2019 Porsche 718 Cayman GT4 And Spyder Say No To Turbos
Fans of high-revving naturally-aspirated engines, rejoice. The Porsche Cayman GT4 is returning to the road, eschewing the rest of the line鈥檚 turbo flat-fours 鈥?and it鈥檚 bringing an open-top Spyder with it. Porsche officially announced the pair late Monday. Standing at the top of the 718 Boxster and 718 Cayman ranges, the Spyder and GT4 are both mechanically identical, packing the same 414hp 4.0-liter, flat-six engine. The new engine is unrelated to the similarly-sized heart of the 911 GT3; instead it shares its origins with the 911 Carrera鈥檚 turbocharged engine. Nonetheless, free of snails, it should be a singer, with a redline of 8,000rpm. Torque sits at 309lbft, which should encourage regular rowing of the (standard) six-speed manual transmission. There鈥檚 no mention of a PDK either: the only shifting assist is an automatic rev-matching feature for downshifts, which can be turned off. Whether buyers opt for the purist hardtop or the wind-in-your-hair Spyder, both cars tip the scale at 3130lb. That gives them an identical 0-60mph dash of 4.2 seconds 鈥?we assume with the lightweight roof up on the Spyder. Steel brake rotors are standard, with Porsche鈥檚 carbon-ceramic discs available as an option.
The GT4 and Spyder both gain a harder-edged look outside too. A large front lip spoiler is joined by a functional diffuser out back. On the GT4 this accounts for 30% of the rear axle downforce; the Spyder becomes the first Boxster model to generate aerodynamic downforce at the rear because of it. The Spyder鈥檚 rear spoiler deploys automatically at 74mph, whereas the GT4鈥檚 larger fixed item produces 20% more downforce than the previous model. All in, Porsche says the 718 Cayman GT4 can post lap times a full 10 seconds faster than the original GT4. That puts it at an even 7:30 鈥?faster than the 911 GT2 of only a decade ago. Changes to the interior are minimal. Both cars get a GT Sport steering wheel, with a handy centering line on the GT4鈥檚 rim. Porsche has also shaved a half inch off the gear lever鈥檚 height for more directness. In select markets, a Clubsport package will include a half-cage, fire extinguisher, and six-point driver鈥檚 side seatbelt.
He will coach and co-drive with the aptly named Car whose previous experience includes Radicals and a range of GT machinery. 鈥淚 am very excited to be competing in British GT 2019,鈥?said Car. 鈥淚 have long wished to take part in GT endurance racing, and I think British GT is the best platform to do this in the UK. What has made this proposition so exciting, and convinced me to take this step, is to be teaming up with Dino and having him as a co-driver as his speed and success is second to none. Having Dino onboard in a Porsche GT4 is too good an opportunity to turn down. I will draw motivation from Dino鈥檚 speed and commitment and hopefully be able to produce good results. 鈥淭his fantastic package is enhanced by racing the new-for-2019 Porsche Cayman GT4 Clubsport. 鈥淚 spent 2018 working with Chris and developing his driving to be at this point and I鈥檓 excited to see his progress as we move forwards this year. I have been really impressed with his natural speed and willingness to learn, so I think, as a combination, we鈥檙e going to be very strong.
I know that my job will be to help Chris be as fast as possible and I believe we will be right where we want to be when the first round of races arrive. 鈥淔rom a personal point of view, it鈥檚 nice to be continuing my career in a Porsche, a brand that not only myself but my sponsors have got to know well over the last four years. Porsche鈥檚 first official GT4 foray came in 2016 when the original Cayman also contested British GT. And while the new model bears the same name and 3.8-litre boxer engine as its predecessor, it also features significant changes. For instance, it will be the first-ever production race car to feature body parts made of natural-fibre composite material. The driver and passenger doors plus rear wing are made of an organic fibre mix, sourced agricultural by-products such as flax or hemp fibres and feature similar properties to carbon fibre in terms of weight and stiffness. GT Marques鈥?Porsche will join British GT鈥檚 pre-season Media Day at Donington Park on March 5. Entry is free for fans wishing to attend. Oulton Park then hosts the campaign鈥檚 opening round over Easter Bank Holiday Weekend. Reserve your tickets for April 20 & 22 here.
The German configurator is up if you want to check it out. Turn off these ads? Id skip it unless shes going to use launch control. The clock can be ordered separately, I think. All the SUVs have the wart (clock). What is displayed in the wart depends on model or options. Of course that might be what you were saying anyway! She wants me to configure the Macan/Cayenne as if I were configuring it for me. I'm going to spend some time driving the Cayenne and Macan next month. I would definitely go S/GTS/Turbo for the Macan. But if we go Cayenne I could easily see going with a Base model and optioning it out nice. All the SUVs have the wart (clock). What is displayed in the wart depends on model or options. Of course that might be what you were saying anyway! She wants me to configure the Macan/Cayenne as if I were configuring it for me.