You wouldn’t normally expect an expensive range-topper to be the best-seller in a car model's line-up, but the recently introduced GTS versions of the Porsche 718 Cayman and Boxster could be a rare exception. In a new interview with Automotive News, Porsche’s North American CEO Klaus Zellmer revealed that he's so confident about Porsche’s new GTS range, he expects it will make up as much as 50 percent of all Porsche 718 sales in the US.
Demand for the GTS versions is "looking very good" since the order books opened earlier this fall according to Zellmer, which could give the fledgling 718 Cayman and Boxster a new lease of life. People know what they get if they buy a GTS, which is more sporty, and we certainly hope for more people engaging in our 718s," Zellmer said. "The segment overall of where we play with our 718 is a challenging segment, but especially now with the GTS, we see some activities at the shop floor, and orders being taken." Sales of the 718 range have been declining. 718 Boxster sales have fallen by 14 percent in the first 11 months of this year, while Cayman sales dropped 22 percent in the same period.
When the new models were introduced last year, Boxster sales were similarly down, while Cayman sales rose by just 0.8 percent in 2016. Zellmer attributed the sales drops in part to the lack of new variants based on the new re-engineered 718 Boxster and Cayman. Plainly, potential customers have been waiting for more powerful versions to arrive before taking the plunge. The 718 Boxster and 718 Cayman pack a 2.5-liter turbo four that produces 365 hp, which is 15 hp more than you get in the S models and 35 hp more than the previous Boxster and Cayman GTS. For now, the GTS is the most powerful version of the 718 but we’re eagerly awaiting the arrival of the new Cayman GT4 and Boxster Spyder.
