Review of Hyundai Ioniq 5 N 2024

The world of electric vehicles (EVs) with more affordable performance is heating up.

Kia just launched a super-fast super car Kia EV6 GT And hyundai will be the next taxi to surpass the N-fettled version of the EV, dubbed the Hyundai Ioniq 5Wonder.

We had the unique opportunity to join Hyundai’s test team in Sweden as they fine-tuned the electronic stability control system.

Although we couldn’t see the finished car, we had the great opportunity to get up close and personal with the Ioniq 5 N prototype and test some of the first electronic controls in the series. its segment.

We’ll have some videos of it in action over the next few weeks, but in the interim, enjoy the words and photos below, detailing the experience.

How much does Hyundai Ioniq 5 N cost?

We don’t know the price of the Ioniq 5 N yet, but it’s likely to be in the same ballpark as the hot Kia EV6 GT.

The EV6 GT priced from just under $100,000, and it’s likely Hyundai will aim for a similar number when it wants to take on rivals like Tesla Model 3 And Performance Model Y. Remember, the Ioniq 5 is more of a Model Y-sized car than a Model 3.

Hyundai’s current Ioniq 5 lineup extends to $85,000 for the Ioniq 5 Epiq AWD.

How is the interior of the Hyundai Ioniq 5 N?

Our preview of the Hyundai Ioniq 5 N was at the Mobis test range in Arjeplog, a small town located within the Arctic Circle in Sweden.

The town is best known as a winter testing ground for most of the major manufacturers, with most using or sharing one of the many ground-proven testing areas in the area.

Since we were in a top secret proving ground, we couldn’t take any pictures of ourselves. Also, Hyundai says parts of the interior are still unfinished, so all we can do is describe what it looks like.

Inside the cabin, for the most part it looks like a regular Ioniq 5, but the biggest changes are in the seats, gearshift levers on the steering wheel and visual highlights on the dashboard.

The seats are super comfortable and hug you tight. They are reminiscent of the seats in the Kia EV6 GT that have holes in the top to thread the seat belts.

The steering wheel is the biggest difference between the regular N and the Ioniq 5. In addition to the drive mode selector buttons on the top of the steering wheel, an additional set of buttons is equipped under the steering wheel similar to the N Grin Shift on some internal combustion N models.

They have stickers on them, but we think they may have hidden the screens behind stickers similar to what you see on Mercedes-AMGs.

Also, the steering wheel feels fatter, like what you’d find on BMWs with the M Sport package. While some people in our group don’t like the feel of it, I think it’s perfect for that application.

Behind the steering wheel is a set of gearshift paddles and we will explain their function later.

What’s under the bonnet?

Hyundai is tight-lipped about the power and torque the Ioniq 5 N will produce, but we can get a read between the lines.

Underneath the shell, the Ioniq 5 N uses a next-generation battery pack. package is about 80kWh in terms of size, but offers better power density than the conventional Ioniq 5.

This new chemistry has allowed Hyundai to quickly draw more current from the battery, increasing performance and durability.

In terms of power and torque, we’ve heard the numbers 600 hp (447 kW) has been mentioned many times, which leads us to believe that the Ioniq 5 N will produce more power than the EV6 GT. The EV6 GT produces 430 kW when the front and rear engines are at their peak.

The cooling system inside the engine helps the EV6 GT achieve a higher number of engine revolutions, thereby allowing the car to reach a maximum speed of 260 km/h using only one gear (unlike Porsche Taycan, using a two-speed transmission). It is unclear whether the Ioniq 5 N will use the same system.

The electrical infrastructure remains the same, with the Ioniq 5 N using an 800V electrical architecture capable of charging up to 350kW on 11kW three-phase DC and AC.

There is also a means of charging through the power outlet under the rear seats or an adapter for the charging port, limited to 15A and 3.6 kW.

Visible below the camouflage are functional vents for the rear axle (presumably for additional engine cooling) and larger vents at the front. A large diffuser can be seen at the rear, alongside a set of wider tires.

How does the Hyundai Ioniq 5 N drive?

Traveling around the world to attend events like this is a great opportunity to talk to the engineers who work on these vehicles day in and day out.

Albert Biermann (former director of N, now strategic consultant for the brand) has built a highly skilled and competent team around him to execute ambitious projects like the Ioniq 5 N.

This is the first Ioniq 5 car to feature adaptive damping, along with several software-controlled programs to improve the driver’s experience behind the wheel.

I’ll cover as many of these as I can (and the ones we can test).

Exterior/interior sound

Hyundai will give the Ioniq 5 N the ability to transform and even create their own accelerating sound.

