The Porsche Cayman GT4 is Here!

If you like driving, the Porsche Cayman is probably the sweet spot in Porsche's line-up for you. This second generation, internally dubbed 981, of the mid-engine coupe has had nothing but praise about its fluid driving dynamics from reviewers and owners alike. Now Porsche has decided to really let the Cayman shine by releasing the new GT4.

The Porsche Cayman GT4 is the most powerful Cayman ever, sourcing its engine straight from the 911 Carrera S. The 3.8L flat six will be making 385 hp at 7,400 rpm, making it 45 hp more powerful than the Cayman GTS. Here is the good bit though: the Cayman GT4 will only be offered in a 6 speed manual transmission. I am in favour of this decision, as the Cayman GT4 should be about the sensation of driving and not strictly about lap times. However, this is also a bit of an odd move, as the 911 GT3 is only offered in PDK. No matter how they came to the conclusion that the GT4 should be only a manual, it only matters that Porsche still has faith in a good old three pedal set-up.

The rest of the car also receives some serious upgrades as well. The suspension is stiffer and lower by 30 mm, it gets carbon-ceramic brakes, a large fixed wing that generates downforce, a sports exhaust, sport chrono pack, an upgraded mechanical limited slip diff, 20in. wheels, and sport seats. So yeah, serious bit of kit then. At 1340 kg, it weighs about the same as the Cayman S.

Porsche claims that the Cayman GT4 has lapped the Nurburgring Nordschleife in 7m 40s, which puts it in the neighbourhood of some very fast cars. In fact, it laps it as fast as the 997 GT3.

The Cayman GT4 will be coming to Canada in the 3^rd quarter of 2015 and pricing has been announced at $96,500 CAD. Watch for its debut at the Geneva Auto Show later this year.