Rejoice, my friends, because paradise will be arriving in Porsche dealerships in the near future. After months of denying the possibility, Porsche’s top dog; Matthias Müller, has confirmed that the next-generation Cayman and Boxster are scheduled to receive a boxer four-cylinder engine in an interview with German magazine Auto Motor und Sport. These are beautiful times we live in! Even better than that, you heard about it here first, as we predicted Porsche would make such a move more than a year ago!
In the beginning, Porsche made nothing but four-cylinder cars, and didn’t even begin to make engines above two-liters until the late 1960s. The new Macan will likely be the first four-cylinder car since 1995, with an as-yet-unconfirmed VW sourced 2.0 liter turbo inline-4, but the engine Herr Müller has alluded to will be the first flat-four engine in a Porsche since 1976.
Don’t think, though, that fewer cylinders means less power. Porsche’s new 919 Hybrid LMP1 racing car has a 2.0 liter four-cylinder, and you’ll see just how quick that car is at Le Mans this year. Following the racecar’s lead in using technology to replace displacement, the smaller and lighter engines will produce up to 400ps (about 395 horsepower), says Müller.
Matthias Müller, CEO Porsche AG –
“We will continue with the downsizing strategy and develop a new four-cylinder boxer engine, which will see service in the next-generation Boxster and Cayman. We will not separate ourselves from efforts to reduce CO2 [emissions]”.
Thus far, the most powerful version of the mid-engine twins produced by Porsche has been the newly-launched Cayman GTS, boasting a 3.4-liter six-cylinder capable of producing 340 hp.
In the interest of producing more power while continuing to reduce emissions, look for the 4-cylinder cars to perhaps be augmented by electric energy recovery hybrid systems, and potentially a similar electric turbocharger as found in the 919 Hybrid. It’s also pretty likely that Porsche could find a sales-leader in a base-model car with a naturally aspirated four cylinder.
Other Porsche Blog Posts You Will Enjoy
Why Porsche Should Consider a Flat-Four Engine for the Boxster and Cayman
How Does The Porsche Cayman S Compare To the Alfa 4C
Why You Need A Porsche 991 Inspired Sofa In Your Living Room
Source: Autoweek.com / Auto Motor und Sport magazine
View Comments (10)
what do you think the price points will be for the new 4 cylinder Boxster and Cayman?
James, it would be complete speculation on our part as we don't know what type of performance we'll see from these 4 cylinders yet. Once we have a better idea of performance I think we could make a more educated guess.
I saw 38K mentioned as the base line price point...
Paul, where did you read this? Thanks!
I got info/prices from the Porsche newsletter from 'WWW.Porsche.com' which I subscribe to...much like the base line Boxster(flat six) @ 51K the prices quickly raise with all the available options!!!
Ok, call me skeptical, but you found a price for a model that Porsche is not yet manufacturing, and has only recently confirmed they might do so, in one of their newsletters? I'm thinking maybe it was a misunderstanding? By chance did you keep it? I would just love to see this and have confirmation as it would be fairly BIG news.
For what it's worth, I subscribe to the same newsletter, in fact just received a new one tonight, and read it quite thoroughly.
I'll look for it when time allows, I was impressed and nearly called the Porsche dealer to place a deposit! It was at least 10 days ago so,but I will check...
Pepper Girl, I found more info re the 'baby boxster' flat 4 in the 3/25/14 edition of Flatsixies newsletter...reading back articles I saw that your dog was ill, sure hope that turned out OK...
I'll look back some more to find the 38K quote...the above article mentioned 40K+
Thanks, Paul. Scout, fortunately, is doing much, much better! Thanks for asking.
I know I'm probably dreaming, but I hope the flat4 Boxster is easily obtainable as a base model, i.e., no turbo, no supercharger, no hybrid stuff. If so, it would be a great spec series racer.