We’re very fond of the Hyundai Ioniq 5—so much so we named it our 2023 SUV of the Year—and our appreciation has only grown since. Upping the ante is the hopped-up Ioniq 5 N version
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00:00This is kind of the car of the moment, right?
00:12The IONIQ 5 was already a spectacular vehicle.
00:15It won our SUV of the Year award and now we have a 641 horsepower version with uprated
00:21brakes, revised suspension and an 8-speed dual-clutch transmission.
00:25Well, not really, but kind of.
00:27It does a really, really good impression of one.
00:31I drove this thing at Laguna Seca recently and it was affirmational, aspirational, inspirational.
00:37It was incredible.
00:38Trust me, you want to hear this thing come out of the corkscrew and rev up to redline.
00:43Oh yeah, did I not mention this thing can rev?
00:47Come on Hyundai, give all the other car companies a chance.
00:49Stop making such amazing vehicles.
00:55Listen to this.
00:56This is Hyundai's Active Sound Plus.
01:00Sounds like a combustion car revving out.
01:02I've got to remind you, I'm in an EV and yet the sound that's being pumped into the
01:11cabins and also being pumped outside using the exterior speaker is that of an 8-speed
01:16dual-clutch transmission.
01:20I'm also using these paddles here to change gear and as I do so, my head rocks back and
01:29forth, the feeling of a combustion engine car in an EV and not just any EV, it's a
01:35big vehicle and yet the work that the Hyundai engineers have done with the revised front
01:41suspension, the adjusted track, this is a couple of inches wider and longer.
01:46Everything's been in service of making this car more dynamically enjoyable.
01:51This does have a drift mode, it also has a thing called N-Pedal which allows the front
01:57end to tuck in the corners, helping to facilitate the rotation you need to carry speed through
02:03the corners.
02:05601 horsepower is this car's operational power figure and then you've got 40 extra
02:12horses for an up to 10-second boost using this red N-Grin Boost button on the steering
02:19wheel here.
02:22Great steering.
02:26It's a little bit artificial, doesn't obviously connect you to the road in the same way that
02:36some of these real track racers do but it's very, very good.
02:42Look, watch, I'll hit the red line, you ready?
02:46Look at that, kick me forwards, that is insane.
02:50I don't take any pleasure from hitting the red line but at least in this I know that
02:55it's not going to have the valves bouncing off the top of the hood, it's all make-believe.
03:01The geometry is exactly the same as the standard IONIQ 5 but every single component of the
03:07front suspension has been redesigned.
03:13The benchmark that Hyundai set was that this should be the first true performance EV.
03:21They don't think that an EV has come to market yet, aimed directly at enthusiasts
03:27and it's all about performance.
03:29Yes, there have been very, very, very, very, very quick EVs but they don't think that anyone's
03:34got the handling, dynamics, track day ready usability down.
03:41That's what they want this to be.
03:43This is a car by enthusiasts for enthusiasts.
03:49For nine years, almost 10 years since Hyundai launched the IONIQ 5, this is the first EV
03:56for nine years since N brand was launched but this, this is kind of the first real embodiment
04:05of that and it's so good.
04:10It's epic.
04:13They want this car to be able to complete 20 minutes on a circuit at full power, no
04:19heat bleed, no power loss, no brake fade and then they want it to go on a fast charger
04:25for 20 minutes whilst everything cools down, the battery's preconditioned and it gets a
04:30little bit of charge and then it should be able to go out for another 20 minutes and
04:33repeat and repeat and repeat and then of course you should be able to drive home.
04:38That's the standard Hyundai have set as they've engineered this car.
04:43Indeed, they also managed to achieve two full speed, full pace timed laps of the Nurburgring
04:53back to back without any power loss.
04:57Come on, that's impressive.
04:59Most EVs start losing power as the battery percentage gets lower than 60 or 70%
05:10not the IONIQ 5N.
05:14I drove this car at Laguna Seca just a few weeks ago.
05:17It handled that course amazingly but of course a lot of the circuit's corners are on camber, right?
05:25Everything's kind of a bowl.
05:28Here in Chapuala, a lot of the corners are off camber, a lot of the corners require you
05:33to wait, wait, wait.
05:36You hit the apex, you have to wait again, you come over this blind crest for example
05:40and there now.
05:43And a little bit, the tyre's just warming up now, you can hear a little bit of tyre squeal
05:46but there's power.
05:50It's so good.
05:54And yeah, launch control. In fact, we can give that a go now.
05:57Should we do that? Let's find a straight.
05:59Okay, left foot on the brake, mash the right foot.
06:12It's plenty powerful.
06:14What a thoroughly impressive car.
06:17I've got a feeling you might be seeing a lot of these on the streets
06:20especially considering that they only cost $67,000.
06:25That's a lot of bang for your buck.
06:28That's a lot of bang for the buck.
06:30And when you add into the fact
06:33it's also a spectacularly functional city and highway car, an SUV, a huge trunk.
06:41Come on, winner, winner, chicken dinner, don't you think?
06:45Will it be a finalist at our 2024 Performance Vehicle of the Year?
06:52I think it will be.
06:53I think this thing could go far in this competition.
06:57www.rimbaracer.com