The 718 Cayman was designed to handle great roads. Spain’s Port de la Bonaigua is one of them.
The United Negro College Fund’s motto is, A mind is a terrible thing to waste. That organization is absolutely right. When people use not only their intelligence, but their creativity as well, they can accomplish incredible things. The automotive world wouldn’t be as enjoyable as it is today if its current engineers didn’t decide to use their brains to create faster machines, such as the Porsche 718 Cayman GTS.
The flagship 718 Cayman features a turbocharged 2.5-liter boxer-four with 365 horsepower, as much as 317 lb-ft of torque (if equipped with the seven-speed dual-clutch PDK gearbox; the six-speed manual model has 309 lb-ft), and a 10-mm lower ride height. It’s also proof that a sports car is a terrible thing to waste. Sure, the GTS can travel through the suburbs and pick up groceries without a problem, but that’s missing the point of it. It’s meant to be driven – not at sensible speeds in straight lines, but quickly down straights that bend into sharp and sweeping curves.
Luckily, Henry Catchpole of Carfection doesn’t squander the GTS in the above video. He takes on one of the most serpentine roads we’ve ever seen: the Port de la Bonaigua pass through the Pyrenees mountains. As he makes his way through the seemingly endless series of turns, he praises the effectiveness of the electro-mechanical steering. Catchpole finds the GTS to be a reliable, trustworthy companion for the winding trip higher into the mountains. Its limited-slip differential helps the GTS put its enhanced power to the cold, clear Spanish roads.
However, it seems as if Porsche should’ve used more of its abundant engineering brainpower to make the GTS’s exhaust system sound better. Let’s hope they don’t waste time trying to figure out how they can do that.
Derek Shiekhi's father raised him on cars. As a boy, Derek accompanied his dad as he bought classics such as post-WWII GM trucks and early Ford Mustang convertibles.
After loving cars for years and getting a bachelor's degree in Business Management, Derek decided to get an associate degree in journalism. His networking put him in contact with the editor of the Austin-American Statesman newspaper, who hired him to write freelance about automotive culture and events in Austin, Texas in 2013. One particular story led to him getting a certificate for learning the foundations of road racing.
While watching TV with his parents one fateful evening, he saw a commercial that changed his life. In it, Jeep touted the Wrangler as the Texas Auto Writers Association's "SUV of Texas." Derek knew he had to join the organization if he was going to advance as an automotive writer. He joined the Texas Auto Writers Association (TAWA) in 2014 and was fortunate to meet several nice people who connected him to the representatives of several automakers and the people who could give him access to press vehicles (the first one he ever got the keys to was a Lexus LX 570). He's now a regular at TAWA's two main events: the Texas Auto Roundup in the spring and the Texas Truck Rodeo in the fall.
Over the past several years, Derek has learned how to drive off-road in various four-wheel-drive SUVs (he even camped out for two nights in a Land Rover), and driven around various tracks in hot hatches, muscle cars, and exotics. Several of his pieces, including his article about the 2015 Ford F-150 being crowned TAWA's 2014 "Truck of Texas" and his review of the Alfa Romeo 4C Spider, have won awards in TAWA's annual Excellence in Craft Competition. Last year, his JK Forum profile of Wagonmaster, a business that restores Jeep Wagoneers, won prizes in TAWA’s signature writing contest and its pickup- and SUV-focused Texas Truck Invitational.
