car news car tests

Porsche 718 Cayman GT4 RS, from another planet – test and video

October 19, 2022

The magic of theater

There is a crisis in the cultural sector. Theater, in particular, has lost heavily in popularity. Do people then no longer like the atmosphere in the theater? You would say theater stimulates the senses more than playing a video on a television or tablet. The fact remains that the experience in a theater is unsurpassed. You feel more, experience more atmosphere, but somewhere you also know that this way of entertainment may be over in the near future due to the rise of digitization.

Porsche 718 Cayman GT4 RS is to HUIL! – AutoRAI TV

Porsche 718 Cayman GT4 RS is last convulsion

You may think of the Porsche 718 Cayman GT4 RS as the culture sector. Those who can still afford it treat themselves to an unsurpassed driving experience full of smell and color including accompanying caress of the senses. But we already know that it will end soon. Indeed, the Porsche 718 Cayman GT4 RS is the very last convulsion of a Porsche compact sports car with conventional mid-engine in its most extreme form. The future of the 718 Cayman is electric.

Most brutal 718 Cayman ever

And yes, the days of the 718 Cayman as we know it today are numbered. Porsche knows that, too. For that reason, Porsche pulled out all the stops to build the most brutal 718 Cayman ever. With the help of the 911 GT3, they succeeded. The Porsche 718 Cayman GT4 RS is a car unlike any other. He instinctively comes from another planet. The recipe used is unique, the effect magisterial.

Powertrain Porsche 911 GT3

That the 718 Cayman GT4 RS is a special car is immediately apparent when this sports car appears on your retina. Its spoilers, hefty air intakes and exotic materials reveal that you are dealing with a special automobile here. The main attraction is its power source, taken from the Porsche 911 GT3. Atmospheric, in other words. No turbos, but a the-more-revving-the-more-fun character.

9,000 rpm!

The six-cylinder boxer engine is derived directly from the 911 GT3 R and 911 RSR. With a maximum output of 368 kW (500 hp) at 8,400 rpm and maximum torque of 450 Nm at 6,750 rpm, the center-mounted 4.0-liter atmospheric six-pit engine is the most powerful among 718 models. The redline is only at 9,000 rpm.

Features of the block include a central oil feed, forged pistons and lightweight titanium piston rods. The dual-mass flywheel comes from the 718 Cayman GT4 Clubsport. The rigid valve train and dry-sump lubrication with separate oil reservoir are already familiar from the 911 GT3. In fact, this is a race car with license plates.

Seven-speed PDK

You shift gears with a lightning-fast 7-speed Porsche Doppelkupplung (PDK) with new PDK selector lever that looks like a gearshift. This transmission perfectly suits the wild character of the six-cylinder. Moreover, the placement of the poker is perfect. Your hand falls directly on it when you let go of the steering wheel. Shifting gears can also be done with flippers behind this wheel, but somewhere the reward is greater by shifting gears yourself with the lever.

Spoiler alert

Aggressive. That best sums up the styling of this Porsche. The upper openings in the carbon fiber (CFRP) fenders, called slats, optimize wheel arch ventilation, as does the newly designed front spoiler edge with side blades that provide airflow in all directions. A gooseneck rear spoiler completes the look. The front valve has NACA air intakes for optimal brake cooling. The result: more downforce.

Specific undercarriage

With a car of this caliber comes a matching chassis that can handle all that violence. Porsche combines chassis components from motorsport. The independent lightweight suspension is based on the design of the 911 GT3 RS (991 II). Rigid springs in combination with auxiliary springs typical of motorsport and specific suspension provide traction and stability. The height, wheel camber, toe-in and stabilizer bars can be individually tuned to the race track.

Front axle elevator system

Unique to the 718 Cayman GT4 RS is the front axle elevator system that raises the nose by 30 mm at the push of a button. Omitting this system would almost be torture for the car, as the far protruding front splitter would be crushed at the first best threshold. Thanks to the elevator system, the front splitter with GT4 RS print stays in one piece when the threshold is just a little too high.

