Hyundai may have just revealed its second electric N performance vehicle, but that doesn’t mean petrol power is dead at its go-fast division.
“We are not limiting ourselves into EV,” Hyundai N boss Joon Park told UK outlet Car.
“But this is some kind of tendency after we launched Ioniq 5 N, because Ioniq 5 N was a huge message for the entire car industry. And a lot of people thought, and think, that Hyundai N is going towards only EV. It’s not true.
“We are not focusing on EV only. We are not. I’m not the person who actually really likes the EV. I’ve always liked the smell and the sound and all those kinds of race cars.”
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Hyundai has discontinued its petrol-powered i20 N and i30 N hot hatches in Europe, but they continue to be produced for our market.
Moreover, Hyundai also has the i30 Sedan N – aka Elantra N and Avante N – for markets such as Australia, South Korea and North America.
The i20 N and i30 N may be dead in Europe, but they’re reportedly set to be reborn, with Car reporting word from Mr Park that his engineers are working on a hybrid-powered replacement for the hot hatches.
They’ll still be accessible to punters, too, unlike the Ioniq 5 N, which is more than twice as expensive in Australia as even the priciest i30 N.
“Hyundai N has to be reachable. We actually want to play with our friend groups, with a proper-priced car and reachable price cars – we are not talking about a luxury exotic car,” he said.
“We are talking about the Hyundai N level. In that case, where should we go? Where nobody else is existing anymore, except for [the VW Golf] GTI.”
Hyundai axed the i20 N and i30 N in Europe in 2024, and at the time said this was “in line with our commitment to offering a zero-tailpipe-emission lineup to our customers by 2035 and to operating 100 per cent carbon neutrally by 2045”.
“The discontinuation of i20 and i30 N was a disaster for me. But it takes time to have a new one,” said Mr Park.
He suggested it would be harder work getting an i20 N replacement approved given that, typically, the smaller the vehicle the smaller the profit margins.
He said the turbocharged 2.0-litre four-cylinder petrol engine that powers the i30 N won’t appear in a successor model… at least not in Europe.
“I’m responsible for the global market. Europe is not going to be easy,” he said.
“The 2.0-litre turbo engine for 280PS [206kW]… That cannot exist anymore based on the current regulation and future regulation.”
Whether Hyundai could keep the 1.6-litre turbo-petrol engine of the i20 N alive with electrification is unclear. A version of this engine already features in hybrid crossover SUVs from the brand such as the Tucson and Santa Fe.
Hyundai has never offered a hybrid N model. It now has three separate petrol-powered N models – the i20 N, i30 N, and i30 Sedan N/Elantra N/Avante N – as well as two electric ones in the Ioniq 5 N and the just-revealed Ioniq 6 N.
The Korean automaker is planning a significant expansion in hybrid sales.
Per a plan announced last August, it wants to sell 1.33 million hybrids annually by 2028, an increase over 40 per cent compared with its global sales plan from the previous year.
To that end, it’s launching a new 2.5-litre turbo hybrid powertrain that’s debuting in the next-generation Palisade large SUV.
Hyundai has already confirmed the i30 Sedan N will move to a 2.5-litre turbo four, up from a 2.0-litre. That appears to open up the possibility of hybrid power for that model, though the sports sedan has never been sold in Europe.
In addition to conventional hybrids, Hyundai also offers plug-in hybrids (though none are sold here presently) and is rolling out extended-range electric vehicles (EREVs) that incorporate a petrol engine used as a generator.
It’s unclear whether Hyundai would develop N vehicles with this technology, or with a hydrogen fuel-cell powertrain like the retro-styled N Vision 74 concept.
Development of Hyundai N vehicles is centred in Europe, along with the new Magma performance vehicle line for luxury brand Genesis.
“There’s been so much innovation at Rüsselsheim and some major investment. Our new building opened a couple of months ago, and it gives us so much more possibility, and allows us to develop EVs,” Hyundai Motor Europe Technical Center managing director Tyrone Johnson told Car.
“We’re going to be developing our own products in Europe. All [Genesis] Magma products will be developed in Europe, for the world – nothing will be developed in Korea.”
Australia is a major market for Hyundai N vehicles.
While VFACTS industry sales reports bundle the i30 N with the rest of the i30 lineup, we know exactly how many i20 Ns are sold here because Hyundai doesn’t offer any non-N i20 variants.
To the end of June, Hyundai has delivered 723 examples of the i20 N in Australia this year. That’s more than the Skoda Fabia (164) and Volkswagen Polo (401), both of which offer a wide range of variants.