Hyundai has confirmed the i30 Fastback N will make its debut at the Paris motor show in October. Official images have shown prototypes undergoing final testing at the Nürburgring, where the company has its European Test Centre.
The sleek five-door Fastback N is the third performance car to come from Hyundai's fledgling N division, following the i30 N hatchback and US-only Veloster N.
The i30 Fastback N has now been revealed - take a look
The Fastback N will use the same mechanicals, powertrain and twin-exit exhaust system as its hatchback sibling, and could be seen rolling on the same 19in wheels in our earlier spy shots. That means it will offer two power outputs from its turbocharged 2.0-litre engine: 247bhp for the standard variant and 271bhp for the version equipped with the optional N Performance Pack, which we drove in prototype form earlier this month.
Both variants will be front-wheel drive and are expected to come with a six-speed manual gearbox, like the existing hatchback model. Despite the change in body shape, the fastback’s performance will likely be near identical to the hatchback’s, meaning 0-62mph time of about 6.1sec for the 271bhp version.
The Fastback N will go on sale in February 2019 following its official Paris reveal.
Hyundai N division boss Albert Biermann, who joined the firm from BMW’s M division, oversees chassis development for all of Hyundai’s models, but is known to have most influence over its hottest cars. Biermann encourages a more playful setup on his models, so this will no doubt remain a target for the i30 Fastback N.
Biermann told Autocar last year that the i30N models would be effective track machines. He said “There are too many cars out there with tyres and brakes that go [off] too fast [on circuit]”, but that Hyundai “really wanted to make a car that can be consistent”.
Biermann confirmed that his team used extensive testing stints at the Nürburgring, which included competing in last year's 24-hour race there, to boost the durability of the i30N platform. He said that such methods directly helped to improve the car’s clutch and shift operation, as well as brake cooling.
Join the debate
Add your comment
Why does it need to be tested at the Nurburgring?
There can't be much difference between the fastback's weight, weight distribution, body stiffness etc from the regular hatch, so why the need for more Nurburgring laps? Or any race track come to that; how many owners are going to do battle on a track?
Ah yes, but it wouldn't be featured in magazines like Autocar without this "testing", so I guess it's all justified.
Wonder if the cost comes off the R&D budget, or the PR/advertising department!
LP in Brighton wrote:
I was at a trackdy last weekend, and there were 6 private I30N's which did run on the track, quite extensively might I add (Brakes are superior to many Brembos one of the owners said), and I guess that is a high percentage of the cars actually delivered yet here.
LP in Brighton wrote:
I agree re the ring, the point I was trying to make was that I'd have assumed no testing would be carried out for the reasons you state and that they'd just fit the N gear to the new body shape, that they are testing it further could make this car even better so that it might even beat a golf gti in a review.
Beat a Golf GTi?
For that I suspect that it would need a different badge on the bonnet and maybe some more squishy premium plastic inside, at least as far as the UK magazines are concerned. Interesting that several of these cars have been spotted at track days. Maybe buyers already know that the Huyndai is better than a Golf for track work, though I wonder how well the 5 year warranty word work if Hyundai found out!
The warranty covers track days...
They have said the Ring testing is mainly about durability, which is why the warranty also covers track days. Lots of owners doing so as noted above.
This is good news as I would
This is good news as I would have assumed that they'd just fit the N hatches running gear to the fastback body, that it is being developed, maybe this will address the few shortcomings the hatch has, making this almost a 2nd generation N, enabling it to rank even higher in the testers reviews.
I think this looks so much
I think this looks so much better than the standard hatch.