The Porsche 718 Spyder RS is history on wheels.

This latest offering from the small engineering team that specialises in developing high-performance road and racing cars at the company’s famed Zuffenhausen R&D headquarters will be the last small Porsche roadster with a mid-mounted internal-combustion engine.

“It’s the last hurrah for the mid-engine platform,” confirms Porsche GT chief Andy Preuninger. And it’s a car that hews to a proud tradition that stretches back to racing machines such as 1959 718 RSK Spyder and the 1953 550 Spyder. “Building light and powerful roadsters is what Porsche has done from day one,” he says.

The 718 Spyder RS is not merely an open-top version of the track-focused Cayman GT4 RS coupe. While they share the same powertrain, the Spyder RS has a chassis that’s been set up more for fast road driving. 

The Spyder’s front and rear spring rates are thus 55 per cent and 43 per cent softer, respectively, than those of the Cayman GT4 RS, with shock and stabiliser bar settings adjusted to suit. The ride height has been dropped 30mm compared with the regular Boxster while the GT4 rolls 50mm lower to the tarmac than a standard 718 Cayman.