Hyundai Isn't Messing Around With Its N Cars
Almost every other automaker is out here talking about how much they're doing with electric cars, Hyundai this week was like: That's cool and all but how about good old SPORTINESS and PERFORMANCE.
I'm talking, of course, about Hyundai's N cars, which Hyundai said Monday would include seven cars, three of them pure N cars, four them N Line cars. Here is a graphic to make sense of it all:
On that graphic are the Veloster N, which we love; the Elantra N, which sounds loud; the Sonata N Line; the Tucson N Line; and the Elantra N Line. I'm guessing, like my friends at Roadshow, that the other two cars are Kona N cars.
These will all get here by 2022, Hyundai said. Hyundai also says that "Early consumer research feedback on these future N models has been very positive." I believe them! That's because the N shit is cool.
Hyundai also gave us a teaser of the Tucson N Line. It looks like a new Tucson but with more N. The bigger wheels, in particular, look very aggressive.
Hyundai did not reveal specs on the Tucson N Line, but our other friends at Car And Driver think it will get something close to 300 horsepower from a turbocharged 2.5-liter inline-four, the right amount of horsepower.
From Hyundai:
"I'm proud of what our talented N brand engineers, designers and product development teams have in store for enthusiast customers. Hyundai is committed to developing exciting, heart-charging N models in varied segments that reflect our passion to indulge enthusiasts. We're confident that enthusiasts will relish the agility and performance of our new N Line models", said Olabisi Boyle, vice president, Product Planning and Mobility Strategy, Hyundai Motor North America.
In a world that is in the midst of a pivot to electric, I respect Hyundai saying, "Actually, our strategy is to be BMW M but cheaper."