It may seem strange that after Porsche has spent the last few years turning all of its glorious naturally aspirated sports cars into turbocharged models it has now done an about-face and introduced a new 718 Cayman GT4 Clubsport with an un-aided 3.8-liter flat six engine, but that is exactly what has happened.
And Oh My God it sounds SO GOOD!
The 718 Cayman GT4 Clubsport is the track-only version of the mid-engine sports car, and reaches back a few years to 2016 and the 991.1-generation Carrera GTS to find 425 horsepower worth of non-turbo motivation. This is up 40 additional horses over the last Cayman GT4 Clubsport. Power is still shipped through a 6-speed PDK gearbox to the rear wheels. Suspension remains the same GT3 Cup-derived spec.
In addition to extra power, the new 718-iteration of the Clubsport receives bodywork with more downforce, including swan-neck-style rear wing mounts, and a more aggressive front fascia. The wing, those mounts, and both doors are built of a new natural fiber which Porsche says is more sustainable than carbon or fiberglass, made of flax. That’s interesting.
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Interestingly, the 718 Cayman GT4 Clubsport retains a street car engine tune, allowing it to run on standard 91 octane fuel. Additionally, it can be serviced at any Porsche Center.
The GT4 Clubsport is now available in two different specifications, depending on what you want to do with the car. The “Competition” model is similar in spec to the car it replaces. It’s aimed squarely at the FIA International GT4 class, which runs in IMSA’s Michelin Pilot Challenge class among others. The new version, called “Trackday”, retains antilock braking, ESC, and traction control to help ensure rich amateurs don’t end up in the wall. Further, the Trackday model has a fixed shock absorber setup and does not allow for brake bias adjustment to prevent drivers from adjusting things they don’t explicitly understand.
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Somehow Porsche delivered an incredible 421 examples of the old GT4 Clubsport around the world, according to Fritz Enzinger, Porsche’s head of motorsport. He goes on to explain the 718 version “possesses significantly more racing genes than its successful predecessor. The power of the engine has increased considerably. At the same time, we were able to increase the downforce and the cockpit is now even better suited to drivers’ needs.”
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The Competition version will cost 157,000 Euro (about $179,000), while the Trackday model is slightly less expensive as it does without onboard airjacks and an automatic fire supression system, running just 134,000 Euro (about $152,700).
According to a report from Road & Track, Porsche will use the new 718 Cayman GT4 Clubsport as a development platform for an upcoming street car version of the same. This is incredibly good news.
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You can see the new Porsche racer make its debut in the Grand Sport class during the opening race of IMSA’s Michelin Pilot Challenge season at Daytona later this month.
Here’s hoping a rally version is coming, too!
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