Every year it feels like Porsche is trying to give us the definitive sportscar. Years ago, it was the Cayman GT4. Then the 911 R came along. Then the GT3 Touring followed shortly after. Then a few GT3 variants later we got the Cayman GT4 RS, seemingly the perfect car, packing a GT3 engine into the delectable GT4 chassis. The trouble is, it felt quite extreme, so stopped a hair short of perfection. Now, at the 2023 Festival of Speed presented by Mastercard, the Porsche Boxster Spyder RS drops the top and softens the suspension, for a mid-engined RS that might finally be perfection.
Video: Porsche Spyder RS debuts at 2023 Festival of Speed
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For it pairs that singing 4.0-litre 510PS (375kW) 9,000rpm 911 GT3 engine, vocalised through spectacular carbon intake plenums, with revised suspension more appropriate for top-down road driving.
The 718 Spyder RS also feels like a goodbye of sorts to these engines, given we know all-electric Caymans and Boxsters of the next generation have been testing. Whenever we see them, whenever we drive them, we feel lucky to still have these effervescent, high-revving machines.
The 718 Spyder RS is of course a more elegant machine than the outwardly more racey GT4 RS. Presented in delightful Gentian Blue, it looks right at home on our Hill and sounds absolutely incredible. We can’t wait to drive it.
The 2023 Goodwood Festival of Speed is underway! You can watch every moment of the action by watching our live stream.
Photography by Joe Harding.
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