Hyundai Motor Group has released an official teaser for the performance variant of their Kona SUV, the Kona N. ‘N’ in Hyundai’s dictionary stands for a sporty, a performance variant, much like what M stands for in BMWs. Hyundai tweeted the teaser with a caption – “Coming in hot, it’s the KONA N. Yes, it’s N. Coming to the U.S. later this year. Preproduction model shown,” with a video of the model.
Expected specs
The Kona N will likely be powered the same engine that sits under the hood of the Veloster N, which is a 2.0L, inline 4 cyl turbo petrol engine that puts out an impressive 275BHP of peak power and around 353Nm of peak torque.
Although, it unlikely that the KONA will get the same 6-speed manual transmission as standard as seen in the Veloster N. Instead, Kona N will get an 8-speed wet dual-clutch transmission called the N DCT.
Talking about India, Hyundai offers the Kona as an all-electric SUV as of now which is powered by a 39.2 kWh battery pack which is paired to an electric motor which puts out 136PS of peak power and 395Nm of instantaneous torque output. It can run along for 452 km on a single charge as per the ARAI testing, and it kicks down to 100 from 0 in 9.7 seconds. Hyundai hasn’t launched its N models in India and as of now, it seems that we will have to make do with just the teasers and the videos.. But, should Hyundai change its mind and reconsider, it would be just lovely.
Official statement
“We’re excited to expand the recipe for success we’ve developed with the i30 N and, most recently, with the i20 N to one of our most popular SUVs on the market today: Kona,” said Andreas-Christoph Hofmann, Vice President of Marketing & Product at Hyundai Motor Europe. He added, “The addition of Kona to the N family will bring our high-performance brand to the next level.”
“The all-new KONA N is the first ‘hot SUV’ from the N brand,” said Till Wartenberg, Vice President and Head of N Brand Management and Motorsport Sub-division at Hyundai Motor Company. “As a ‘hot SUV’, it will have plenty of versatility as well as the driving pleasure like any other N vehicle. N-thusiasts will enjoy taking this car anywhere; from the road to the track,” Wartenberg added.