Porsche is once again embracing driving purity with the introduction of the Porsche 718 T, essentially a back to basic Boxster and Cayman that throws out all the non-essentials for the purest Porsche driving experience.
Traditionally, “T” stands for “Touring” which follows the same recipe of the original 1968 911 T – lightweight, manual gearbox and raw driving engagement. The 718 T follows the same philosophy by removing the Porsche Communication Management (PCM) infotainment system (can be ordered as a no-cost option), installed lightweight sport seats and reduced insulation to save precious kilograms.
However, the cabin of both the Boxster and Cayman are still luxuriously finished with fabric and leather combination seats, 360-millimetre GT sports steering wheel with Mode switch (no multifunctional controls), door entry strips, “Boxster T” or “Cayman T” embroidery and gloss black interior trims.
On the exterior front, the 718 T can be identified through its Agate Grey side mirror caps, “718 Boxster T” or “718 Cayman T” side decal, “T” model designation at the rear as well as 20-inch Titanium Grey alloy wheels. Buyers can choose from Black, Indian Red, Racing Yellow, White, Carrara White, Deep Black and GT Silver metallic colours as well as Lava Orange and Miami Blue as special colours. Adjusted for specification and equipment, Porsche says the 718 T is five to 10 per cent cheaper than a similarly equipped Boxster or Cayman.
The 718 T is based on the basic 718 which comes equipped with a 2.0-litre turbocharged flat-four engine pushing out 300 hp and 380 Nm of twist. Drive is channelled to the rear wheels via a six-speed manual transmission as standard while a seven-speed dual-clutch PDK box can be ordered as an option.
As standard, the 718 T is equipped with the Porsche Active Suspension Management (PASM) Sports chassis that drop the ride height by 20 mm, Sport Chrono Package and Sports Exhaust as standard. All these combined allows the manual-equipped 718 T to sprint from 0 to 100 km/h in 5.1 seconds while the PDK with Launch Control and Sport Response button cut the time to 4.7 seconds. Regardless of transmission and body style choice, the 718 T models will still hit a top speed of 275 km/h.
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Porsche 718 T
