Despite near-constant rumors of its death, Porsche is apparently still hard at work developing the next-generation 718 Cayman and 718 Boxster sports cars. Spotted on video recently at the Nürburgring, the new 718 looks like it may be wearing near-production bodywork, indicating Porsche is close to finishing the model family’s development. And notable by its absence in the video is any kind of engine noise – yep, you guessed it, the next Cayman and Boxster are gonna be all-electric.
Base Trim Engine
2L H-4 ICE
Base Trim Transmission
6-speed manual
Base Trim Drivetrain
Rear-Wheel Drive
Base Trim Horsepower
300 HP @6500 RPM
Base Trim Torque
280 lb.-ft. @ 1950 RPM
Base Trim Fuel Economy (city/highway/combined)
20/25/22 MPG
Base Trim Battery Type
Lead acid battery
Infotainment & Features
8 /10
Pour One Out For The Side Air Vents
The first visual clue (seen in the video below starting at the 8:09 mark) that Porsche is continuing to develop an electric 718 replacement is that the body is rather smooth, especially around the rear. Since their respective launches, the Cayman and Boxster have had a mid-mounted, water-cooled engine with side-mounted radiators that breathed through vents behind each front door. The vehicle caught at the ‘Ring has no such body openings, instead sporting smooth rear quarter panels that have tacked-on camouflage plastic to hide the production bodywork underneath.
The Cayman prototype instead takes whatever powertrain cooling it needs from a massive grille array on the front bumper, with an angular vane design borrowed from the contemporary 911 Carrera family. There also looks to be a small radiator peeking through the center vent up front, which could be there to keep the battery at a consistent, even temperature. It could also serve as a heat exchanger for the rumored, optional front-axle motor that would turn it into the first all-wheel-drive Cayman in history.
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Time’s Up: You Can No Longer Order A New Porsche 718 In America
Porsche is no longer accepting orders for the current 718 Boxster and Cayman, but a successor is planned – complete with ICE power.
Porsche 718 Cayman EV prototypeStateside Supercars on YouTube
No Combustion Noises To Be Heard
In addition to the obvious styling alterations made to the next-generation 718, the video also betrays what many enthusiasts have feared: There isn’t a combustion engine hiding under that low-slung bodywork. When accelerating out of corners, the Cayman prototype only emits a faint, electric whine, with rumbling noises coming from the curbing instead of the car. Despite rumors that Porsche is considering developing a hybrid or pure-combustion version of the next-gen sports car, the vehicle seen here is almost assuredly electric.
Porsche 718 Cayman EV prototypeStateside Supercars on YouTube
That said, we’ll give the 718 EV a chance when it comes to market. Porsche developed the platform it rides on specifically for a sports car use case, rather than adapting an existing electric architecture. The Cayman and Boxster are also reputed to share their technological particulars with the production version of the Audi Concept C. The automaker has said that it anticipates the 718 Cayman and Boxster to be impressively light when they arrive, likely thanks to advanced structural materials like high-strength steel, aluminum, titanium, and carbon fiber.
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Audi Concept C Goes Where Few Concepts Have Gone Before
We don’t think Audi’s CEO was exaggerating that the production model is coming soon.
It’s also possible that Porsche will arrange the 718 EV’s battery in such a way that the car will still “feel” mid-engined. By stacking cells behind the passenger cabin (in the space that was once earmarked for an engine), the electric sports car could still have the communicative steering, quick turn-in, and neutral handling that we love so much about its gas-powered predcessors.
Porsche 718 Cayman EV prototypeStateside Supercars on YouTube
All that said, global demand for luxury-branded electric cars has been lukewarm for awhile now, and automakers (including Porsche) have been altering their electrification strategy to match the market. The German automaker, for example, has committed to offering gas-fired versions of the Cayenne and Macan through the first part of the next decade at least, and there’s a part of us that hopes the 718 platform can be retrofitted to accept a sonorous flat-six powerplant. We’ll see.
Source: Stateside Supercars on YouTube, via Motor1
