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For a decade, a Porsche GT4 race car meant a Cayman. Not anymore. The new 911 GT4 R moves Porsche's entry-level racer onto the iconic 911 for the first time.

From Cayman to 911

Since 2016, every Porsche GT4 racer has been built on the mid-engined Cayman, and more than 1,500 of them have been made. The new GT4 R tears up that script and bolts the class onto the 911 instead.

It is built on the current 911 Cup car, which in turn comes from the road-going 911 GT3 of the latest 992.2 generation. That is serious bloodline for an entry-level racer.

The Engine

At its heart is the 4.0-litre flat-six from the GT3, here making up to 382 kW, or 520 PS, and up to 470 Nm. It is a high-revving naturally aspirated six, exactly the sort of engine going extinct everywhere else.

There is a catch baked into the rules. GT4 runs a Balance of Performance, so the car ships with air restrictors that trim it to 430 PS to keep the racing tight. The full 520 is there when the rulebook allows.

Built to Race, Cheaply

Power goes through a sequential six-speed dog gearbox with paddle shift and a four-disc race clutch. The chassis adds dual-adjustable dampers and three spring rates for setup freedom.

Cleverly, the wheels use a five-hole pattern like a road car and sit an inch narrower than the Cup car's. It is all aimed at keeping a privateer team's running costs sane.

A Greener Race Car

Here is a surprise. The doors, engine cover, aero parts and chunks of the cockpit are made from natural-fibre-reinforced plastic set in epoxy, rather than pure carbon.

Inside, the driver gets a 10.3-inch display, a data logger and GPS for picking apart every lap. Ballast lets teams hit whatever weight the rulebook demands, and the rear wing adjusts to eleven positions.

Why It Matters

GT4 has grown from a humble entry class into a global proving ground, the rung just below GT3 on the ladder to the top. Porsche clearly wants a bigger slice of it.

Racing starts in the 2027 season, with a price of 265,000 euros before tax. For a 911 you can take straight to a grid, that is almost reasonable.

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Porsche's GT4 Racer Is Now a 911