The new six-pot GTS 4.0

When the 718 Cayman and Boxster arrived in 2016 they were greeted with mixed feelings. Fitted with turbocharged 2.0- and 2.5-litre flat-fours, the 982 generation was deemed to be at best a letdown, at worst some sort of betrayal of the very essence of Porsche. Near universal opprobrium in the mainstream motoring press centred around the absence of that trademark flat-six sound.
 
Fast-forward four years and here we are with a brace of six-cylinder 718s in unlimited series production. The newly launched GTS 4.0 uses a slightly detuned version of the naturally aspirated 9A2 Evo engine from the GT4 and Spyder, itself a derivation of the twin-turbocharged unit currently powering all standard 992 gen 911s. People are understandably excited. This is not just a sixer, it’s a GT engine of sorts – in a regular, road-biased mid-priced Porsche.