Ultimately, the plan is to build a platform that allows customers to upload their own sounds to vehicles to personalize them beyond what Hyundai offers.

We’ve tested some of the sounds Hyundai has to offer at the moment, and while they do add to the experience, they’re the kind of sounds I’ve found to detract from the driving experience – but they do come in handy for one of my favorites. next feature.

Drift mode

Now this I really like. Hyundai has designed a comprehensive Drift Mode, but it’s not just a case of disabling the front axle and bringing things to the rear.

Hyundai engineers used the drift experts on their team to fine-tune the system and turn the Ioniq 5 N into a true drift machine. We had a chance to test this on a frozen lake in the Mobis test facility and the results were surprising.

You are dealing with a surface that has a very, very low level of friction. The surface then has friction level adjustments when you touch parts of the graded tape and move to the ungraded tape.

The car has to deal with these sudden changes in grip levels almost instantaneously to prevent you from turning around.

Admittedly, no matter how hard I tried, it was nearly impossible to turn the Ioniq 5 N. You can keep pressing the gas and steering to keep the car gliding perfectly around the giant ice ring.

How does sound help this? Unlike conventional internal combustion cars that make more noise the more you hit the gas, EVs don’t – and it’s hard to gauge the response your inputs will have until it’s too late.

The engine sounds are designed to help you better understand the relationship between throttle input and wheel slip, which the system can then adjust accordingly.

Variable torque control

We’ve seen this feature before in Tesla Performance vehicles.

Track mode allows the driver to adjust the torque split between the front and rear axles anywhere from 100% front-wheel drive to 100% rear-wheel drive or 10% of the mileage .

It’s fun to try out both on the glacial lake and set up the treatment course a little further afield. We can toy with how well the car handles when traction control is limited or traction control is turned off completely (and it’s actually completely off).

The curious thing we found on the tape, where the throttle input could immediately bring the engine into 20,000rpm free spins, Hyundai dialed in a soft limiter when there was a disparity. excess between wheel speed and vehicle speed.

For example, if you are stationary with traction control off and you press the accelerator too hard, instead of allowing the wheels to spin at 200 km/h on the spot, a soft limiter will operate when reaching pre-set plain.

This affects things like Drift Mode a bit when you need a little wheel slip to keep things moving, but it’s easily remedied by turning the throttle off and then quickly back on.

Transfer fake numbers

This is something I never thought I would write about – dummy gearshifts in electric cars. Hyundai has designed a CVT-esque system where the driver can put the car into manual mode.

In manual mode, it shows a tachometer in front of the driver pulling to speeds around 8000rpm, though the motors could theoretically spin up to over 20,000rpm.

When the tacho reaches the red line, the torque gradually decreases until the driver uses the shift lever to shift to the next gear. During these spurious shifts, there will be a slight pulse through the motors to simulate shifting.

It’s a strange experience, but Hyundai thinks it’s how it can better bridge the gap between electric and internal combustion vehicles.

e-LSD

e-LSD is not a groundbreaking concept, but its application in EVs works very well.

It’s an electronically controlled limited-slip differential that allows the car to do both limited-slip on the rear axle and torque vectoring through braking on the front axle.

At the rear, it prevents the inside wheel from spinning faster than the outside wheel, which can happen pretty quickly in an EV with a sudden increase in torque.

The benefit of this in practical terms is when the traction control system is off. You can drive more aggressively without relying solely on the brakes to assist other assist systems through the brake distributed torque vectoring.

Hyundai also uses e-LSD to help initiate Drift Mode by sending a sudden burst of torque to the rear axle, while also locking the differential to bring the vehicle out of the way.

Australian ride and handling tunes

An Australian team has been involved in the Ioniq 5 N’s ride and ride overseas, and the team is expected to pass once upon arrival in Australia.

It’s a pretty unique position as most markets will just get the same tune regardless of road conditions in their respective countries.

CarExpert tests Hyundai Ioniq 5 FEMALE

Unfortunately, it’s hard to convey many of the things I’ve described above without pictures.

We’ll have some video content later this month – although it won’t be as comprehensive as our usual uploads – hopefully describing it in a bit more detail.

Either way, our brief example of the Ioniq 5 N should excite us to have a drive to match it once it’s out.

Hyundai says it will launch the Ioniq 5 N in July 2023 and will go on sale in Australia in late 2023 or early 2024.

It will probably be heavy due to the large battery pack, e-LSD and powerful engine, but with all the effort Hyundai has put into tuning, it can be fun to drive and we can’t wait to see it. test it out locally.

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THAN: Everything Hyundai Ioniq 5