The Hyundai Ioniq 5 N was launched to widespread acclaim, due to its rapid electric powertrain and hot hatch-esque dynamics, making it one of the first true leaders in the performance EV space.
Its debut signalled a new era for Hyundai, which last week revealed its sedan sibling, the Ioniq 6 N, as its latest battery-powered performance model.
While the pair are the benchmarks for most ‘affordable’ brands, Hyundai has also been dealing with the death of its turbocharged i20 N and i30 N hot hatches in certain markets, such as Europe where they were pulled from sale in February 2024.
At the time, Hyundai said its decision was based on its new focus of the electric N cars, however the head of the performance brand, Joon Park, told the UK’s Car magazine of the difficulty he faced by removing the brand’s petrol-powered heroes.
“We are not limiting ourselves into EV,” Park said. “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 for EV. It’s not true.
“The discontinuation of i20 and i30 N was a disaster for me. But it takes time to have a new one. So yeah, 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.”
Despite the death of the i20 N and i30 N in Europe, both models are still on sale in Australia, where a community around the Hyundai N brand has been formed, arguably as one of the largest of any new vehicle available locally.
According to Park, the door is open for the return of petrol power to Hyundai N’s European lineup, which could mean new-generation models with more efficient engines.
“I’m responsible for the global market. Europe is not going to be easy,” he said.
“All those kinds of things that we actually – you know, the 2.0 turbo engine for 280PS (206kW), or something like that cannot exist anymore based on the current regulation and future regulation.”
The executive also noted the potential market where the N brand could best succeed – such as being a continued competitor to Volkswagen’s GTI models – isn’t a cash cow.
“Hyundai N has to be reachable. We actually want to play with our friend groups, with a proper priced car and reachable price cars,” Park added.
“We are not talking about luxury exotic car. We are talking about the Hyundai N level. In that case, where should we go? Where nobody else is existing anymore, except for GTI.
“Last movers advantage could exist, right? But it could be a first mover to invest a lot of for those smaller cars which do not make that much amount of profit margin.
“Higher price, higher profit margin, right? Small car, lower price, lower profit margin. So, if we want to have a B-segment car then I need to work very hard to persuade everybody. So, this is what I’m doing. B or C, or it doesn’t matter. But at the same point, I also need to take care of our customers who really want to be in this area.”
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