Porsche revamping Boxster and Cayman to Porsche 718

Porsche announced it will revive the name of a historically significant car and the product of which will be introduced to the public right next year.

According to a report from Jalopnik, the soft-top Boxster and the hard-top coupe Cayman will be called 718 Boxster and 718 Cayman. While these monikers may not sound fresh to some, it should be known that it has historical reference to the 1957 four cylinder racecar called the 718.

Auto Blog writes that when the new 718s come to market next year, they will be powered with turbocharged, flat-four engines. Some consumers already have difficulty telling the two cars apart and Porsche has reported that both cars would have almost identical features, visually and mechanically, which would make it harder to be told apart. 

It was reported that the Boxster 718 would be pricier than the Cayman 718, which is a reverse to the cars' present day pricing, as the Cayman is $500 more expensive than the Boxster.

According to a report from the The Telegraph UK, Porsche made this move in its effort to lower its CO2 emissions. It also hopes to keep the performance level high by adopting turbocharged engines for the 911 range, the very same four cylinder engine found in the 914 racecar in 1970s.

According to the official press release from the company, "The 718 designation is a reference to the ground-breaking sports car Porsche introduced back in 1957, which achieved great success in a number of renowned car races." 

Porsche is hinting that some of the hybrid technology will be applied to both cars. The company said the 919 Hybrid race car "serves as a platform to further fundamental technology research for future production models-combining two different energy recovery systems with a 2.0 liter four-cylinder turbocharged engine."

No official price listing and actual release date have been announced.