Why has Porsche decided to build the new 911 GT now after so many years without one? I think the reason is not to be found in any existing 911, but, conversely, the Cayman.

One of very few mistakes made by Porsche recently was to underestimate completely the demand for the Cayman GT4. It thought it would peak at around 2000 units, but in fact Porsche now privately reckons it could have sold as many as 3500 cars.

It can up production a bit but not by nearly enough to satisfy its prospects, and around 1000 Cayman GT4s that could have been sold look likely never to be built.

I’ve no doubt that it’s the unexpected popularity of the back-to-basics manual Cayman that convinced Porsche that people would want a 911 conceived along similar lines.

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'Pure' Porsche 911 GT planned