Porsche 718

Summary

The Porsche 718 series is now the gateway into Porsche’s world of sportscars. With all the two-door sportscars now getting numeric nomenclature Porsche has also retained the legacy of its old badges – the Cayman and the Boxster. The 718 badge first found itself on racing Porsches half a century ago and has now made a comeback.

The Porsche 718 twins are expected to compete with the BMW Z4, the Mercedes SLC 43 AMG and the Ford Mustang. While Porsche has launched only the entry-level Cayman and Boxster, the sporty S and GTS versions will follow in due course.

Exterior

Cosmetically, there aren’t many changes to the 718 as compared to the 981 series car except for the customary nips and tucks with every new model. The chassis and suspension setup have been tweaked for better performance and the cars, the standard and the S, take 4.9 seconds and 4.4 seconds respectively to reach 100kmph and limited at a stop speed of 250kmph. Since the standard Boxster comes with an engine below 2000cc in cubic capacity, the car will have to be homologated for Indian standards.

The front bumper has been tweaked and the three-part air dam looks sporty with the blacked out mesh grille and the LED daytime running lamps. The headlamps get the optional quad LED setup and looks menacing. While the profile is the same, the tail has got a complete makeover. The strip connecting the two LED tail lamps separates the rear bumper from the fender and looks dapper.

Interior

On the inside, it gets the stylish Panamera-like layout with the integrated touch-screen display for the infotainment system. The classic three-spoke steering wheel gets paddle shifters for the automatic transmission. The 718 gets all creature comforts but as all Porsches, functionality takes over form even for the cabin design.

For safety, you have dual front airbags and side airbags along with the electronic driving aids like traction control, stability program et al.

Engine and Transmission

For Porsche enthusiasts the most important thing is its engineering. The 718 gets two brand new engines – a 2.0-litre and 2.5-litre four-cylinder engines. Porsche has retained the signature boxer layout of the engines. The 2.0-litre 295bhp power and 380Nm torque engine will power the Boxster and the Cayman while the ‘S’ versions will feature the 345bhp, 420Nm torque 2.5-litre mill. While globally the 718s are available with manual options as well, in India you will get the seven-speed PDK dual clutch automatic gearbox with the optional Sport Chrono package that helps in quicker shifts.

Mileage

The 1988 cc Petrol - powered variant delivers a fuel economy of 7 kmpl in city and 9 kmpl on highways.