Hyundai drops N bomb on South Africa

Over the years, one thing motoring enthusiasts can be thankful for, is that the hot hatch war remains a fiercely contested part of the motoring landscape. Locally it has been down to Renault’s Megane RS and Honda’s Civic Type R, both of which sell in tiny numbers, to try to rough up Volkswagen’s massively popular and competent Golf GTI. Now it’s the turn of a Korean-conceived, Czech-born and German-trained challenger to have a go.

The Hyundai i30 N steps into the local ring for the first time with a very impressive array of skills on offer. You get the snap, crackle and pop of 202 kW power and 353 Nm torque, with 378 Nm available for a brief period when in overboost, all courtesy of a responsive 2.0-litre turbocharged powerplant.

Honestly, though, in flat out terms the car never quite felt like there was this amount of, on paper at least, power on tap. That said, the i30 N is supposed to top out at 250km/h and get from 0 to 100 km/h in just 6.1 seconds. I guess we will see this for ourselves in our upcoming road test. But as we all know, power is nothing without control and in the case of hot hatches, also worth nothing if you can’t get the power to the tar in a controlled manner.

The true test of an everyday hot hatch is how it behaves on the road when it is not in full battle mode. And here the six-speed manual (there will be an eight-speed DCT in the offering at a later stage) in the i30 N comes together better than all of the competition in my opinion.

I know this is a massive statement in the shadow of the soon to be replaced 7.5 Golf GTI but read a bit further and try to see past the nameplate before you flame me on the spot. The gruelling and challenging DNA of Hyundai’s motorsport exploits in the World Rally Championship and TCR racing comes through strongly, as does all the track time at Germany’s world-famous Nurburgring circuit.

The i30 N is so easy to drive fast on the track, thanks to this rigorous test approach, helped by an electronically controlled limited slip differential, trick dampers that can be adjusted at the push of a BMW M, M1, M2 type button setup and 19-inch alloy wheels with sticky Pirelli P-Zero high-performance tyres.

The electronically controlled suspension communicates clearly through the nicely weighted steering. You always know exactly what the i30 N is doing under you and the limited slip diff pulls you hard out of a corner. The only time I experienced any understeer was when I screwed up the corner and went in way too hot and deep. No electronics will save you from this.

On the road, rapid pace is just as easy, hit the fun button and engage Normal Mode and the i30 N transforms into a great, substantially softer and more compliant drive, while still being just firm enough to not wallow around the place. Best of both worlds right here.

The Hyundai i30 N goes on sale at 14 selected Hyundai dealerships in South Africa plus one each in Botswana and Namibia.  The i30 N is a brilliant first attempt and it will deserve to do better than I think it will in South Africa.

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