The Hyundai i30N has received significant praise and admiration ever since its release in late 2017. It was seen as one of the ultimate ‘bang for your buck’ car with prices starting at around €30,000 in the EU. The South Korean made hot hatch provides nifty performance in a pretty package, whilst drastically undercutting the price of similar cars in the segment. Evidently, its price tag also meant that the performance wasn’t going to be dethroning the ultimate hot hatch paradigm: the VW Golf R. Until now, that is. Apparently Hyundai has an all-wheel drive Hyundai i30N in the pipeline with the intentions of boasting some impressive performance.
According to the global head of the Hyundai N sub-brand, Albert Biermann, sending power to both axels has been a serious plan for the N lineup for some time now. In addition to an AWD system N-badged cars may also receive a dual-clutch transmission in the near future – a DCT-equipped i30N is rumoured for a late 2019 release. Although nothing concrete has been confirmed at this point, it would be a logical step for Hyundai to continue the success of the i30N by entering into the next echelon of performance.
The standard i30N boasts 247 horsepower, which can be amped up to 271 with an additional performance package. Under the hood lies a four-cylinder 2.0-litre T-GDI turbo engine delivering 353Nm torque to the front wheels. The standard i30 N does the 0-100 km/h dash in a mere 6.4 seconds before attaining a top speed of 250 km/h. Upgrading to the performance package reduces the 0-100 km/h time by three tenths of a second to 6.1, though top speed remains at the electronically limited maximum of 250 km/h. This only makes you wonder: what figures will the AWD model have?
Hi
When can we expect to see them in South Africa? These are amazing machines… Please bring them to SA