The time is almost here for the reveal of Hyundai’s long-awaited Ioniq 5 N, and just ahead of its official debut at the Goodwood Festival of Speed next week, the electric hot hatch has dropped some of its camouflage as captured by our spy photographers.
Admittedly, we’ve seen a similar level of camo (or lack thereof) in Hyundai’s own low-light teasers, but this is our first time seeing this much of the bodywork in broad daylight. Overall, the car looks to sport an athletic design worthy of its expected performance.
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Up front, we can now see the lower bodywork, which features a large central intake with a slimmer secondary opening underneath. Flanking those on either side are creased side intakes that bear a resemblance to those on the facelifted Elantra N. Moving down the side of the vehicle, we can see a set of multispoke wheels framing high-performance brakes, though the former’s design could change for the production version. We can also see side skirts running along the hatchback’s bottom edge, which transition into air ducts just ahead of the rear wheels. Finally, the rear end features angular air outlets behind the wheels as well as a subtle diffuser along the bottom of the bumper
While it’s not a styling change per se, the Ioniq 5 N will also sit lower to the ground thanks to a new performance suspension setup. Coupled with the N Torque Distribution system and an e-LSD on the rear axle, this should help the car maneuver its near-two-ton curb weight—a consequence of its heavy electric battery—around corners with greater ease.
Read More: New Hyundai Ioniq 5 N Teaser Reveals Virtual Downshift Noises
Being a fully-fledged N car, though, the hotter Ioniq 5 won’t just be receiving handling upgrades. Powering the car will be a high-output dual-motor powertrain that’s expected to make “almost” 600 hp (608 PS / 447 kW). If we had to guess, we’d imagine it will use a version of the dual-motor AWD setup found in the Kia EV6 GT, a vehicle that rides on the same E-GMP platform. This would afford the Ioniq 5 N with a power output of 577 hp (585 PS / 430 kW) if not more, which should be substantial enough for some neck-snapping acceleration.
To line up with this powertrain, Hyundai has also added a bit of aggression to the car’s sound. The simulated engine sound manages to be familiar enough to ICE owners while still managing to have some distinctly electric tones to it. In addition to the timbre of an engine, the sound also replicates the behavior of one with artificial pops, crackles, and downshifts. On the topic of those shifts, they will be controlled by a simulated DCT gearbox that aims to provide a realistic shifting experience down to even the vibrations felt in the cockpit.
Once the Ioniq 5 N eventually hits showrooms after its Goodwood unveiling, it will compete with vehicles such as the Tesla Model Y Performance, Ford Mustang Mach-E GT, Polestar 2 Performance, and Kia EV6 GT amongst others.
