The eagerly anticipated arrival of i30 N now has a price tag attached, and its for the higher power variant of the Hyundai hot hatch. Buyers will need to plonk down $39,990 (before on-road costs) to own the N Division’s five-door debutant, which is on sale now with customer deliveries expected to start in April.
Initially, the allocation for the first batch of cars will be capped at 300 units, so prospective customers are urged to get their order in as quickly as possible. With a price tag of under 40k, the i30 N does manage to undercut some high profile direct competitors, including the Volkswagen Golf GTI and the Peugeot 308 GTI. Renault has only recently taken the wraps off their new Megane RS, however, and there’s still a chance local pricing will make choosing a performance hatch even tougher.
Powered by a 2.0-litre turbocharged four-cylinder petrol, the i30 N sends 202kW and 353Nm to the front wheels exclusively through a six-speed manual transmission. In other markets, a less powerful tune of the same engine is also available as an entry variant with 184kW. HMCA, however, reckons only the higher powered i30 N will cut the mustard with Australian buyers.
There’s quite a lot of standard equipment included, too, with plenty of features meant to enhance the car’s dynamics and credentials as a versatile, even safe and practical hatch. Starting with the go-fast bits, highlights include active exhausts, electro-mechanical limited slip front differential, a set of specially-developed Pirelli P-Zero HN tyres, 19-inch alloys launch control, adaptive suspension, a performance brake package, and rev match assist for smoother gears shifts.
Inside, there’s alloy pedals, body hugging sports front seats, a leather steering wheel, an 8-inch infotainment system with built-in satellite navigation and support for Apple CarPlay as well as Android Auto, dual-zone climate control, and a 4.2-inch ‘Supervision’ cluster TFT screen.
The tech feature suite doesn’t end there, either, as there’s also a rear view camera, cruise control, tyre pressure monitoring, rear park assist, automatic dusk sensing headlights, and even an ’N race computer’ for geeking out over your lap sprints and acceleration times, etc.
From the get-go, the i30 N comes with quite a comprehensive safety suite that includes 7 airbags, automatic emergency braking (AEB at city driving speeds), driver attention alert, forward collision warning, lane keep assist, and hill-start assist.
For an additional $3,000, buyers can opt for the Luxury Pack that grows the feature list even longer. This would add rain sensing wipers, a front park assist system, power folding exterior mirrors, driver’s seat memory, wireless phone charging, heated steering wheel, push button strat, and more premium-feeling 12-way power-adjustable heated front sports with suede inserts and leather bolsters. Finally, a panoramic glass roof can also be had but only on top of the aforesaid Luxury Pack, totalling $5,000.
“We’re confident in the i30 N," said HMCA Chief Executive Officer, Mr. JW Lee. "We’ve set the MLP at $39,990 to ensure there are no excuses! We encourage every genuine enthusiast in the hot hatch market to drive it and make their mind up based on the product’s merits. Given the way i30 N looks, sounds and drives, we believe it will make a compelling case against its strongest competitors, regardless of price."
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