One of the most important things on the Mongol Rally is your car, it's right up there with the name of your team and what fancy dress you are wearing to the parties, so your first dilemma there is what car to take.

The rules state 9 years old or younger and under 1200cc, but that still leave a lot of options, how do you choose?

What car to take depends a bit on exactly what you're looking for in a car, for example, if you want something that will challenge your mechanical capabilities to the hilt we would probably recommend a French car, like these chaps from the 2011 Rally who had more than a few breakdowns in their Peugeot 206.

If you want something reliable we would say go for something Japanese or Korean, these also have the advantage of being easy to fix and having more parts available the further East you get and hence have a much better resale value at the finish line benefitting the charity more. The video below demonstrates wonderfully the way these cars can be both fixed and 'mongolised'; fixed using parts adapted from other vehicles.

If you want something that is truly in the spirit of the rally, a vehicle which will truly win you the respect of both your peers and us at Adventurist HQ, you need to find something under 1000cc, the smaller the better really, something like these bad boys:

Nissan Micra
Suzuki Wagon R
Suzuki Swift
Suzuki Alto
Suzuki Carry
Toyota iQ
Toyota Aygo
Toyota Yaris
Mitsubishi i
Daihatsu Cuore
Daihatsu Hijet
Vauxhall Agila
Perodua Kelisa 
Perodua Kenari
Daewoo Matiz
Fiat Seicento
Hyundai Getz
Kia Picanto
Fiat 500
Smart Fourtwo
Peugeot 107
Citroen C1

Pushing the Boundaries

If you want something that will be a bit bigger; because you're a bit of a wimp, or have a tiny willy you could look at something more spacious, something like:
Renault Kangoo
Citroen Berlingo
Fiat Doblo
Skoda Fabia
Kia Rio

If you're looking to take anything over 1200cc, you should take a long hard look in the mirror and ask yourself when you became such a wuss. All vehicles over 1200cc must be approved by Adventurist HQ and we may ask you to raise some additional charity funds for the privilege.

If youre not just a wimp with a small willy but also the sort of misguided fool that things a 4x4 makes the Rally easier or more fun you could look at a Suzuki Jimny or Daihatsu Terios. There are a couple of problems with these though, firstly if you bring one on the Rally you will be judged, secondly you need to know how to drive them or they're no better than a 2WD

Bikes 

We love bikes on the Rally. If you have to be tough to do the Mongol Rally you need to be tougher than a concrete Rubix Cube to do it by bike. Because it's that bit tougher we allow 2 bikes per team. Normally we like hairdryer powered sub 125cc bikes, but we can be a bit flexible on this if you drop us a message using the contact form below.

If you were tempted to do the Rally by bike but wanted a bit more convincing, you might want to read up on the exploits of the mighty Wayne Barrett

Emergency and Service Vehicles

In previous years the rally has brought ambulances and fire engines into Mongolia, they have provided vital assistance for the services both in Ulaanbaatar and the countryside beyond. Since then however Mongolia has developed exponetially and the large fleet of new Japanses vehicles imported from Japan means they no longer have a need for decomissioned European service vehicles. If you think you can get a new (5 years old or younger) ambulance or fire truck donated, it might be suitable for a charity or NGO so please get in contact using the form below.

Something Special?

In the past we've had all manner of wierd and wonderful vehicles on the Rally, the problem with them is they tend to fall foul of Mongolia's rather expensive import taxes. Because of this we can only aoolow them by prior arangement and only if you drive/ship them home afterwards. If you've got your heart set on something truly unique, silly or downright genius, drop us a message using the form below.
(nb if you ask about a ruddy great landrover we will probably give you a rude reply).