Hyundai N hints at new special editions in 2022
Hyundai’s burgeoning performance division is eyeing further growth this year, with new special editions possibly on the cards, as the hot i20, Kona and i30 Sedan settle in.
Hyundai appears poised to expand its line-up of N performance cars this year, hinting at new special editions to keep interest in the current range up ahead of the launch of its first electric car in 2023 or 2024.
In a press release detailing its European sales results in 2021, Hyundai pointed to a possible launch of new performance N models later this year, stating: “In 2022 … The company has also hinted at an expansion of its high-performance N line-up.”
While the remark doesn’t lock in a new N car for launch in 2022 – merely hinting at an earlier suggestion from the Korean car maker – it’s fair to assume Hyundai wouldn’t mention the possibility of new N models before year’s end, if it didn’t have any plans to follow through.
However, Drive understands any new N cars set for launch this year – which would be full performance cars, as the use of “high-performance” suggests, rather than mid-tier N Line variants – would be special editions or new variants of existing models, rather than all-new cars.
Hyundai N completed the ‘second phase’ of its new model roll-out late last year – comprising the facelifted i30 N hatch, new i20 N city car, Kona N small SUV and i30 Sedan N – with the next N car (and ‘third wave’) not due until 2023 or 2024, when the all-electric Ioniq 5 N SUV launches.
Production of the current-generation Hyundai Kona and i30 (hatch and Fastback) is slated to end in 2023, according to overseas reports – with the latter pair rumoured to be the last of the breed – paving the way for the unveiling of ‘final edition’ variants of one or more models before the end of 2022.
These variants could offer anything from upgrades to colour, trim and badging, to a more extreme limited edition in the same vein as the 2019 i30 N Project C, a Europe-only special edition which added unique wheels, carbon-fibre parts, new sports bucket seats and Deep Orange accent that combined for a 50kg weight saving.
“With the launch of i30 Sedan N, we have completed our second generation of [the] N family of models,” Hyundai Australia product planner Tim Rodgers told Australian media late last year.
“With our product pillars fully populated, we now enter a new transitional stage for our brand, where we will expand our consumer offerings through the services offered within the car, and the buying experience.”
In addition to a possible new Hyundai N model, 2022 will see the launch of Hyundai’s new Ioniq 6 electric sedan – the second member of the new Ioniq electric vehicle family, riding on dedicated battery EV underpinnings – plus a rumoured facelift for the Palisade large SUV, among other models.
In Australia, with the full (for now) N performance car range now on sale – in addition to multiple N Line models – Hyundai is looking to increase the share of sales N and N Line cars account for to 25 per cent, comprised of 20 per cent N Line and five per cent N sales.
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