Yes, basically you dont need a carnet (at that time i was there), though things change there really fast so its expectable that today things are completly different.

You should apply for a passavant when entering. I got mine at the bordercrossing Dagana comming from Mauretania. As we pisst of a "civilian touroperator" who is in fact the boss and controlling "his private" (the official borderpost) Dagana, i got just a 3 days passavant (what they have to issue). Costs 2500 cfa for stamping. You should get a insurance slip for your bike too, costs around 5000 cfa for one month. Available at every insurance office in town.

Within these 3 (working) days, weekend does not count, you get to the customs head office in dakar (see the picture below, the entrance is marked red), head up to the 5th (i am not shure, maybe its the 6th) floor in the morning. Expect it to be crowded. Get a ticket and wait until its your turn to go to the chefs office. Of course you can "buy" a shortcut for your turn, if you dont want to wait half the day. In the office you will ask him to "prolongé" your passavant. Keep cool, french is crucial. Try to negotiate a 30 days, i got just 15 days regardless i had a short audience with the "big boss" in his office on the same floor where he is watching TV in his couch. You will hand out your passport and the passavant, being told that you can come pick it up around 4 o clock, before they close their office. Doing that "prolongation" honestly, will set you back another 2500 cfa.
Around 4, a guy will come out of the office to the waiting hall and shouting peoples names of the bunch of passports he's got. The cenery reminded me very much of a teacher, distributing the exams to his class



You should be able to get a new or a extension of your passavant at every (exept Dagana) bordercrossing too. I am not shure anymore if you can extend your passavant twice. If yes, i think you wont get another 14 days, maybe just a week or a few days...but hey, its africa so basically everything is possible...


My fellows with their trucks had carnets.



Dagana officals did not want to process the carnets in Dagana, so they had to stamp it in dakar, in the customs office at the port. Cant tell you what that costs..