Hyundai has confirmed that the forthcoming Ioniq 5 N will be much faster than the i30 N and serve as the new flagship of the performance division.
Ahead of the EV’s expected debut towards the end of this year, former head of the N division and Hyundai’s current executive technical advisor, Albert Biermann, spoke with Drive and provided some hints about how much performance the car will offer.
“It will be much faster (than the Hyundai i30 N),” he confirmed. “How could it be slower? It has almost 600 horsepower.” Biermann went on to reveal that the final horsepower figure has yet to be finalized, noting that it “could be 580, 600, [or] 620 hp.” These figures are roughly in line with the 577 hp of the Kia EV6 GT that is tipped to share its powertrain with the Ioniq 5 N.
While the car will be quick, Biermann said that will not be the key focus of it.
“Faster doesn’t matter,” he said, “it’s about grin, heartbeat. The question is how much fun is it? How big is your grin?”
Read More: This Is Everything We Know About The 2023 Hyundai Ioniq 5 N
One of the key reasons why Hyundai’s current N models are so fun to drive is the sound of their exhaust systems. Biermann acknowledged that the automaker will add some kind of soundtrack to the high-performance EV.
“That is the biggest challenge,” he told Drive. “The speed is already there, we have tonnes of speed. When I joined the company we talked a lot about cutting noise, now we talk about adding sound to electric cars to give the driver a nice feeling, some excitement. As for the ‘popcorn’ sounds, it is hard to mimic a dynamic explosion in a combustion system using only audio speakers inside the cabin. Sound is important, of course, but it’s not the whole game.”
Unlike all other existing Hyundai N models, the Ioniq 5 N will be all-wheel drive, although Biermann noted that it will include a ‘drift’ mode.
Renderings via Illustrations Josh Byrnes / Carscoops
