On 1 August 2026 a 718 Cayman GT4 RS Clubsport lined up for the six-hour race of the ADAC Ravenol Nürburgring Endurance Series. Timo Bernhard and Jörg Bergmeister shared the driving. They finished fourth in class.
The result is not the story. The car is.
A body that copies a building
The livery reproduces the architecture of the Porsche Museum in Zuffenhausen, line by line. Matte white stands in for the façade. Black elements repeat the window bands and their frames. Grey surfaces echo the forecourt. Fine diamond patterns recreate the aluminium structure of the building’s outer skin. On the roof, graphic foil tiles reference the reflective panels sitting under the cantilevered roof. A silver graphic running from bonnet to roof quotes the sculpture on the roundabout outside the entrance.
The « Porsche Museum » lettering uses the exact typeface from the building. Even the Christophorus restaurant logo appears on the bodywork.
« This vehicle tells its story from different perspectives: it makes the connection to the museum visible, represents the present-day customer racing programme and carries the heritage of Zuffenhausen out into the world, » says Achim Stejskal, Head of Porsche Heritage and Museum, in the company’s release.
The end of a production line
Under the paint sits a car with a label worth noting. The 718 Cayman GT4 RS Clubsport, internally the 982 generation, is the last mid-engined racing car built in Zuffenhausen. It is homologated until 2027. Its successor is the 911 GT4 R, the first GT4 car Porsche has based on the 911 platform, due to start racing in the 2027 season.
Since entering the GT4 category in 2016, Porsche has produced more than 1,500 racing cars derived from the Cayman. That number explains why moving to the 911 platform is a genuine break for customer teams rather than a catalogue refresh. The shift belongs to a long line of exchange between competition and road cars at the company (article in French).
Four stages, four locations
The build route is worth following. It starts in the Zuffenhausen body shop, where the shell is prepared. Specialists then integrate the racing structures: safety cage, reinforcements, air-jack mounting points. The car moves to the Volkswagen plant in Osnabrück for assembly, paint and the fitting of natural-fibre components made from flax. The last stop is Manthey Racing at the Nürburgring, for setup, vehicle measurement, AG10 approval and initial testing.
The idea dates to the summer of 2023, on the drive back from Le Mans. Armin Burger, coordinator of historic motorsport at Porsche, and Jörg Bergmeister were discussing the 718 Cayman GT4 RS Clubsport and reached the same conclusion: « This vehicle has become every bit as capable and as fast as a super sports car. » For this outing, Porsche Heritage and Museum worked with the Weissach motorsport specialists and Team 75 Motorsport, the first time the museum has entered contemporary competition.
A collection piece that still runs
The car joins the company collection in running order. That is a deliberate choice: the museum keeps vehicles that go back on track rather than objects parked under lights. It matches how Porsche treats its rarest models (article in French), many of which are driven at events rather than displayed only.
A documentary covering the build premieres on Porsche’s YouTube channel in autumn 2026, including test sessions with Bernhard at the wheel. For anyone following the 718 as a road car instead, the production version built its reputation on different arguments (article in French), though the mechanical link is direct.
The racing calendar has been steady for Porsche this summer, coming shortly after the brand wrapped up its IMSA Michelin Endurance Cup titles at Road America.
Source: Porsche Newsroom, release dated 1 August 2026.
Laisser un commentaire