Hyundai N to expand

Hyundai is getting serious about making its cars – not just the i30 and Veloster – look and feel fast.

The man responsible for putting Hyundai on the performance car map with the 'N' sub-brand, Albert Biermann, has confirmed that by the end of 2018 you'll be able to make your Hyundai appear, if not feel, sporty.

Hyundai's high-performance N division, currently responsible for the 202kW i30 N and just-revealed Veloster N which packs the same Golf R-rivalling firepower, will offer a range of wheels, suspension upgrades and body kits for regular models.

Imagine a Hyundai Tucson with lower springs, aero bodywork and a tweaked transmission that doesn't void your warranty?

Former BMW M division chief and now Hyundai N division boss Biermann told Aussie journalists at the 2018 Detroit motor show that owners of regular Hyundai cars – including SUVs – will benefit from the upgrades.

"We will also offer N Sport packages to the base cars," he said. "Not only trim, but suspension and so on. We will start at the end of this year or so."

Biermann wouldn’t confirm which models will get the sporty upgrades, but he says steering and transmission tweaks are on the menu. When quizzed over whether SUVs would get the N Sport accessories treatment he responded: "Yeah, of course".

He wouldn't single out any specific models for the N Sport accoutrements nor what the official name will be, but it's expected the likes of the i30 and new Veloster will be first, given they are the only two fully-fledged Hyundai N models so far.

"I don’t know what the marketing story will be, but internally we call it N Sport," he said.

"On the powertrain side we will pretty much stick to the normal [engine] line-up," he revealed while pointing out that because engine power is not increasing, the brakes don't need to be beefed up either.

"If we don’t add the power, we don’t need the brakes. It's about the driving experience, tuning, steering, suspension, transmissions. This is where we want to give more response, more precision in the driving experience, not like on N level but something in between."

Hyundai Australia representatives said they had few details on the N Sport kits, except that they will be coming here by the end of 2018 and the company is very keen to begin selling them.

Beyond that, the cost of the kits, whether they'll dealer-fitted, which vehicles they'll be available for and whether or not certain parts will even be legal here are still unknown.