Stretching the legs

Those with the space to let the GT4 RS stretch its proverbial legs will sprint from 0 to 100 km/h in 3.4 seconds. The 0-200 sprint is over after 10.9 seconds. Great numbers for a 1,415 kilogram sports car. Fortunately, there is also quiet driving with this Porsche. A weekend trip is not a problem either, as the front luggage compartment has a capacity of 125 liters and in the rear there are 136 liters available.

Starting price 718 Cayman GT4 RS

Did we mention the starting price of the Porsche 718 Cayman GT4 RS? No, here it comes: 226,400 euros. By comparison, a normal 718 Cayman with 300 hp starts at 93,600 euros. That 226 grand still excludes desirable options. Prices can reach well over 280,000 euros. The Porsche 718 Cayman GT4 RS we drove has such a price tag.

Weissach Package

This is due in part to the Weissach Package present. The cost of this package is 16,699 euros. The Weissach Package consists of the following individual items:

The 20-inch lightweight forged wheels made of magnesium (saves 10 kilograms in total) add to that. These wheels are only available in combination with the Weissach Package.

Porsche Ceramic Composite Brake (PCCB).

Another expensive option is PCCB. This stands for Porsche Ceramic Composite Brake. For 8,356 euros you get a ceramic brake system, carbon-fiber reinforced ceramic brake discs, internally ventilated and perforated and brake chambers made of forged aluminum. The discs are 410 mm in diameter at the front and 390 mm at the rear. On the front axle we detect calipers with six pistons. On the rear axle, these are four-piston calipers. You can recognize the PCCB system by calipers in a yellow finish.

As standard, the 718 Cayman GT4 RS is equipped with fixed aluminum monobloc brake pads with six pistons at the front and four pistons at the rear – all in red – and the cast iron and aluminum ceramic brake discs with an extremely large diameter of 408 mm at the front and 380 mm at the rear.

The driving experience

Goosebumps! For the first time, we pull out to 9,000 rpm. What emerges is a reaction I personally never expected. Tears in my eyes. Apparently, this Porsche managed to strike a nerve with its ear-pleasing soundtrack. Something no other car has ever managed.

Porsche provides a unique soundtrack thanks to a carbon fiber air filter housing for roaring interior sound and optimal airflow. Instead of rear side windows, black painted carbon air intakes are used here. They increase the dynamic pressure of the airflow and also supply the engine with air. In the Weissach Package – as in “our” test car – they have a trim of decorative carbon and are fitted with additional louvers, for even more targeted airflow.

Emotions

The sound of the GT4 RS builds nicely. Every additional 1,000 rpm new instruments are used. But only after 8,000 rpm does something special happen. The boxer sound is complemented by a roaring hammering, creating a sound sensation that seems to come from another planet. Goosebumps up to the nails. Every outburst is a hit. Soon things get emotional. This is a driving experience that no other car has offered before. For that reason alone, this Porsche is a must have. A collector’s item, but not for parking in a private museum, but rather for driving.

Because driving is also sensational. Granted: the car is quite stiff and noisy. That gets a little tiresome for perhaps longer distances. But the real die hards will care. Who know that Porsche is presenting a pure sports car here. A car that inspires confidence thanks to
the mid-engine concept
. The steering feel is mind-blowing, the carbon fiber bucket seats offer perfect lateral support, the brakes are easy to dose, you can’t have your fun.

To cry over

Beware, a threshold! Right, in the Netherlands, the 718 Cayman GT4 RS is not always ideal. It’s not the most practical choice anyway, but you soon forget that when you get in, crank up the boxer engine, and after the engine has been properly warmed up pop towards those 9,000 rpm. Time after time, this Porsche hits the sensitive chord. It is a Porsche to cry over, in the most positive sense of the word. Every tear is one never to be forgotten.

Conclusion driving test Porsche 718 Cayman GT4 RS

Still special: the same recipe as the 911 GT3, but instinctively a completely different experience. The 911 GT3 is the more comfortable choice that you might want to drive every day, but the 718 Cayman GT4 RS offers more experience. The 718 Cayman GT4 RS is theater. Pure theater.

Photography: YN – Automotive Photographer





























Porsche 718 Cayman GT4 RS