Porsche Boxster Spyder gains 4.0-litre muscle

Drop-top thrills no longer come at the expense of grunt, with the new Boxster Spyder endowed with the same 309kW/420Nm of naturally aspirated muscle found in the new Cayman GT4.

Once the poor relation to the GT4, the Spyder is now no longer the supporting act. And that’s thanks to the boss of Porsche’s GT road-car program, Andreas Preuninger.

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The Boxster Spyder will use the same 4.0-litre flat six found in the Cayman, a unit that’s around 80 percent unique to the Cayman/Boxster and with the ability to rev to a glorious 8000rpm. Both Cayman GT4 and Boxster Spyder are now legitimate entry-level GT-spec cars.

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Pushing the Spyder program is Preuninger, a man who likes open-top cars. His personal 993 911 is a cabriolet and it’s Preuninger who pushed so hard for the recent 911 Speedster.

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He describes the Spyder as: “an open GT4”. Therefore it gets the same engine, the same suspension and the same underbody aerodynamics as its coupe relation.

“It’s a little bit like the Speedster idea, the Spyder a full-blown GT car, but without a roof. It’s purist and it’s gained a lot of performance,” Preuninger said.

The roofless Spyder generates downforce largely thanks to the underbody aero, but also via the pop-up rear spoiler.

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Like the Cayman GT4, the Boxster Spyder will be offered exclusively with a six-speed manual and power the rears wheels – there’s no PDK option here. The transmission comes with a rev-matching feature for the perfect downshift, but you can switch the system off it it’s not to your liking.

The Spyder also gains the latest version of Porsche Torque Vectoring (PTV) with a mechanical locking diff. Both Porsche Stability Management and Porsche Active Suspension Management feature, while it sits 30mm lower than the standard Boxster.

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If you have missed out on 911 Speedster allocations, then the Spyder could be the right fit for your garage, according to Preuninger.

“It’s about a third of the price, but it’s not a third of the car”.

Australian specification Spyders will come loaded with extra kit as standard including bi-xenon headlights, reversing camera, automatically dimming mirrors with rain sensor, ambient interior lighting, infotainment system with Apple CarPlay and sat nav, two-zone climate control, heated seats and a heated multi-function steering wheel.

Porsche will launch the Cayman GT4 and Boxster Spyder in Europe later this year, and Porsche Australia has confirmed it expects local deliveries to commence from Q1 2020.

Pricing for the Cayman GT4 is $218,800 and for the Boxster Spyder $209,000.