Porsche 718 Cayman GT4 RS

Porsche 718 Cayman GT4 RS

The Porsche 718 Cayman GT4 RS, launched in 2022, represents a watershed moment in Porsche's modern history. For decades, the mid-engine Cayman had been deliberately kept below the 911 in the performance hierarchy, its engines detuned and its specifications limited to avoid embarrassing the flagship. The GT4 RS shattered that glass ceiling, packing the full-fat 4.0-liter naturally aspirated flat-six from the 992 GT3 — complete with its 9,000 rpm redline and individual throttle bodies — into the Cayman's dynamically superior mid-engine layout.

The result is a car that many professional drivers and journalists have declared the finest driver's car Porsche has ever produced. The mid-engine configuration provides a lower polar moment of inertia than the rear-engine 911, meaning the car changes direction with almost supernatural agility. Combined with the GT3's motorsport-derived engine, the experience is otherworldly — the flat-six sits just behind the driver's head, separated only by a thin glass window, filling the cabin with an unfiltered mechanical symphony that builds to a frenzy near 9,000 rpm.

To manage the additional power and thermal demands, Porsche fitted the GT4 RS with NACA-style air intakes in the rear quarter panels — a first for a production Cayman — feeding air to the engine's intake system. The rear window is replaced with a lightweight panel featuring gill-style vents for heat extraction. The front fenders are borrowed from the Cayman GT4 Clubsport racing car, with large exit vents to reduce front axle lift.

The chassis is a masterwork of precision engineering. The PASM (Porsche Active Suspension Management) system is recalibrated for the GT4 RS, with stiffer springs and dampers than the standard GT4. Ball-joint suspension mounts replace rubber bushings at key points, providing more precise wheel control at the cost of slightly increased NVH. Rear-axle steering is not available, keeping the chassis simple and communicative.

Weight reduction follows the expected GT formula: carbon fiber front hood and fenders, polycarbonate windows, lightweight carpets, and deletion of most sound deadening. The 7-speed PDK is the only transmission offered — Porsche determined that the manual gearbox couldn't withstand the engine's output in this application, and the PDK's shift speed complements the engine's character perfectly.

At the Nurburgring Nordschleife, the GT4 RS lapped in 7:09.300, a remarkable time for a car with no forced induction and no hybrid assistance. More importantly, it set this time with a purity and driver involvement that larger, more powerful machines cannot match. The GT4 RS proves that the mid-engine layout, which Porsche has explored since the 550 Spyder of the 1950s, reaches its ultimate expression when freed from artificial limitations.