The year was 2016. Sports cars were becoming a forgotten relic of the past, replaced with 9 stage traction control, heavy electronics, automatic transmissions, and dead downsized engines. The world’s most favorite sports car went down a year before when the Porsche 911 got the downsized turbo treatment. The future was grim. But as the classic sports cars we all knew and loved were taking their dying breaths, Porsche came in and revealed the 911R, a giant middle finger to lap times, 0-60 times, and lightning fast automatic transmissions. The 911R was all about the driving experience, the howl of a naturally aspirated engine and the exhilarating act of rowing your own gears at 120 mph. When you were in the 911R, it was just you and the car, nothing else. It was a bold move, but it started a renaissance. the 911R was limited to 991 units and prices began to soar. Originally costing about 200,000 dollars, some examples were selling for over 1 million dollars, people were hooked on the once lost art of driving.
In late 2017, Porsche continued the legacy of the 911R with the unveiling of the 911 Carrera T. Named after the legendary 911T of the 60s and 70s, the Carrera “Touring” was basically a base Carrera with a few bits from the Carrera S and a little less weight. The result: an unforgettable drivers car. A few months later, the track focused GT3 got the touring treatment in the form of the “Touring Package.” The Touring Package on the GT3 gave you a full leather interior, rear wing delete, and a 6 speed manual transmission, creating a stunning, under the radar supercar.
On December 18, Porsche extended the Touring Treatment to the 718 twins (the Cayman and Boxster) with the surprise reveal of the 718 Cayman T and the 718 Boxster T. Following the precedent of the 911 Carrera T, the 718 T consists of the base Cayman or Boxster with a few options from the S models (mainly PASM sport suspension) and the removal of accessories that don’t “add to your driving experience”. Inside, you’ll find a stripped down interior littered with unique T badging and color accents. Both models are powered by the 300 hp 2.0 Liter turbocharged flat 4 found in the base 718 models. Both cars have a top speed of 170 mph and 0-60 times of 4.9 seconds (manual), 4.7 seconds (PDK), or 4.5 seconds (PDK with Sport Chrono Package). Although the 718 T is not an immediate icon, it is a beacon of hope for us car enthusiasts, as it shows that Porsche’s new T line will ensure us new driver focused models for years to come.
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