Vehicle Description
2016 Porsche Cayman GT4 Clubsport MR
VIN: WP0ZZZ98ZGK199924
000 Magazine Issue 002 "cover car"
The only Porsche Cayman GT4 Clubsport MR painted any color other
than white, personally approved by head of Porsche Motorsport Frank
Walliser
One of only 60 factory Manthey Racing cars produced
333 miles since new
All Manthey Racing options installed at the factory
While some manufacturers might introduce a special edition car as a
final hurrah for their cars, Porsche decided that their swan song
for the 987 Cayman would be this: the Cayman GT4 Clubsport Manthey
Racing, or MR for short. Created to make the ultimate racing car
that was accessible to many of Porsche's customers, the MR was the
answer for racers looking for an extremely competitive machine that
didn't require a hedge fund to drive and maintain. Fitted with
carbon fiber body panels, upgraded mechanicals and slightly
different aero, this transformed the ordinary Clubsport into a
surgical scalpel on the track that was capable of taking down cars
far more expensive than itself.
The story of this Guards Red Clubsport MR does not begin with just
waiting for an open build slot, but a passionate racing team owner
and racer who wanted it for reasons more than just wanting to race
it. In his current collection of vintage Porsches was a pristine
3,000-kilometer Porsche 924 GTS Clubsport in Guards Red, a limited
run of turbocharged 924s, which he absolutely loved. He thought of
the perfect scenario that he could have two matching Clubsports
next to each other, both limited in production with each one
special in their own right. The only issue was that Porsche was not
accepting orders for custom-painted Cayman GT4 Clubsports and
offering only white. This wasn't acceptable for him and for months
persisted with the head of Porsche Motorsport North America, Jens
Walther. Walther said that he would work and push the request to
Porsche AG in Germany, but couldn't offer any guarantees. Then,
while visiting LeMans in 2016, he received some excellent news:
Porsche approved his Guards Red Clubsport MR.
The decision wasn't as simple as a yes or no answer. Due to the
nature of assembly and then Manthey Racing installing their own
parts, removing a car from assembly to paint it a different color
is quite the undertaking. While Porsche did not want to approve the
decision, it was then revealed that the Clubsport team in Germany
rallied for the car, with the final approval coming from none other
than head of Porsche Motorsport Frank Walliser. Once approved, this
Cayman GT4 Clubsport MR became known as the only car painted any
color other than white. With an invoice of around $267,000 along
with extra Motec data logging equipment installed that pushed the
cost to $277,000, it is most likely one of the most expensive
Clubsport MRs ever made.
After the car received its Guards Red paintwork, the car was
assembled by Manthey Racing and received every upgrade they had to
offer for the race car. This included the 100-liter fuel cell, an
air jack system, a FEV fire extinguisher, 2-way adjustable KW
coilover suspension, adjustable brake bias, a carbon fiber hood and
doors, polycarbonate windshield and side windows, a Recaro racing
seat, a lightweight battery, a polycarbonate front bumper and a
larger MR rear wing. Shedding 88 pounds from the car, the car was
now down to only 2,843 pounds, a true no-nonsense turn-key
racecar.
After taking delivery of the car, the ecstatic owner parked the
racecar next to his 924 GTS Clubsport and hung up the key. Upon
inspection, he saw that the tag attached to the new key said "924"
which confused him, wondering if the tag was meant for the 924 GTS.
In what might be the greatest stroke of luck for the VIN lottery,
the last three digits on the Cayman GT4 Clubsport MR's VIN was 924.
Walther swore that it was unplanned as VINs are assigned randomly,
and what was an almost-impossible scenario now had the Guards Red
Clubsport matching the 924 next to it.
The Cayman's maiden visit to the track came as a cover feature for
000 Magazine's Issue 002, a Porsche-specific coffee table magazine,
at the Thermal Club racetrack. Accompanied by the owner along with
Porsche factory driver Patrick Long, the two took turns putting the
GT4 through its paces around track. With Long noting the car's
incredible handling and rigidity while being "very fun" to drive,
the car was without fault to the two racecar drivers and was the
perfect addition to the driver's 924 GTS Clubsport in his
collection. The car would eventually participate in one race with
Jeff Ward at the helm, a 7-time motocross champion who transitioned
into off-road truck racing then into rallycross racing. Ward took
this Guards Red Clubsport MR to the 2018 Long Beach Grand Prix in
the Pirelli World Challenge, coming in 2nd place.
As with many projects that begin with the best intentions, the
owner decided that the GT4 Clubsport MR was a car that he was ready
to part with. Citing the his future of collecting and culling his
collection of vintage Porsche cars, the as-new GT4 MR was
admittedly somewhat of an outlier amongst the group of air-cooled
cars. When the car arrived at Canepa, it was immediately evident
that the car had seen very little race duty with just 4 hours of
race time. The paint was in flawless condition having been
protected by clear bra, and the rest of the car presented as though
Manthey Racing had just completed the car.
The ability for someone to persist despite what others might say is
a trait that often rewards the adamant with things that are
normally off limits or nonexistent. In this case, the owner was
able to convince an international company to create a true one-off
racecar, complete with its own unique story and ultimately perhaps
be the finest example to ever leave Porsche's factory doors. With
this 2016 Porsche Cayman GT4 Clubsport MR, this as-new and unique
racecar is one of those cars that will have its story follow it as
long as it exists; creating lust in those unlucky owners dreaming
of what their racecar could have been but will never know.
