Hyundai i20 N hot hatch teased

Hyundai Austria has posted a short video on its YouTube channel that features a shadowy side profile of what's reported to be our first glance of the upcoming Hyundai i20 N hot hatch.

Featuring larger rally car-inspired rims, Hyundai's smallest N-car appears to wear wider front and rear fenders, a large rear spoiler, beefy side skirts and redesigned front and rear bumpers.

Even in this darkened image, the new Hyundai i20 N certainly packs more of a punch visually compared to the standard car.

Perhaps most surprisingly, the i20 N looks like it also features a bonnet bulge, suggesting engineers struggled to package the higher-output engine of the Korean brand's answer to the Ford Fiesta ST and Volkswagen Polo GTI.

Originally, it was thought the baby N-car would come powered by a 1.6-litre four-cylinder turbo-petrol engine producing around 150kW and 300Nm, but the bulging bonnet suggests that Hyundai might have gone the full hog and fitted its mightier-still 2.0-litre turbo four from the current i30 N.

To compete against the Ford and VW hot hatches, the i20 N would need to hit 100km/h in less than 6.5 seconds.

The new Hyundai i20 N should come with either a six-speed manual or a dual-clutch automatic transmission or, most likely, both.

Set to borrow its big brake package from the i30 N, it should also come with a sportier suspension tune tailored for extra agility and occasional track use.

The good news is that, despite the new Hyundai i20 hatch already ruled out for Australia, there's a slim chance Hyundai Australia could import the faster i20 N to our market.

There's no word on timing, but if given the green light the Hyundai i20 N would be priced around $30,000 and released here early next year.