Yahoo News Upcoming Porsche 718 Cayman GT4 RS Could Have 500 HP
Porsche is preparing a more hard-core version of the 718 Cayman GT4, to be called the GT4 RS.
It will be lighter, stiffer, and more powerful than the standard GT4 model.
The RS is slated to arrive sometime next year with a significant price premium compared to the GT4.
This story originally appeared in the May 2020 issue of Car and Driver as part of our 25 Cars Worth Waiting For package. Our sneak preview of the most exciting cars coming in the next few years draws on knowledge from leaked product-development plans, spy photos, and loose-lipped insiders mixed in with information that has already been officially released. The reporting for this story was completed in February and early March, before the auto industry began feeling major effects of the coronavirus pandemic. As many automakers are now delaying or pausing development programs, the debut and on-sale dates reported here may change.
The upcoming Porsche 718 Cayman GT4 RS is a lighter, more powerful, and even more track-capable version of one of the great sports cars of the moment. It is set to arrive in late 2021 or early 2022, starting around $130,000, and here's what to expect.
The GT4 reintroduced Porsche's flat-six to the Cayman line after the latest redesign replaced it with a turbocharged flat-four. That 4.0-liter makes 414 horsepower. The RS's six will also displace 4.0 liters, but in the vein of the 690-hp 911 GT2 RS, figure on output approaching 500.
Chassis-wise, the RS will use a lower version of the GT4's underpinnings. That car already includes the entire front axle and many back-axle components from the 911 GT3, so we don't expect to see much change, just a stiffening here and a lightening there.
There's little direct competition for a two-seater at this price point, output, and focus, save maybe the forthcoming Corvette Z06. Other Porsches are close, but the company so successfully delineates its products that even those don't overlap.
If Porsche is too conservative with the powertrain and suspension calibrations, the RS could feel too similar to the GT4 to justify its pricing premium. But we're not worried. Porsche has plenty of experience thinly slicing its pies—and plenty of customers willing to pay for a taste.
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