Here’s something that should excite hot hatch fans – the Hyundai i30 N is being shown at the Kuala Lumpur International Motor Show (KLIMS). The car is not officially on sale, but is being previewed by Hyundai-Sime Darby Motors to gauge public interest in it.
There’s plenty to like if you’re into this sort of thing, because the first sport model from the Korean automaker’s performance-based N sub-brand line up has been more than taking the fight to rivals such as the Volkswagen Golf GTI and Ford Focus ST.
Exterior-wise, the sport route brings about new front and rear bumpers, a new rear spoiler finished in gloss black, twin tailpipes as well as black bezels for the headlamps. Also on, N badging and various black elements and subtle red accents.
Inside, there are dedicated high-performance sport seats with lumbar support and extendable seat cushions. Available in a combination of suede and leather or cloth, the seats also come with a stamped N logo on the back rest. There’s also an N steering wheel, which gets blue stitching and an N logo, as well as an N gear shift knob.
The front-wheel drive i30 N is powered by a 2.0 litre Theta T-GDI turbocharged twin-cam E-CVVT engine, which in its standard tune offers 250 PS at 6,000 rpm and 353 Nm at 1,450 to 4,000 rpm. The KLIMS show car has the Performance Package added on, which bumps up the output to 279 PS (at point of launch, it was listed at 275 PS), also at the same revs, with maximum torque output unchanged.
Paired with a six-speed manual transmission (which the automaker claims is ‘built to last’, it seems), performance figures include a 0-100 km/h time of 6.1 seconds and a 250 km/h top speed. The car also features an overboost function, which increases torque (+8%) and acceleration (+6-7%) on short bursts.
Courtesy of the Performance Package, the car rides on 19-inch units, wrapped with 235/35 Pirelli P-Zero high-performance Hyundai N tyres, and eight mm lower than a regular five-door i30.
The higher output variant also gets red N brake calipers and larger 18-inch front, 17-inch rear brake discs (on the standard output i30 N, 17-inch and 16-inch units respectively), and adds on an electronic limited-slip differential (E-LSD) as well as a variable exhaust valve system.
Standard fit items include an electronic-controlled adjustable suspension, rev matching, launch control and a lap timer. Five drive modes are available (Eco, Normal, Sport, N and N Custom) for the car, and the electronic stability control (ESC) can be switched off completely for maximum freedom.
So, like what you see, and does the idea of another manual hot hatch option sound like music to your ears? Share your thoughts in the comments section.
So many dislikes for Hyundai in Malaysia. The vast majority of Malaysians choose the other BIG H over this. Sadlah.
MY all ready for Proton Suprima R3 297HP
Is all go down to “How Much” when buying a Korean cars. So make sure it is cheap
Money hard to earn, ok? you want to spend RM130K and 5 years later worth RM40K? or spend RM130K for the big H and 5 years later still fetch RM70k?
300k car no matter any brand doesn’t have any RS value… And people who buy 300k car I believe they don’t have this kind of RS value mindset… They are rich.
See how far the Koreans have progressed. Just 20 yrs ago, Korean car was a joke. Everybody laughed at it. But then the Koreans decided to work hard. They decided not to lepak and rilak in office and factory but put in hard long hours
The Koreans also decided not to ask their Government for bantuan and tongkat all the time.
Today, Hyundai sells 8 million cars globally. They are No 1 in sales in Australia and USA.
Time for Proton to learn a thing or two
You mean jepunis lepak to make fatal airbags?
Some day you say KIA was No.1 in USA & Australia, today you say Hyundai is No.1 in USA & Australia. Clearly you are No.1 in lying through your teeth.
hyundai and kia are sister companies , so it is arguably fair to lump their numbers together
Almost all journalist will rave about who behind this N project even the big name like autocar uk or top gear uk…how paultan neglected to mention it here is just a sin
In Australia, this car only AUD$39k. My bro now studying in Australia do part time job as waiter. He earns AUD30k per hour (RM100)
In Malaysia, this car will be RM200k. Waiter earn RM5 per hour.
Too much of corruption has made our cars so expensive and our remuneration so low
“Your bro”, yeah and before that was “your friend” and before that was “your uncle”. As if we don’t know who is this troll before the fake name.
nice bro. so how much does the food cost there? 1 AUD per meal? groceries?
Car price went up since 1985, all because of the super smartass Mahathir.
Damn true,i suppose to drive BMW,aiya…
Thanks to the old fart la,alot people tak mampu,sigh…
Closing in 308 GTi performance..
Weak performance compared to Civic Type R
but way much cheaper than Civic type R
250PS vs 310PS. Bumping up to 275PS will make it almost the same price yet performance still not matching CTR levels. CTR is still a better buy in that sense. If I can only afford something cheaper, I would rather go for 86 or MX-5.
CTR way too ugly. What were the design teamS thinking?? even if arrogant Honda sales want to gift me this car, I won’t accept. That how horrible in looks it is,.. especially from the rump section.
cool
1 of klims showstar
No one is excited….it’s a Hyundai. Maybe if it’s sold below RM50k, some may buy…
Looks Juicy..Manual as well..if it’s price right..there will be takers.
I’ll consider one if it’s below 200k but I wonder how does the hard suspension deals with Msian roads?
Actually, what I really want is a i30N Fastback. Some Darby please bring it in, don’t forget that typical Msians prefer cars with boots.
I would say this again,in the market right now there is no car with turbo engine on manual thats around 100k -130k which can be considered affordable in our market,its how you position yourself in the market matter the most,selling at 180k-200k above would have put you into Merc and BMW territory’s who would choose a Hyundai then?
actually there’s the Peugeot 208 GTi in that price range.
I hope they bring this i30N in and price it properly! It should be around the same range or cheaper than the 308 GTi.
the projected price is quite steep. i took the survey. min 250k up to 300k.
Hopefully Hyundai-Sime Darby can place a right price for this hot hatch. Its really rare breed to see Manual tranny for sport/performance car here in Malaysia (can count using one hand lor). May this N-series Hyundai car open Malaysian car buyer eyes to consider Hyundai as a good international brand that have prove their success in many country such as US and UK. All the best for Hyundai-Sime Darby.
Sime Darby, think about it, you can have the entire high performance fastback market pie for yourself. GTI and Focus can fight among themselves, your closest rival is the 10-year old Gen2.
Walao tiru design All New Myvi lagi, last time it was BMW now Hyundai? Hebat lah P2!!
Yeah tiru design round tyres
6 speed manual, let see how many units can sell. I can dare to tell there must be someone at least 1 or 2 will say they like manual, they can live with manual, but let’s see will they buy this or not. I guess this car will sell over RM200k+, see who will buy a RM200k+ car in manual.
Civic type R, 308 GTi, Focus ST, Toyota 86 auto?
This with performance package will be similar power to the 308gti which priced around 200k.
If this can priced slightly less with the performance package added will be the most affordable performance hot hatch in the malaysian market!
Interior and exterior looks good too. I think definitely there will be buyers.
308 gti is 1.6 engine and conventional dampers. this has adaptive dampers and 2.0 engine. probably i30 will be priced above 308.
bring this here!
Hopefully Hyundai sime Darby will bring this car here. But I prefer the fastback version.
bring it here please!
RM250k-300k estimated price… tot this 1 should be cheaper than VW Golf GTI…
If Hyundai bring this in, I would sign their purchase agreement immediately. Its rare when a car like this comes in that looks decent, drives well, handling superb and most importantly, in standard MANUAL box.
so it’s here and only 20 unit.. booked already or not? better fast bro before sold out.. maybe can do review