Wild Hyundai Insteroid concept looks rally ready

Hyundai has begun teasing its wild new 2025 Hyundai Insteroid, ahead of its official debut at the Seoul Mobility Show in early April. And on first glimpses, the extreme take on the firm’s baby Inster EV looks like it’s ready to win rallies.

Created as a ‘dream interpretation’ of the Hyundai Inster that arrives in Australia in the coming weeks, the new concept’s name is a play on the word ‘steroid’, referencing the small EV’s pumped-up looks.

Featuring a bespoke wider body, the concept is said to ride on huge 21-inch alloy wheels. It clearly boasts an enormous rear spoiler and gets a big motorsport-derived rear diffuser, as part of its looks that are inspired from the gaming world.

That may explain the multiple Pac-Man ghost graphics that appear dotted around the car, including that massive high-mounted rear wing, as well as the rear glass and around the cabin.

Within, there’s a full roll cage and a race-car-style steering wheel that features a Boost button and controls to select the various track modes.

Hyundai hasn’t revealed what powers the Insteroid but it’s thought that beneath the skin the modest single e-motor – that produces between 71.1kW and 84.5kW – might have been junked for a dual-motor set-up pinched from the firm’s flagship Hyundai IONIQ 5 N.

If so, the small SUV might produce as much as 478kW and 770Nm for a zero to 100km/h dash of around 2.0 seconds.

More of the Hyundai Insteroid will be revealed in the coming days in the build-up to its full reveal at the Seoul motor show on April 3.

Back in Australia, the standard Inster measures in at a mere 3820mm long and 1610mm wide and has been built to rival the BYD Dolphin.

When it lands the baby Hyundai EV will come with the choice of either a 42kWh (Standard Range) battery or a larger 49kWh (Extended Range) battery.

Both versions feature a single-motor, front-drive powertrain but differ in their respective outputs and ranges: the Standard Range is good for 71kW/147Nm and up to 327km (WLTP) while the Extended Range ups the ante with 85kW/147Nm and up to 360km of range.

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