Hyundai’s N division, the Korean marque’s performance arm, is planning to launch a sportier version of its i30 hatchback in 2017.

Last year, Hyundai introduced a sportier, N-inspired Sport version of its i20 hatchbackin South Africa that offered 85 kW and 160 Nm of torque and although it offered marginally more power, racier packaging and a louder exhaust note than the standard i20 (74 kW/133 Nm), there wasn’t much for hot hatch aficionados to get excited about.

However, that may very well change if Hyundai goes ahead with the production of the i30 N, which recently took part in the Nürburgring 24-hour endurance race. According to reports, Albert Biermann, Hyundai’s Head of Vehicle Test & High Performance Development has confirmed that the i30 N will go into production in 2017.

Turbo Power for i30 N

The Hyundai i30 N is powered by a turbocharged 2.0-litre engine and even though its peak power and torque figures have not yet been confirmed, Hyundai has hinted that the engine should be capable of producing at least 194 kW and 309 Nm of torque. The powerplant will be mated with a manual transmission witha possibility of a dual-clutch automatic transmission being introduced at a later stage. The i30 N is expected to be a front-wheel driven model, but an all-wheel-drive configuration has not been ruled out.

According to Biermann, the i30 N will represent a "more affordable" alternative to other hot hatches on the market, such as the Volkswagen Golf GTI and the Ford Focus ST.

Given the fact that the i20 Sport is on sale in South Africa, there’s a strong chance that the i30 N will be offered to the local market in 2017, but this has not been confirmed… yet. We will keep you updated when more detail becomes available.

Read our review of the Hyundai i20 1.4 Sport (2016)

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