• Hyundai gave its N 74 Vision and RN22e prototypes their Canadian debuts at the Toronto Auto Show today.
• The N Vision 74 concept is a spectacular-looking, hydrogen-powered concept.
• The Ioniq RN22e is a high-performance take on the Ioniq 6, itself also on hand at the show.
Toronto, ON – The DeLorean DMC-12 is probably one of the most recognizable cars the world has ever seen, whether you’re a car person or not. The stainless steel-coloured time machine of Back to the Future has become legend.
This is a Hyundai story, though. Why are we talking about an ‘80s relic?
Because during development of the DMC-12, famed car designer Giorgetto Giugiaro is said to have come across the design for the Hyundai Pony Coupe concept, which was a sporty take on the Pony we all know. While that Pony hatchback version made production, the coupe was stillborn due to technological limitations and other factors, namely Hyundai’s freshness on the market.
As Hyundai tells it, Giugiaro is said to have thought something to the effect of “hmm. This looks good. Let’s make something out of it” and so, the DeLorean as we know it was born, and that’s where it ends.
Except, it kind of doesn’t.
Hyundai N Vision 74
Enter the absolutely stunning and spectacular Hyundai N Vision 74 concept, a hydrogen-powered masterpiece of a concept that’s all sharp creases, big wings, squinting headlamps and a stance that leaves little to the imagination. Yeah, there’s some DeLorean there – namely the rear side window – but Lee insists that we “don’t say it looks like a DeLorean (because) we did it first!”
Either way, this is all silhouette racer. Think of the BMW M1 Procar or Lancia Beta Montecarlo of the early ‘80s, an image driven home by the aerodynamic wheels whose hubs recall the cooling fins seen on those aforementioned racers. It should come as little surprise that there’s a massive underbody diffuser as well.
If you were ever to drive one of these, you’d need that aerodynamic help, because the 85-kW fuel cell and 62-kWh battery combine to produce over 671 hp and over 664 lb-ft of torque, which leads to of a 0-100 km/h time of…well, they haven’t told us yet but it will likely be pretty darn quick. Further, it gets three independent cooling channels for the batteries, fuel cell and EV motor as well as the ability to change power distribution between the left and right rear wheels.
That’s not likely something many will ever be able to verify. The N 74 is strictly a concept, here to provide a halo of sorts for the Hyundai brand to show just how far they can push their E-GMP EV platform. Indeed, it’s called “Vision” because it represents how Hyundai sees the path to electrification for its N performance brand.
Ioniq RN22e
In the meantime, for those looking to see what Hyundai N electric is doing on the production front, look no further than the Ioniq RN22e, a high-performance take on the Ioniq 6, also on hand at this year’s show.
Like the N Vision 74, Hyundai is calling the RN22e a “rolling lab” to help the manufacturer develop a high-performance version of the Ioniq 6. So, the striking blue car seen here with its aggressive rear diffuser and wing as well as touring car-like ride height may not make production looking like this, but it likely won’t be very far off. As it stands, though, the spectacular N 74 and RN22e models serve to show just how far a collaboration between Hyundai’s Ioniq EV and N performance brands could go – and we can’t wait to see it.
