Most powerful Cayman ever is one of the finest Porsches to date, but may be too uncompromising for some
Porsche's famous GT division has been responsible for some of the greatest driving cars of all time but, until now, all have been 911-based. That changes in 2022 with the Porsche Cayman GT4 RS – a hard-core, track-focussed take on the famous sportscar-maker's mid-engine coupe that's been tailored for those who savour driving quickly around racetracks.The changes over the regular GT4 are dramatic, with engineers stopping at nothing to accomplish their aim of improving performance. In fact, so radical are the updates that you could argue that more than half of the GT4 RS is all-new.The result is a car that will make some question whether the 911 GT3 is worth the significant extra outlay. For others, Porsche’s newest RS will be difficult to justify over the already sublime Cayman GT4, but whoever you are make no mistake: the GT4 RS is nothing short of a landmark Porsche.
Price and equipment
Let’s get the bad news out of the way. When it lands in Australia in the third quarter of this year, the 2022 Porsche 718 Cayman GT4 RS will cost a considerable $300,800 plus on-road costs.
That means the Porsche GT division’s latest track-day special will be a sobering $90,000 more expensive than the already pretty wonderful Cayman GT4.
At least the GT4 RS cars we get in Australia will come standard with the track-ready Clubsport Package that adds a bolted-in roll-cage, six-point harness and a handheld fire extinguisher.
Of course, Porsche insists if you actually are going to track your GT4 RS you should probably add its $29,890 Weissach pack, which swaps out the steel scaffolding for a lighter, titanium one that shaves 6kg off the kerb weight.
The dashboard covering is also improved with a racecar-style Race-Tex finish, while Weissach logos dotted around the cabin remind you of your wise investment.
Aside from the Weissach kit and some carbon-ceramic brakes (price TBC) and ultra-cool magnesium wheels (price TBC), the list of options for the GT4 RS is refreshingly short for a Porsche.
Porsche adaptive dampers, 20-inch rims, bi-xenon headlights with LED running lights, lightweight bucket seats and a carbon-fibre wing, bonnet and front fenders are all standard.
The GT division hasn’t even charged for the new close-ratio PDK transmission because a manual gearbox isn’t an option – unlike with the garden-variety GT4.
That said, it’s a bit galling that metallic paint is a hefty $6070 option, the Sport Chrono pack costs $500 extra and the German brand still charges $110 for a paltry tyre sealant and compressor kit, but at least Porsche has thrown almost everything else in for free.
Buy a 718 Cayman GT4 RS and it needs servicing every year or 15,000km, or whatever comes sooner, while the baby Porsche RS is protected by a three-year, unlimited-km warranty that is not invalidated by track use.
Powertrain and performance
There’s a wonderful story, and we hope it’s true, that whenever Porsche GT engineers are stumped they go to the pub.
“It’s over a beer or two we have some wild ideas and, sometimes, those wild ideas turn out to be good ideas,” one engineer told us at the global launch of the 2022 Porsche 718 Cayman GT4 RS.
This car is full of wild, unhinged solutions that seem so far-fetched they must be the result of eight pints of pilsner.
It begins with what powers it. If you cast your mind back only to 2020. when the Porsche launched the regular Cayman GT4, you might remember it was proud that it had created an all-new 4.0-litre flat-six to power it.
The sweet six was torquey, loved to rev and sounded great so you might be more than surprised it’s been junked for the GT4 RS.
The bean-counters realised soon on that the investment needed to boost power of the new engine would sink the entire project so a new solution was needed and that just happened to take the shape of yet another 4.0-litre naturally-aspirated flat-six, one lifted from the 911 GT3.
The GT3 engine, of course, has the rigid valve rocker arms and the individual throttle bodies needed to both rev to a stratospheric 9000rpm and liberate the 368kW of power and 450Nm of torque deemed necessary for the junior RS.
There were some problems though. Swapping out the 4.0-litre for another 4.0-litre wasn’t a like-for-like operation. The 911 GT3 engine features dry-sump lubrication and needs space for an extra tank.
Incredibly, the engine also had to be rotated for a mid-engine application, which meant a completely new exhaust system to ensure the exhaust gases are piped in the right direction.
Then there was a lack of space for the intake. More ingenuity fixed that, with a pair of fresh air intakes introduced where the side windows once lived, feeding into a square carbon airbox.
We’ll talk more about the sound the new set-up makes later, but the final fly in the ointment was transmissions.
The obvious choice was the lightning-quick seven-speed dual-clutch PDK automatic transmission that is 5kg lighter than a manual and now packs closer-ratios, with its seventh gear shorter than the regular GT4’s sixth.
The biggest disappointment was Porsche couldn’t adapt any manuals to work with the GT4 RS, despite some valiant efforts. The GT4’s six-speed can only cope with up to 420Nm and adapting it would’ve been too costly.
That said, few can complain with the PDK’s efficiency. Against the clock the GT4 RS can launch to 100km/h in 3.4 seconds and 200km/h in 10.9 seconds. Top speed is claimed to be more than 315km/h.
Around a circuit, the killer combination of less weight and more power, downforce and mechanical grip, plus added handling finesse, sees the GT4 RS lap the Nurburgring in 7:04.11 minutes – an astonishing 23.6 seconds quicker than the GT4.
