Used Porsche Cayman GT4 2015-2016 review

Given the intrinsic poised weight balance of a Cayman, it is a tantalising prospect that has long been denied us. If you went deliberately looking for disappointment in the arrangement, you might argue that you found it when you realised that the engine is not one derived from the motorsport-bound GT3 motor and is a ‘mere’ Carrera S unit instead, but there are good reasons for that.

Firstly, this is (in base form) a £64,000 Cayman, rather than a £75,000 one (before options, at least). Second, and just as important, a GT3 motor’s induction system doesn’t fit under a Cayman’s engine cover, which would leave it making rather a racket in the cabin. The 3.8-litre flat six from the Carrera S it is, then, located by dynamic engine mounts that can stiffen, should you be driving briskly, which at times you will be, and driving the rear wheels through a six-speed manual gearbox from the GTS.

A limited-slip rear differential is standard among rear suspension that also has its share of GT3 componentry, but being struts rather than a 911’s multi-link arrangement, it is obviously not quite so much as at the front. However, both the front and rear suspension on the GT4 does get three-stage adjustable camber shims to alter the front/rear handling balance, in case it’s not quite to your tastes.

Finishing things off at the Cayman’s rear is a wing as wide as pedestrian impact regulations allow. It, too, is adjustable, although if you angle it too high at the rear, you’ll upset the aero balance at the front. Fortunately, there are removable panels at the front around the diffuser, which, if taken out, restore the handling balance to normal. Theoretically, the GT4 is illegal with them removed, but given that they’re invisible from above and no MOT tester will be expecting to look for them, it’s fairly safe to say that setting the aero balance of the GT4 to your choice remains in your hands.

After a time, it really doesn’t matter that you’re not getting near the GT4’s limits on a good road. The engine is so punchy, the steering so sweet and the gearshift so delectable that it’s easy to get into a delicious rhythm and flow. And on a track? As ‘On the Limit’ explains, it’s better still.

On the limit

A 45/55 front/rear weight distribution is the precise reason that you’d want to see what a GT version of a Cayman is like on a race circuit. No surprise, then, that it turns out to be magnificent.

With the dampers in Sport mode, it resists body movements impeccably, and the optional carbon-ceramic discs wipe off speed time and again without the merest hint of complaint.

The adjustable shims on our test car were left in the middle of their three positions, which gives the GT4 fine turn-in and secure, stable handling. There’s more grip than power like this, no doubt, while the handling nudges into steady-state understeer and takes provocation to offer anything much more lively than that. We’d prefer the set-up to be a touch looser at the rear, but even in this state, you can coax the GT4 into a slide by braking on turn-in or giving it ‘the send’. The terrific thing is that the choice is largely yours: the GT4 is a blank page and you its author.