Yahoo Autos N-Credible! Hyundai's 2024 Ioniq 5 N Debuts with 641 Horsepower
Hyundai's hot-rotor Ioniq 5 N will produce 601 horsepower and 545 pound-feet of torque. With N Grin Boost activated, the output leaps to 641 hp.
The Ioniq 5 N is the first electric vehicle to simulate an eight-speed dual-clutch automatic transmission, which Hyundai calls N e-shift.
Revised battery chemistry increases the usable capacity to 84.0 kWh from 77.4 using the same battery pack.
The Hyundai Ioniq 5 has already won us over, claiming Car and Driver's EV of the Year title two years ago. From a performance standpoint, Kia's EV6 GT paved the way as to what the Korean brands are capable of. Throw those two platform-sharing vehicles, big tires and brakes, some out-of-the-box thinking, and more than 6000 miles of development around the treacherous 12.9-mile Nürburgring Nordschleife into a performance-spectrum blender, and out comes the delicious 2024 Hyundai Ioniq 5 N.
Let's start by removing any misconceptions that the Ioniq 5 is simply a rebodied Kia EV6 GT. The Hyundai takes things to the next level. It features its own specific suspension calibrations, including bushing tolerances, three-position electronically controlled dampers, and spring tuning. Also, an aluminum two-piece lower control arm is added to the standard Ioniq 5s stamped steel unit. For a stronger structure, there's 42 additional welding points and more structural adhesive. To improve lateral rigidity, the motor and battery mounting points have been reinforced, and subframes have been beefed up.
Soundtrack of Choice
Like other electrified vehicles, the Ioniq 5 N offers user-selectable synthesized soundtracks. With N Active Sound+, there are three available sound profiles, and their volume can be adjusted from distant to in-your-face: Evolution is the spacey noise we've grown to dislike in many EVs, Supersonic emulates a fighter jet, but the most engaging profile will be Ignition. Through the eight internal and two external speakers, Hyundai set out for Ignition to emulate the sound of a turbocharged 2.0-liter inline-four found in the Elantra N or the Kona N.
To date, the Ioniq 5 N is the most powerful Hyundai to reach customers. Its two motors—one at each axle—spin up to 21,000 rpm and combine to produce 601 horsepower and 545 pound-feet of torque during normal operation. With N Grin Boost activated, 641 ponies are in the stable. With the Boost mode engaged, Hyundai claims a 3.4-second sprint to 60 mph is in the cards. By our measuring stick, that's a conservative number considering the 576-hp Kia EV6 GT did the deed in 3.1. Hyundai also claims top speed is limited to 161 mph, a number we've already verified on Germany's autobahn.
Simulated Gearshifts
The Ioniq 5 N e-Shift programing unleashes something that changes the game of how the brain processes EVs: simulated gearshifts. By briefly interrupting the motors' torque delivery, N e-Shift mimics an eight-speed dual-clutch automatic. The 5 N will jolt on upshifts. Downshifts are rev matched and accompanied by pops and bangs from the speakers during deceleration when Ignition sound mode is active, just like the internal-combustion N cars. Hyundai is completely transparent that interrupting torque delivery with N e-Shift isn't the quickest way around a track, but by only a slim margin. If you take manual control with the shift paddles and miss a shift, you'll hit a virtual fuel cutoff. Get caught out in too high a gear, and the Ioniq 5 will even lug the powertrain by limiting the power delivery. Yes, it's totally fake and unrelated to the mechanicals, but it's a degree of engagement that until now has been lost in the electrified world.
