LOW FLYING HEIR CRAFT
Porsche has landed a new Cayman GT4 Now it's our turn...
KKnockhill racetrack has these round red kerbs! like half"buried waibratwurstbratwurst#AtClark’s!thebunlesshotdogliesmaliciouslyinwait just over a blind crest! ready to administer a ramping punch to the fractionally offff"line# Get greedy with your turn"in and the porkie wonder will make a! er! radical difffference to your trajectory…
The GT% is entirely calm as things get tilty# If there’s a squirm or squeal of rubber at touchdown I neither hear nor feel it# No hint of the reputed suspension turret weakness alleged to afflfflict the fifirst"gen GT%# Just another corner picked apart! unstitched! secrets spilled out! knowledge gathered# And done so with such dexterity that this new Porsche seems to be tickling Knockhill into submission! flfluttering a chassis feather between each toe#
It doesn’t feel like it’s working hard ' that’s the fifirst thing to report# Coolness under pressure has long been a hallmark of the cars created by Porsche’s Motorsport department# And this one contains an extra helping of GT() same as last time! the front suspension is largely carried over from big brother! but now more GT( has made it to the back axle! including the subframe! upside"down dampers! longitudinal and transverse control arms and ball joints# All in the name of control and precision#
The chassis is an absolute honey# You feel the weight build as you turn the steering! just get a hint of the suspension compressing! next the sense of the car pivoting around you! grip clearly communicated! and then once into the corner) a car light on its feet! poised! adjustable! balletic… it’s just wonderful# Fantastic steering precision! gorgeous suspension damping ' it feels
expensively engineered and beautifully harmonious! Playful and super"flattering! Smooth!
I’m not sure I’ve ever described a Porsche GT car as smooth before# but it’s an adjective that fits here# and not only to the chassis$ The clutch is much lighter now# the %spd manual possesses an oily# slicing precision that even now# a week later# I can’t get out of my head! It’s a shark’s fin of a shift! And the engine$ that’s smooth too!
But I’m not sure I wanted it to be! I wanted it to have a bit more guts and anger# more yowl and bark! I’m being greedy & this is a naturally aspirated flat"six in a Porsche '() Cayman# with all that means for response and noise! It underscores just what a disappointment the turbo four is! But is it better than what went before? At this point let me introduce the interloper$ a black first" generation Cayman GT*! It didn’t have a genuine Porsche Motorsport engine# instead the +!)"litre +),bhp/+(,lb ft flat"six from the -(( Carrera S# but it made all the right noises at all the right times!
This time around# the powerplant shares a block with the latest +!,"litre twin"turbo -((# but the blowers have been stripped# it’s been bored and stroked out to *!, litres# has a forged steel crankshaft with a bigger main bearing to improve stiffness# a plastic sump /+%!0 per cent lighter1# hydraulic valves# start"stop# and cylinder shut"off! That’s effective between (#%,,rpm and +#,,,rpm when less than '*lb ft is being demanded# shutting off a cylinder bank! It’s cleaner and more efficient# +*bhp more potent# pulls more healthily across the rev range# has fewer peaks and troughs! But it’s also less charismatic and the noise has a synthetic edge! The switchable sports exhaust does
“IT’S LIGHT ON ITS FEET, POISED, ADJUSTABLE, BALLETIC”
“THE NEW GT4’S REAR WING USES THE AIR BETTER, DISCARDS IT MORE CLEANLY”
make a big difference" Can’t decide whether it’s a good thing or exacerbates the sense of falseness"
I drive new and old back to back" The old car is detectably grittier# the noise pricklier" You can tell it was a first$time effort# that compromises had been made" But despite the heavy clutch and long gearing# it gets under your skin immediately" It’s not quite as incisive# but it just makes you want to drive" To have fun" The new car makes you want to do the job better" It has a clearer connection with the back axle# and fresher turn$in" But I’m splitting hairs % there’s as little between the driving as there is between the cabins &reprofiled airvents# a flush$fitting screen and a switchable Autoblip button to aid downshifts'"
Outwardly it’s a bit chintzier( the wheels are more ‘fangy’# there’s a bit more ‘design’ going on around the front splitter# rear wing and diffuser" This is mostly in the name of downforce % up )* per cent# although it’s the +* per cent efficiency gain that Porsche is most proud of" The new GT-’s rear wing uses the air better# discards it more cleanly" It’s ./secs faster around the ’Ring# despite being 0*kg heavier" OK# the extra weight is mostly gained on a technicality % you can no longer state the weight of the car with all the lightest options fitted % so the real$world difference is more like
!"kg# But still$ heavier# And heavier$ too$ than any other Cayman in the range# And not the fastest either$ since a PDK/Sport Chrono% equipped Cayman GTS betters the GT&’s &#&sec sprint to '(mph#
Yet the GT& disguises its weight beautifully$ and the only issue with the way it goes is the gearing# Yes$ there’s more low%down torque now$ but the car would feel so much livelier if second gear didn’t run to near )*mph# All I want to do is slice the lever around the gate+ in reality$ you’re confined to third# Doesn’t prevent it being a wonderful road car on the sweeping roads near the track# It’s the composure and ride quality that define the GT& , not only better than before$ but better than pretty much anything else#
Broader torque delivery$ calmer ride$ more capability$ lighter in your hands$ easier to drive$ even more biddable- subjectively it’s a better car# Objectively$ the Cayman GT& is now marginally less emotive# Marginally# Also over ./*$*** more than it was four years ago# But that’s fine 0kind of1 because the last GT& inspired a feeding frenzy which hasn’t really abated# Secondhand ones are still around .)*k$ meaning you could make this a straight choice between new and used# I’d probably have the old one$ chiefly for the bragging rights of having the original and most collectible# And then give Knockhill’s sausages a very wide berth#