing a river in Senegal. Kussmaul managed to pull them out, clearing their path for victory.

Metge’s knowledge of the African ‘pistes’ was legendary, and he read the road unlike any other, managing to spot traps that others didn’t see. But the 1986 Paris – Dakar was overshadowed by the death of its organizer Thierry Sabine in a helicopter crash. Metge would make sure the event could continue, and he took over as race director for the following two years.

Metge, the organizer

Africa was in Metge’s heart, and after the Dakar rally left the African continent, he helped manage a worthy successor in the form of the Africa Eco Race, which he helped organize with Jean-Louis Schlesser, another former winner. It was here we spoke Metge in 2018, in Menton (France). “Ah, you couldn’t believe it when the Porsches arrived in the Dakar rally. All of a sudden, we were hitting 200 kph in the sand. And it felt completely safe. The 959 was much faster still. The big difference, with these sports cars, we were hitting top speeds a lot sooner. With the older 4x4s, this took a lot longer. The 911 hit 200 in the blink of an eye. It took some time to adjust, but then it was fun.”

Le Mans

Metge would participate six times in the Le Mans 24 Hours as well, between 1977 and 1987. Always in a Porsche, his best result came in 1982 when he ended fifth in a Porsche 935 K3 he shared with Dany Snobeck and François Servanin. Metge was also behind the wheel of the four-wheel drive 961 – the 959 in circuit guise – in 1986 and 1987. Both times, he walked away with class victory, even if the overall results were a little disappointing. In 1976 and 1978, he won the French superproduction touring car championship in a Triumph Dolomite Sprint. In 1987, Metge won the French Porsche 944 Turbo Cup as well.

René Metge passed away on January 3^rd as both the Dakar and the Africa Eco Race got underway.