Hyundai will be going all guns blazing with its performance-oriented products and will unleash as many as seven new ‘N’ and ‘N Line’ cars in the U.S. market, within the next two years. This N Performance model onslaught will target a wider audience and include new segments and price points. The new-gen Elantra N will be the next car to be injected with a performance-enhancing dose.
This steady flow of new N brand performance models will include variants in each major vehicle category, including three purist N models and four N Line models. The N brand family has currently revealed the Veloster N, Sonata N Line and Elantra N Line, with the remaining four N brand models to be unveiled in the near future.
In a teaser image which reveals a camouflaged car, the Elantra N’s sharp and aggressive lines are paired with aggressive bumpers, a boot lid spoiler, bigger, thin-spoke wheels and red brake calipers. To make a bigger engine exhale better, the car also features twin exhaust outlets at the back.
Along with the Elantra N, a Tucson N Line is also in the works and has been teased with aggressive bumpers and side skirting, sporty wheels and a rear section with a faux diffuser under the bumper and twin exhaust tips. The all-new Hyundai Tucson and the new Elantra, both are expected to go on sale in India, sometime in 2021. Whether these N and N Line models make it here could be anybody’s guess. But given Hyundai India’s eagerness to offer turbocharged motors on almost all their cars, we wouldn’t be surprised if an N or an N Line model goes on sale too. Output figures for these new go-fast versions aren’t out, yet.
The fourth-gen Tucson was revealed in September 2020 as a global model and will be available in two different versions – long-wheelbase and a short-wheelbase variant, for meeting various customer needs. On the performance front, standard versions of the Tucson are offered with a Smartstream 2.5-litre, direct-injected, four-cylinder, gasoline powertrain and a 1.6-litre, turbo, direct-injected, hybrid or plug-in hybrid powertrain.
On the other hand, the new Elantra in its 7th-gen avatar is an all-new, sharper-looking sedan with changes running skin deep. Developed on Hyundai’s new K3 platform, the new base is said to be lighter than before so that ought to change the driving dynamics for good. Firepower comes from a 2.0 litre, four-cylinder petrol engine from the current car which is good for 147 hp and 179 nm of torque. This petrol mill is mated with a CVT automatic transmission. While this engine remains the same, Hyundai has introduced a new hybrid powertrain and has paired a 1.6-litre GDI petrol with a 32kW electric motor (powered by a 1.32kWh lithium-ion battery) for a combined output of 139hp and 264Nm of torque. This hybrid powertrain is going to be mated with a 6-Speed dual-clutch automatic gearbox.