New Porsche 718 Cayman and Boxster 2021 pricing and specs detailed: PDK dual-clutch automatic option for GTS 4.0, GT4 and Spyder

Porsche has added a seven-speed PDK dual-clutch automatic option to the recently released naturally aspirated six-cylinder 718 sports cars, with Australian deliveries of the new Cayman coupe and Boxster convertible variants to arrive from the first quarter of next year.

A six-speed manual is still standard in the GTS 4.0 versions of the Cayman and Boxster as well as in the former’s GT4 and latter’s Spyder variants, with the PDK commanding $5090 and $5990 premiums in the entry-level and flagship grades respectively.

As such, the 718 now ranges in price from $172,000 to $211,690 plus on-road costs when fitted with the 4.0-litre boxer engine in question (see full pricing table below), which produces either 294kW/420Nm (GTS 4.0) or 309kW/420Nm (GT4 and Spyder).

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Buyers that opt for the PDK will reap the performance benefits, with it making the GTS 4.0 half a second quicker in the sprint from zero to 100km/h than the manual, at four seconds flat, while reaching 200km/h also happens more quickly, at 13.7s (-0.4s).

It’s a similar story for the PDK-equipped GT4 and Spyder, which are also half a second quicker to triple digits than their manual siblings, at 3.9s, while the double ton arrives in 13.4s (-0.4s). Either way, launch control is in tow.

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Buyers that opt for the PDK will reap the performance benefits.

The mechanical locking rear differential in the GT4 and Spyder also gets tweaked when the PDK is fitted, with its locking values changed to 30 and 37 per cent, as opposed to the manual’s 22 and 27 per cent.

“This has a positive effect on the longitudinal and lateral dynamics as well as traction, and increases driving pleasure,” according to Porsche, while all naturally aspirated six-cylinder 718s with the PDK have a shorter ratio for the seventh gear.

Also new for MY21 718 is Race-Tex upholstery, which replaces Alcantara, while Python Green paintwork is now an option for the GT4 and Spyder, with the latter also getting optional Aurum 20-inch alloy wheels, which were previously the reserve of the former.

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2021 Porsche 718 pricing before on-road costs