Driving and comfort
Like every other Porsche GT product, weight was considered the enemy during the gestation period of the 2022 Porsche 718 Cayman GT4 RS and, with a full tank of fuel and all fluids on board, the most extreme factory Cayman ever produced tips the scales at 1415kg.
That’s a respectable 35kg less than a PDK-equipped GT4 – except that’s far from the real story.
The weight savings can be up to 60kg if you’re canny with the options (ceramic brakes, mag wheels, roll-cage delete), but then it’s a bit unfair to compare the GT4 RS with the ‘normal’ GT4 because, by our estimate, more than 50 per cent of the RS is new, or at least recycled from other Porsches.
To widen the wheel tracks front (6mm) and rear (8mm) and achieve the rigidity needed for track performance, engineers effectively threw away the front half of the GT4.
Again, instead of starting from scratch the innovations continued.
After some investigation, engineers realised they could squeeze the front section of the 911 Carrera 4’s sub-structure within Cayman’s snout. The stiffer subframe also helped provide stronger mounts for the front suspension from the 991.2-gen GT3.
Sadly, packaging the current car’s double wishbones was a bridge too far.
The new front struts also incorporate helper springs and, to offset a 30mm drop all around, for the first time a Cayman is available with a front-lift system that originated on the C4.
Throw in adjustable dampers, bespoke springs, solid ball-joint mounted suspension and new anti-roll bar, and the GT4 Rs truly earns its mongrel status.
Giving the appearance it’s still at Cayman, there’s been a complete aero rethink too, raising total downforce by 25 per cent.
Highlights include the NACA air intakes to cool the huge 408mm front rotors (410mm for the carbon ceramic brakes) and the vented front fender that features cutaways from the late 90s 911 GT1 racer.
At the rear of the car there are swan-neck mounts for a giant rear wing that adds meaningful downforce without the drag and ensures you’ll never mistake the RS version for the regular GT4.
And the same can be said from behind the wheel. From a deep baseness that builds to a throaty six-cylinder roar, which then crescendos into an outrageous scream similar to that of a 1980s F1 car, the soundtrack alone is pure thoroughbred racer.
The racing theme continues with the way the junior RS changes direction; the steering is fast and precise and manages to telegraph just how much grip there is at the front axle – which in almost every case is an awful lot.
On track, the performance of the RS is both accessible and huge fun, never punishing clumsy mistakes in the same way as its more serious rear-engine brethren.
Dare to push harder and the GT4 RS likes to play and indulge in large slip angles. The optional carbon brakes (we didn’t try the steel anchors) are well up to the abuse, never fading after continuous hard laps.
It’s not yet known if Michelin Pilot Sport Cup 2s will be standard-fitment in Australia, but if you get an RS don’t take delivery without them. Able to withstand light rain and in temps of around seven degrees C at the launch, they delivered incredible levels of grip but offered a very progressive breakaway.
The ABS system (which allows trail-braking) and ESC calibration, meanwhile, were all developed for the grippy Michelins and it shows.
On track the PDK ‘box is as brutally efficient as ever and doesn’t detract from the enjoyment. All of which adds up to a car that provides the confidence to push far harder than you ever dared.
On the road, the GT4 RS remains an engaging companion but if you’re looking for one performance car to rule them all, its overt track bias means it fidgets and is disturbed all too often.
Luckily, its well sorted dampers stop the stiffly-sprung Cayman being thrown into the hedges, but if you buy a GT4 RS expect some pain in the ride department, just like the current breed of 911 GT3.
Added wind, tyre and general road noise also permeates into the stripped-back cabin, as does some ugly resonance from the airbox, but all is always forgiven with a trip to the 9000rpm redline.
The added mid-gear urge is also welcome but a lack of pace was never something you could complain of behind the wheel of the far more civilised but still sweet-sounding non-RS GT4.
Sheer joy
It wasn’t long ago a car like the 2022 Porsche 718 Cayman GT4 RS would never have been allowed by Porsche bosses.
The way it encroaches into 911 GT3 territory for pace, excitement and sheer joy behind the wheel needs to be experienced to be believed – and all for a substantial $69,000 less than its hallowed sibling.
Porsche’s GT division stresses that both the GT3’s extra power and downforce, plus its rear-steer tech, ultimately leave the hard-core 911’s crown untarnished both on road and on track.
We’re not convinced.
When it comes to the ultimate lap time, maybe, but the sheer user-friendliness of the Cayman, plus its narrower body on country roads, means that when it comes to mere mortal drivers of average talent, I’d wager the GT4 RS would be the quicker car.
That said, in most cases pace has little to do with fun and if you spend most for your time on real roads it’s the $90,000-cheaper GT4 with its slick and engaging six-speed manual that makes the most sense.
But who are we kidding? The real GT4 RS customer will be buying it as a second, third or even fourth car and those lucky sods will probably already have the regular GT4 in their stable.
It’s perhaps those owners who will appreciate the GT4 RS the most and be able to rejoice in its unwavering focus and depth of engineering, and the way it makes you feel like a real-life superhero behind the wheel.
How much does the 2022 Porsche 718 Cayman GT4 RS cost?Price: $300,800 (plus on-road costs)Available: Q3 2022Engine: 4.0-litre flat six-cylinder petrolOutput: 368kW/450NmTransmission: Seven-speed dual-clutch automaticFuel: 13.2L/100km (WLTP)CO2: 288g/km (WLTP)
Safety rating: N/A
Keyword: Porsche 718 Cayman GT4 RS 2022 Review