Tuesday 6th May

Porsche 718 Cayman EV takes to the Nordschleife

Imminent new sports car looks right at home on the Nurburgring 

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In the three and a bit years since March 2022, plenty has changed. It’s a significant date because on the 17th March, 2022, Porsche confirmed - amid much speculation - that its next Boxster and Cayman would be electric. A bold strategy back then, if not an entirely unexpected one, given the Taycan’s popularity and what many believed would be a continued EV uptake. Only it hasn’t quite panned out that way, with everything from geopolitical crises to poor residuals continuing to affect sales of electric vehicles. Whatever crystal ball you peered into back then, it probably didn’t make the future look this gloomy. 

Nevertheless, the 718 EV remains on track (no pun intended), because product planning decisions can’t change on the whim of one man. Or one market. As far as we’re aware, the slated 2025 debut date for Boxster and Cayman suggested back in ‘22 still stands. And we’re almost half way through the year, so the battery powered pair isn't far away. What a nice, quiet day on the internet that’ll be. 

These pics show the Cayman on the Nurburgring for the first time, where it looks as flat and composed as any new Porsche tends to on track. It perhaps seems a little larger than expected, but it’s hard to think of when that’s not the case for replacement models right now. Especially given the existing 718 architecture has basically been around since 2012. There are Taycan and 911 cues aplenty, a little pop spoiler like there’s always been, and seemingly a variety of wheel options coming - there are three seen in these images. The upcoming 718s may represent a very different kind of two-door Porsche sports car from a powertrain perspective, but you can expect plentiful personalisation possibilities to be cut from very familiar cloth. Race Tex, most likely. 

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• Porsche slashes 2025 forecast, slows EV expansion
  
• Porsche 718 Cayman GT4 RS vs. 911 GT3 (992) | PH Video

Image credit | Baldauf

[Oily76]

The inverted Fuchs wheels are interesting!

Fascinated to see how this ends up looking, hope it's a success.

[Quickmoose]

Since this will only interest me on a design front, and accepting not a lot can be gained due to camo.
I'm not feeling the front end with sharp eye'd Tacan lights and 992.2 GTS shark fin front grilles.
Proportionally it makes it too small and sharp at the front whilst also appearing quite large and bulbous at the rear.
Pleased to hear Porsche are pushing on though.... despite REALLY disliking the idea of an EV sports car right now, they can't afford to dither...

[skidskid]

I wonder if this was on Stuttgart or Ingolstadt plates? Audi are also testing some of these as a feasibility study for a new EV TT platform share, so the rumour goes for the ones driving round on Audi factory plates.

I think this will look more understated than I expected, especially after seeing the concepts and vision cars, but still a nice evolution. I wont upgrade to one as an EV doesnt fit my use case.

[Johnny G Pipe]

Take a Taycan and make it a compact 2 seater?
That's going to be quite good, isn't it?
Can't wait.

[Pereldh]

Funny, 2 years after the Boxster EV...

[JackCT]

Same with all EV's of late - they just look really deep/tall in terms of thickness of the body. Clearly to hide the batteries, but the new Macan etc. looks the same, overly deep and just a bit wrong when trying to achieve sleekness

[Tiglon]

JackCT said:

Same with all EV's of late - they just look really deep/tall in terms of thickness of the body. Clearly to hide the batteries, but the new Macan etc. looks the same, overly deep and just a bit wrong when trying to achieve sleekness

I think that's just a new car thing, they all look lumpy and chunky these days. In my opinion new car aesthetics went rapidly down hill about 4/5 years ago, but maybe that's just the point at which I became a grumpy old man.

Hopefully this will be a great car, I'm kind of curious/worried as to whether sports cars will survive in the EV era. As much as I see the advantages and benefits of an EV for day to day use, I'm not sure if I could get excited about one as a fun second car. The Boxster/Cayman release will probably be the first big test of that.

Edited by Tiglon on Tuesday 6th May 15:12

[skidskid]

JackCT said:

Same with all EV's of late - they just look really deep/tall in terms of thickness of the body. Clearly to hide the batteries, but the new Macan etc. looks the same, overly deep and just a bit wrong when trying to achieve sleekness

Thats not the issue here, the battery isnt in a skateboard. Its in the engine position and the transmission tunnel so the proportions of this new EV Cayman are the same as the current car.

