Official: a Hyundai Ioniq 5 N performance EV will arrive in 2023

Though the Hyundai N Vision 74 concept might look back to the original Pony from the Seventies, it – along with the RN22e concept – previews a very interesting future. Both will inform the very first electric N division product: a Hyundai Ioniq 5 N.

It’s the first “big step” towards the company’s next-generation of high performance. Electrified high performance, of course. There are literally zero details to chew on at this stage other than a) an N will appear, and b) it shall appear in 2023.

Both of those concepts – or ‘rolling labs’ in Hyundai parlance – were built to pursue Hyundai N's three key pillars of, and we're not making this first one up, 'corner rascal', 'racetrack capability', and 'everyday sportscar'. But they go about the whole high-performance thing differently, and it’ll be the concept 6 N that’ll inform the 5 N more. (No doubt because the concept 74’s dual hydrogen/battery electric setup probably won’t be feasible by next year.)

That concept 6 N features a 568bhp/546lb ft version of the regular 6’s twin-motor all-wheel-drive drivetrain, able to vary the torque delivered to each axle in a heartbeat. That touring-car esque concept is also a test bed for next-gen regen braking that better controls ‘yaw and corner attack’.

The concept also features lightweight, 3D-printed parts to counter lugging around heavy batteries. There are big brakes. Better cooling. Even rortier noises, all in the name of enhancing electrified performance cars.

“RN22e and N Vision 74 play an important role in the strategic development of our entire product lineup, especially our electrified, high-performance vehicles,” said Thomas Schemera, Hyundai’s executive VP.

“Rolling labs represent the continuous development of our most advanced technologies. This unique approach makes us ready for the challenges of the future by empowering us to push ourselves to the limit.”