New Hyundai i30 N arrives in Oz

The arrival of the refreshed Hyundai i30 N hot hatch with a dual-clutch auto signals the start of a performance onslaught by the Korean brand in Australia.

As reported previously, the new 2021 Hyundai i30 N hatch goes up in price, performance and equipment and expands its line-up from one to four models.

Further bolstering Hyundai N within months will be the first-ever Kona N hot SUV and the i20 N light hatch, with the i30 N sedan wrapping up the rapid rollout before the end of 2021.

A run of 500 limited-edition i30 N Fastback cars is also on offer, but the sleek five-door is unlikely to be seen locally after that.

The i30 N combo of hatch and Fastback have accounted for about 2700 sales since the 2018 launch, with the hatch claiming 80 per cent of those.

Globally, i30 N sales number about 54,000, putting Australia a creditable third overall behind Germany and the UK. In some years we’ve even risen to second on sales.

Hyundai is now forecasting the dual-clutch transmission (DCT) variants will account for 70-80 per cent of a much bigger i30 N hatch sales pie. The other new models will grow those sales even further, although how much Hyundai isn’t saying.

“DCT is going to attract a lot more customers,” said Hyundai Australia product planning and development assistant manager Tim Rodgers. “But we are also going to be offering Kona N and i30 sedan with DCT at the same time so the numbers are going to be a bit muddled for us.

“We are not going to be able to do a straight comparison and see what kind of uplift there is going to be.”

The fundamental concept of the i30 N doesn’t change with this update. Built in the Czech Republic, it’s still a five-door, five-seat front-wheel drive hot hatch powered by the ‘Theta-II’ 2.0-litre turbo-petrol engine.

There are two eight-speed wet-clutch DCT and two six-speed manual models in the new i30 N line-up. Entry-point pricing rises $3100 to $44,500 plus on-road costs for the manual and you can add a further $3000 for the DCT.

The new Premium grade starts at $47,500 plus ORCs for the manual, then rises to $52,000 for the DCT version. The latter comes standard with a panoramic sunroof, which is a $1500 option for the six-speeder.

All that means the admission price to the i30 N has risen $4510 since its introduction in March 2018.

Clearly, the engine’s boost in power from 202kW to 206kW and torque from 353Nm to 392Nm is a key justification for that. 

And it’s not just a chip change either. It’s been achieved with the help of a redesigned turbo, a larger intercooler and new pistons. These changes were tested as far back as 2019 in Hyundai’s world time attack i30 N Fastback.

Hyundai says the i30 N’s new outputs are delivered more tractably without need for the old car’s overboost (it dubs this ‘flat-power’),  although torque arrives over a slightly narrower range than before.

The DCT claims a 5.4sec 0-100km/h sprint, and the manual 5.9sec, versus 6.1sec for the old six-speed.

Having said that, the Kona N and i30 N sedan actually get a slightly updated spec of the engine that includes an ability to produce 213kW for short periods.

With the added performance, it’s no surprise i30 N hatch fuel consumption officially gets worse, increasing the combined-cycle ADR rate from 8.0 to 8.5L/100km for the manual. The DCT also claims that number.

This DCT has also been used in the Hyundai Veloster N (never sold in Australia) and the Sonata N Line that’s just been launched here.

The DCT can be left to do its own thing in auto, in modes that adjust it from passive to hyper-aggressive. It can be changed manually via the lever in the centre console or via steering wheel-mounted paddles.

The DCT includes a new 20-second push-to-pass function called N Grin Shift that prompts a search for the lowest possible gear to aid acceleration. It is activated by a button on the steering wheel and includes a countdown clock.

Other new DCT-only features include N Power Shift that minimises torque reduction during upshifts over 90 per cent throttle and N Track Sense Shift that automatically hones gear selection and shift timing for dynamic driving such as at racetracks.

The i30 N retains launch control, three-mode rev-matching for the manual and up to five selectable modes including custom to adjust the behaviour of  the engine, adaptive suspension, stability control, exhaust, electric-assist steering, DCT and the electronically-controlled limited-slip differential.

Custom settings can be chosen by a new spider web diagram on the touch-screen. There’s also a customisable screen that allows the selection of different performance gauges such as turbo boost for display.

While the fundamental MacPherson strut front and multilink rear suspension concepts are familiar, there have been some geometry changes overlaid by local tuning.

The geometry changes are intended to sharpen handling and are concentrated at the front where there are redesigned knuckles and lower control arms that result in a 17mm-wider track and an increase in front camber to -1.7 degrees. Numerous front and rear bushes have been redesigned and the construction of the rear toe arm has also been revised.

Local tuning aimed at widening the car’s scope in terms of both ride and handling. Front and rear dampers have been retuned, spring rates increased by 5.7 per cent up front and 4.2 per cent at the rear. The adaptive suspension logic has a bespoke local tune.

A steering retune went hand-in-hand with all this.

The diameter of the front brake discs rises from 345mm to 360mm. They fit inside new forged alloy 19-inch wheels developed in-house (a first for Hyundai) that reduce unsprung weight by 14.4kg compared to the old cast alloys. Despite that, the lightest quoted kerb weight still rises 18kg to 1447kg. Tyers are bespoke Pirelli P Zeros.

The new i30 N includes a significant increase in driver assist systems. Lane following assist, blind spot collision warning and rear cross traffic warning are all new. This is where much of the added weight comes from.

Rather than simply issue a passive warning, DCT-equipped i30 Ns also provide active driver assistance when the blind spot and rear cross traffic alerts are triggered.

However, there’s still no sign of adaptive cruise control, which has not as yet been designed into this car’s Pde N architecture for budgetary reasons.

The i30 N collects a bunch of new exterior styling features including a ‘cascade’ grille, more aggressive front and rear bumpers, LED headlights with V-shaped daytime running lights, black side sills, large dual-outlet exhaust pipes and tail-lights with a new LED signature.

Inside, a 10.25-inch touch-screen atop the centre stack is the obvious update, while smart key and push-button start, LED courtesy and puddle lamps and a wireless charging pad are also new.

The Premium model grade adds lightweight new ‘N Light’ one-piece Alcantara/leather seats that chop 2.2kg. While heated, they have no power adjustment.

A heated steering wheel, front parking sensors, rear privacy glass and an electro-chromatic rear-view mirror are also added to Premium models. As per N tradition, a manual park brake is retained. Yay!

Watch out for our first drive review of the new Hyundai i30 N DCT next Friday, August 20.

How much does the 2021 Hyundai i30 N cost?
N – $44,500
N DCT – $47,500
N Premium – $47,500
N DCT Premium with sunroof – $52,000
* Prices exclude on-road costs