PARIS MOTOR SHOW: Hyundai WRC i20 ready for action

Hyundai Motorsport has launched its all-new WRC i20 rally car at Paris.

Set to compete in the 2017 World Rally Championship (WRC), which kicks off January 2017 at the Rally of Monte Carlo, the three-door Hyundai rally car is loosely based on the i20 hatchback that's available in Europe.

For 2017, WRC rules have been changed to revitalise the championship – or so says the world motorsport governing body, FIA. The new season heralds faster, more exciting cars that have a more than passing resemblance to the rallycross cars that are gaining traction via events like Red Bull X-Games.

Thanks to the significant rules changes, the 2017 WRC i20 gets more power. The rally car's competition-bred 1.6-litre turbo now produces 280kW - a rise over the 224kW last year's cars produced.

Boosting performance further a 25kg reduction in weight from 1200 to just 1175kg.

To help capitalise on the less weight and more power formula, for the new season big wings and a more sophisticated aero package are now allowed - something Hyundai Motorsport's designers have capitalised on with a large rear wing and more aggressive wind-bending for more downforce and higher cornering speeds.

The new i20 rally car is also significantly longer and wider than the old car.

Factor in a new electronic centre differential and a wider track (thanks to an extra 55mm in width), and the WRC i20 will be faster on the straights as well as in the corners.

Now reminiscent of some of the incredible Group B rally cars of the mid-80s, the Korean car-maker hopes the 2017 WRC i20 will help it narrow the gap between it and Volkswagen that currently leads the constructors' championship.

To ensure it will be quick from the off, engineers claim they have been putting the WRC i20 through its paces since April. We'll have to wait until early 2017 to see if the small Hyundai really has got what it takes to beat the revitalised Polo that also benefits from the rules changes.

At Paris overnight, Hyundai Australia reiterated it has no current plans to reintroduce the i20.