The Porsche 718 Spyder is now, finally, a proper GT

[MUSIC] In part one of this film, we did a few laps of an uphill to get acquainted with the new 718 Cayman GT4. This time, we're taking it open top sibling out on the road. So here we are, From the brand new 718 or 902 series porshe spyder, baby of the Gt range. And you could be thinking, well I know exactly how this review is gonna go, and you would be right. I mean it is terrible, absolutely terrible. I mean there's no PDK, I'm gonna change the gear myself. Got rid of the turbo charger This added two cylinders, so it's naturally aspirated. Manual roof, but again I'll do that. It's been pretty terrible day, I have to say driving this. Just where's the fun in it? Yes that's right It's brilliant. [LAUGH] Just as well expected. [MUSIC] [MUSIC] The open top version of the GT Force, so we still got 414 [INAUDIBLE] horsepower, 310 pounds of torque knots. 60 miles an hour in 4.2 seconds move to 100 miles an hour in 9 seconds. All identical, so one of the things to talk about with this car, let's start with the engine. This new 4 liter Naturally aspirated flat-six. I think it's a terrific engine, and it sounds different, I suppose, to some of the previous flat-sixes we've experienced. It's not really z one but it sounds to me actually a bit like the GG trs and that sort of the code base here more guttural sort of design. I love the designs I think is really, really cool. Perhaps is not quite as loud as some of the Angels in the past, but there's no real thought that giving us this sort of naturally aspirated engine. So if their account rises to remain then Well, I'd rather they did it. After a while I did notice that one thing we've become used to in sports car soundtracks was missing. The window pops and crackles on the Presumably, they are another casualty of the tougher emissions regs, not that I actually miss them terribly. This is also the first GT engine to get stop-start, and the first Porsche engine to get cylinder deactivation. At lower revs and non-small throttle openings, it will shut down one bank of cylinders entirely, and then alternate banks every 20 seconds, to weigh the temperatures in the catalytic converters. You can clearly hear when it's running on three cylinders This actually moves on pleasant. Talking of fuel economy in this engine. Let's talk about the gearing too. Now there's always something about bug bear with previous spiders. The gear is just too tall. Has that changed in this one? No, it hasn't. However, it's such a torque engine, actually you can ride the torque and not feel like You're missing out too much. It's a compromise that had to be made because otherwise they wouldn't have gone it through the WLTP cycle. They wouldn't have got it through the emissions that they wanted to. They had to really. So You sort of pays you money and takes the choice with a box itself is fabulous. As you'd expect. This six p box, this little stubby lever nails absolutely brilliant and it's over with Porsche all the control way to Things feel like they match perfectly. With a painted crayon, white, lacing yellow, GT silver, or any other color for that matter, the control and precision of the Spider with GT3 derived suspension and subtrains is just breathtaking. It feels smaller and incredibly wieldy. The front end is so eager and yet easy to place. The latest Michelin cup two tires deserve a special mention to because they're undoubtedly a big part of the turning and growth and field room. Staring it still seems extraordinary you can now use a cup tie with so little compromise on the road now we didn't test them in the word it was no skittish waiting for them to get up to temperature on cold tarmac in the morning and they felt nicely progressive. The damn thing is absolutely superb i didn't find you I actually use the thermal sports setting on some roads just to keep the body, probably more in control, it's really only preference because its only when the tyre is hitting the bump stops. It gets still so well bound just in case it's forwarded on track. It is a glorious, glorious car. Down a brilliant bit of road and there are certainly a lot of those up here in Scotland. Apart from the roof which you can have in black or bordeaux red by the way the only real difference between the spider and the GT4 is the aero. There is obviously no fixed rear wing and the open top car also has a smaller front splitter to keep the car balanced. However, the Spider still generates 50% less lift than a 780 Box or GTS. And thanks to the new rear diffuser, it is the first Spider to actually produce down-force over the back axel. Not that I'm claiming I could feel any of this on the road. I did drive with the roof up, incidentally, and it was absolutely fine. Unlike the night seven version, you can even do the spiders top speed of 187 miles an hour with it in place. The operation is identical to the previous spider so it's not the work of a moment, but it's also not in the same league of fat isn't nothing longer roadster or an early Elise. I've been driving around with the windows down. In fact, even the rear window deflector ran for most of the day and busting is absolutely fine, no problems with that whatsoever. The steering is tremendous. It's obviously an epath system, as they all have been for a while now. But all are fairly composed in one lovely waiting tune. This is a really serious engine, I mean 4 liters. In something this size. This might be the baby of the GT range, but wow. [BLANK_AUDIO] It really does sound good. To say it's not much got the hard edge that we might have experienced in the past but I still love the sound of it. And it's certainly better than a four-cylinder turbo-charged engine. What, then, can we conclude about these new six-cylinder 718s? Well, perhaps predictably, I love them. There's a purity, even simplicity to the driving experience that is somehow very refreshing in this day and age. Yes, you can pick holes in them. The gearing is still arguably a little too But there is an emissions reason for that and if tall gearings is the price to pay for having a naturally aspirated engine which let's face it nobody else is really doing at the moment then so be it. You could always talk to sharkworks about some shorter ratios in the same way that I'm sure there will be after market solutions if you want to make that exhaust less compliant and louder. But even left-standard, The GT4 and Spyder are fabulous. If I owned an old GT4 then perhaps I wouldn't be in a huge rush to trade up because it feels like this new version is giving more people the chance to buy into this desirable recipe, rather than leaving the game on massively. The 718 Spyder on the other hand, perhaps feels more special because, unlike the GT4, its predecessor wasn't a proper GT car. And as a result, it feels like the spider has made the bigger leap between 91 and 92 generations. It is a mini speedster. No, it doesn't have that cost for [INAUDIBLE] engine but it does cost about a third of the price and arguably looks better. If you're asking, I'll have mine engine brake with the bucket seats. Possibly Pc CV. Thank you. [MUSIC]