It's long been discussed that Porsche is going back to four-cylinder boxer engines with its future Cayman and Boxster models, so much so that we pay little attention to the various prototypes that are currently prancing around the Nurburgring. However, this one is a little different. Behind the sexy body of a Cayman coupe, engineers are probably testing the new engine and we rather like the sound.
You see, the traditional flat-six engine has a very metallic sound, almost like you're hearing it from the bottom of a tin can. But with the turbo on, the boxer has a deeper character. We expected nothing less from Porsche, who are grand masters at making responsive and pure machines.
The new flat-four is expected to be offered in three different displacements ranging from 1.6 to 2.5 liters and power outputs to fill every Cayman, Boxster and basic Carrera's needs. The least powerful version will be a 1.6 with roughly 220 hp, going into a rumored new basic sportscar.
On paper, cutting two cylinders and adding a turbo has nothing to do with racing and everything to do with emissions laws. However, if Porsche can make a hybrid that blows people away, a tried and tested formula lake a turbo sportscar should be knocked right out of the park.
The first of these new flat-four Porsches will arrive on the scene in 2016 or 2017. They'll remind us of the air-cooled VW Beelte and the 914. But believe it or not, a Porsche with a four-pot turbo engine already exists in the form of a base-model Macan sold in China with a 240 hp Audi engine.
Mihnea's favorite cars have already been built, the so-called modern classics from the '80s and '90s. He also loves local car culture from all over the world, so don't be surprised to see him getting excited about weird Japanese imports, low-rider VWs out of Germany, replicas from Russia or LS swaps down in Florida. Full profile
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