Electrical vehicles are sometimes accused of missing emotion. However Hyundai’s Ioniq 6 N proves in any other case — delivering noise, grip and real driving enjoyable.
Electrical vehicles are quiet. That’s often an excellent factor, particularly for long-distance driving or when cruising by residential streets. However relating to pleasure, silence is usually a letdown. Noise is a core a part of motorsport, in spite of everything. It’s no shock that Components E’s high-pitched whirring fails to encourage in the best way {that a} V10 screaming by a avenue circuit does. With out sound, velocity turns into summary — and lots of electrical efficiency vehicles fall quick on drama.
That’s the place the Hyundai Ioniq 6N steps in. With a high velocity of 257 km/h, it’s already fast by EV requirements. It sprints from 0–100 km/h in 3.2 seconds due to 448 kW (609 PS) of all-wheel-drive muscle — or as much as 650 PS briefly in Increase mode. At round €77,000, it’s not low cost, however given the efficiency and normal tools, it appears like a discount. The equally fast Porsche Taycan GTS begins at €148,800 earlier than choices. With Hyundai, solely a handful of extras price further.
Each are four-door saloons. The Taycan is bigger, however the Ioniq 6N nonetheless measures just below 5 metres and has a wheelbase of virtually three metres, so cabin house is beneficiant. The outside, although, is extra divisive than you’d anticipate from Hyundai. Its flowing, aerodynamic kind is intentionally completely different — and in N trim it will get a black rear panel (no matter physique color) and a dramatic swan-neck spoiler. In comparison with these, the muscular wheel arches look delicate.
However that is no styling train. “We constructed it for actual observe driving,” says Manfred Harrer, head of Hyundai N’s efficiency division. Meaning correct cooling for battery and drivetrain, examined on the Nürburgring. Harrer makes the purpose clearly: “Energy is simple nowadays. What issues is endurance, braking and cornering.”
So the Ioniq 6N will get giant brake discs, variable pedal response relying on drive mode, and powerful, confidence-inspiring deceleration. In probably the most aggressive setting, regenerative braking can attain 0.6 g — sufficient to really feel the seatbelt tug when lifting off the throttle.
Beneath, it’s virtually a completely completely different automobile to the usual Ioniq 6. Suspension mountings have been reengineered and adaptive dampers added. The result’s a decrease centre of gravity — even decrease than the Ioniq 5 N — and excellent dynamics. On bumpy B-roads it’s compliant, whereas on circuit it stays flat and composed. It even absorbs kerbs with outstanding poise. Torque is cut up throughout all 4 wheels with a rear bias, and 770 Nm in whole. A complicated torque vectoring system sharpens nook entry and exit, giving the motive force actual confidence.
Till now, the Ioniq 6N is solely a quick automobile. However Hyundai wished it to be enjoyable too — and in that regard, it pulls off one thing the Taycan doesn’t. The key is in its electronics, which remodel it right into a type of rolling video games console. Central to that’s the sound module. It doesn’t make the automobile sooner, but it surely makes it really feel sooner. The bogus engine word — raspy and uncooked — is extra for the motive force than pedestrians, but it surely provides character. Luckily, it may be turned off if it turns into tiring.
Then there’s N e-Shift, a digital paddle-shift gearbox. It’s not technically essential, but it surely mimics gear adjustments and provides interactivity — like a well-designed arcade recreation. The N Monitor Supervisor within the infotainment system provides much more depth. You get a ghost automobile on-screen to chase your earlier lap, and drift parameters that assist even novices slide with confidence. It’s nerdy, sure — however that’s the purpose.
At €77,000, it’s not a toy. However for under-30s who grew up racing digital vehicles, the Ioniq 6N brings that digital world vividly into the true one. Consider it as a Taycan for the PlayStation era — and in the very best approach.
By Wolfgang Hörner
