Porsche Boxster/Cayman Generations: Through the Years

The Porsche Boxster saved the brand and then the Cayman cemented it into the modern lexicon – Here’s a review of that history.

Porsche Boxster And Cayman

When Porsche unleashed the Boxster on the world they couldn’t have possibly known just how successful it would be. Today, it stands out as an icon of its own and even spawned a second model, the Cayman. Together, these two sports cars now share the designation 718 and have played a crucial role in attracting a whole new generation of Porsche enthusiasts without leaving the old guard behind. Here’s a deeper dive into the history of these two entry-level German sports cars.

First Generation Boxster/Cayman (1996-2004)

• Porsche needed to turn things around financially in the early 1990s due to slumping sales of the 928 and 968.
• To that end, it unveiled the Porsche Boxster concept in 1993 at the North American International Auto Show
• Over the next few years, Porsche integrated the design of the upcoming Boxster (986) and the upcoming 911 (996).
• As a result, the two cars share many parts including the hood, headlights, front wings, and engine architecture.
• Notably, the Boxster utilizes a mid-engine configuration as opposed to the rear-engine setup on the 911.

• Porsche released the production version of the Boxster in 1996 to almost instantaneous sales success.
• It’s the first time in decades that Porsche released a roadster for public consumption.
• At its debut, it arrived on the scene with a water-cooled 2.5-liter flat-six engine that made 201 hp.
• This made it the brand’s very first water-cooled non-front-engine car in history.
• Throughout this generation, the Boxster was available with a manual or automatic transmission.

• By 2000, Porsche updated the Boxster with a larger 2.7-liter flat-six engine that made 217 hp.
• A Boxster S model came online that same year with an even larger 3.2-liter engine and 247 hp.
• Power figures saw another boost in 2003 with the base engine making 222 hp and the larger S engine making 254.
• For the 2004 model year, Porsche introduced the Boxster S Special Edition with just 1,953 total units for the whole world.

Second Generation Boxster/Cayman (2005-2011)

• As the first generation of the Boxster came to a successful close, the company wanted to expand the lineup.
• First, it introduced the all-new Boxster for 2005 with updated styling that again, matched that of the 911.
• In base form, the Boxster came with a 2.7-liter flat-six that made 237 hp and could rocket from 0-60 mph in just 6.2 seconds.
• The Boxster S featured a 3.2-liter engine and 276 hp which was good for a 5.5-second 0-60 time.

• Next, Porsche introduced a hardtop version of the Boxster with an all-new name as an all-new model called the Cayman.
• It kicked things off with the S model including a 291 hp 3.4-liter engine and a six-speed manual transmission only.
• A year later in 2007, the base Cayman came online with a 242 hp 2.7-liter flat six and a five-speed manual transmission. An automatic wasn’t available for either Cayman.
• 2008 was a big year for the Boxster because it was the first in which buyers could option it with Porsche’s PDK double-clutch automatic transmission.

• The very next year it came to the Cayman along with new engines including a 2.9-liter version with 261 hp and a 3.4-liter with 315 hp.
• By 2009, both the Boxster and Cayman received updates including more powerful engines which for the first time meant that both lineups came with a 0-60 time of under 6 seconds no matter which one you bought.
• In 2011, Porsche released the Cayman R, a lightweight version of the Cayman with improved aerodynamics, a 326 hp engine, and revised suspension components.

Third Generation Boxster/Cayman (2012-2015)

• Porsche kicked off an all-new generation (981) of the Boxster and Cayman in 2012.
• Each car utilized the same pair of engines and trim levels including the base version with a 2.7-liter 261 hp engine and a 3.4-liter 311 hp engine.
• Again, Porsche offered a six-speed manual transmission or a seven-speed PDK automatic transmission on both the Cayman and Boxster.

• The exterior again incorporated design elements from the 911 but this time it took cues from the 918 hybrid supercar, too.
• By 2014, Porsche introduced an all-new trim level of the Boxster called the GTS. It leveraged the same 3.4-liter engine from the S but made 15 hp more for a total of 324.
• The Cayman GTS came out the same year but with 335 hp.

• The very next year, Porsche introduced the Boxster Spyder with an even larger and more powerful engine, a 3.8-liter unit with 370 hp.
• Also in 2015, Porsche dropped the Cayman GT4 on us which is a track monster that’s only available with a six-speed manual transmission and a 380 hp 3.8-liter engine.
• Porsche also began making the Cayman GT4 Clubsport for racing applications. It used the same flat-six found in the street-legal GT4.

Fourth Generation Boxster Cayman (2016-Present)

• Early in 2016, Porsche took the wraps off of the fourth-generation Boxster and third-gen Cayman with a new 718 designation in each of their names.
• For the first time, each leveraged a base engine consisting of a 2.0-liter four-cylinder turbocharged engine making 296 hp.
• The Boxster S and Cayman S each used a turbocharged 2.5-liter four-cylinder with 345 hp.

• This current generation is again available with a PDK automatic transmission or a six-speed manual transmission with some specific models available with only one or the other.
• While technically the 718 Boxster and Cayman are faster and more capable from a performance perspective, many critics decry the use of a four-cylinder engine.
• In 2017, Porsche introduced the GTS trim level with a 360 hp version of the 2.5-liter engine.

• Then, in 2019 and 2020, the Cayman GT4 and Boxster Spyder arrived on the scene with a 4.0-liter naturally aspirated flat-six engine with 414 hp.
• Porsche also introduced an updated GTS trim with a 395-hp version of the 4.0-liter engine in 2020.
• In 2022, Porsche raised the bar once again by unleashing the Cayman GT4 RS, a track-focused 493 hp monster. It’s only available with the PDK.
• Now, it’s also making a drop-top version called the 718 Spyder RS which starts at $160,700.

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