[Frimley111R]

Horrible situ for them to be in. Committed to making a Boxster/Cayman EV and bringing it out when it looks like people aren't ready for an EV performance car of any type, yet.

[magic Monkey Dust]

no boldness of design.
The Spyder,, original 718, 924, 928 Pascha trim, etc etc etc etc etc and now this. As a Dyed in wool Porsche fan I have little interest. Not the RV bit, just dreary offering. I cant see anyone under 30 caring to spend the extra money on this over a BYD either.

Edited by magic Monkey Dust on Tuesday 6th May 16:23

[JackCT]

skidskid said:

JackCT said:

Same with all EV's of late - they just look really deep/tall in terms of thickness of the body. Clearly to hide the batteries, but the new Macan etc. looks the same, overly deep and just a bit wrong when trying to achieve sleekness

Thats not the issue here, the battery isnt in a skateboard. Its in the engine position and the transmission tunnel so the proportions of this new EV Cayman are the same as the current car.

Interesting.... in that case, why is it so deep? Looks a solid 10-15% thicker from sill to roofline

[TrevorHill]

Frimley111R said:

Horrible situ for them to be in. Committed to making a Boxster/Cayman EV and bringing it out when it looks like people aren't ready for an EV performance car of any type, yet.

I’m in. I think the Cayman is the perfect car for the first proper EV sports car, providing they can keep the weight down and give it a 250+ mile range and sort out the gremlins that has plagued the Taycan. As much as I like the Taycan it’s just too big and heavy.

[kambites]

JackCT said:

Interesting.... in that case, why is it so deep? Looks a solid 10-15% thicker from sill to roofline

Looks much the same as the current Cayman to me. The nose is perhaps a tad lower which might trick the eye a bit?

Cars have generally been getting continuously taller to the shoulder with smaller glass-houses for years before EVs were a thing. I assume for side impact protection reasons?

I'm very much looking forward to seeing what Porsche can achieve with this. If anyone can make a mainstream EV sports car work, you've got to imagine it's Porsche.

[alock]

Seems like a perfectly sensible progression to me. The days of an addictive, revy engine with a manual gearbox, that can be enjoyed at legal speeds, are long gone. How long has it been since you could bounce a Porsche off the red line through first, second, and third, without risking jail time?

The continual demand for faster and faster cars has ironically killed the pleasure in ICE.

[cerb4.5lee]

Would I be right in saying that the majority would want ICE for a fun car? Or am I way off with that though, because if Porsche didn't think that it would sell, then they wouldn't built it in the first place surely?

It will be interesting to see how it all pans out.

[je777]

Some may buy/lease this with tax breaks. Used prices will show how popular it actually is. And I suspect those values will tank. There are some who just want any car with Porsche badge on it, but even then, who wants a sports car that emits a whining noise, is relatively heavy and provides few thrills beyond acceleration? It will handle and ride well - of course - but will it excite? For most, no.

[je777]

cerb4.5lee said:

Would I be right in saying that the majority would want ICE for a fun car? Or am I way off with that though, because if Porsche didn't think that it would sell, then they wouldn't built it in the first place surely?

It will be interesting to see how it all pans out.

Porsche pretty much have to build it now, having presumably committed so much money in developing it. Had they known in 2022 how things would be now, they'd probably have stuck with ICE.

[je777]

alock said:

Seems like a perfectly sensible progression to me. The days of an addictive, revy engine with a manual gearbox, that can be enjoyed at legal speeds, are long gone. How long has it been since you could bounce a Porsche off the red line through first, second, and third, without risking jail time?

The continual demand for faster and faster cars has ironically killed the pleasure in ICE.

Was there a demand for faster and faster cars, or was this what the manufacturers foisted on people, via marketing?

[TrevorHill]

je777 said:

It will handle and ride well - of course - but will it excite? For most, no.

If it handles and rides well then surely it will excite.

I have a 718 GT4, it handles and rides well. Excitement really depends on a number of factors. There’s a certain purity that I find in EVs, there’s no fuss, no drama, they just go very well. I’m hoping the Cayman does all this and more.

Different strokes for different folks.

[kambites]

I can't see the drivetrain being any worse, at least for my tastes, than the current automatic four-pot cars.