Nearly 18-months after the initial announcement of a new “N” performance line of EVs beginning with the IONIQ 5, Hyundai has brought its souped up model stateside to kickoff 2023’s AutoMobility LA event in California. Here’s the latest.
Hyundai Motor Group’s N and N Line performance sub-brands were a mere seven years old when the Korean automaker publicly announced it was reimagining the performance arms for an all-electric future.
Following a video of the global premiere of the IONIQ 6 last summer, Hyundai confirmed the IONIQ 5 would be the first production EV model to don the “N” performance badge. Over the past year, we’ve seen video updates every couple of months including a camo’d run at Nürburgring, and an official debut during July’s Goodwood Festival of Speed, complete with some smoky donuts.
While today’s news is by no means our first look at the Hyundai IONIQ 5 N, it is our best viewing of the performance fastback inside and out to date – and North America’s first opportunity to see the EV in person… as long as you’re in LA.
Lastly, we have some detailed performance specs for the upcoming EV… just no range yet. Sorry.
Hyundai IONIQ 5 N has great specs, but still no EPA range
The IONIQ 5 N made its US debut this evening at a pre-show event for AutoMobility LA at the Los Angeles Convention Center. Many of the details shared are much of the same we’ve covered the past year in anticipation of this track-centric EV – three pillars of “N performance,” N Launch Control, N Active Sound+ (fighter jet noises) etc, etc. Hyundai North America president and CEO José Muñoz spoke during the event:
Hyundai N is a key driver of advanced technology expansion throughout Hyundai. N brand technology and motorsport success proves Hyundai’s ability to push the envelope of vehicle performance and IONIQ 5 N represents a bold move forward in the level of electrified performance. We are confident that both current Hyundai customers and new buyers will be impressed with the exceptional performance and technology of our new IONIQ 5 N.
Performance improvements from the N team include 42 additional welding points and 6.9 feet of additional structural adhesives, reinforcing the EV’s battery and motors, while creating additional rigidity. World Rally Championship-inspired integrated drive axles (IDA) were integrated into the front and rear to handle the IONIQ 5 N’s additional torque.
The vehicle also features a strengthened steering system and specially-tuned N R-MDPS (Rack-Mounted Motor-Driven Power Steering) system, enabling a quicker steering ratio and enhanced torque feedback. Per Till Wartenberg, vice president and head of N brand and motorsport at Hyundai:
IONIQ 5 N was developed to take driving fun to a new level by utilizing the latest technologies available. Starting with IONIQ 5 N, N brand aims to deliver its signature fun driving experience regardless of petrol, electric or hydrogen. To accomplish this, we’ve closely monitored the voices of our N fans in order to fine-tune our first all-electric N with the goal of electrifying the driving passion of our most demanding N-thusiasts.
“N-thusiasts,” I like that.
You just may become one yourself after you get a look at the specs Hyundai is promising when the IONIQ 5 N arrives next year. Have a gander:
IONIQ 5 N Specs:
Front Motor Output
166 kW / 223 HP
Rear Motor Output
282 kW / 378 HP
Total Motor Output
448 kW / 601 HP
N Grin Boost Output
478 kW / 641 HP (Front: 175 kW, 235 HP / Rear: 303 kW, 406 HP)
~3.25 seconds (w/ N Launch Control and Grin Boost function utilized)
Top Speed
162 mph (electronically limited)
Exterior colors
Performance Blue Matte, Abyss Black Pearl, Ecotronic Gray Matte (late availability), Atlas White, and Soultronic Orange Pearl
Interior color
Black with Performance Blue accents
Dimensions
Length – 185.6 in. Width – 76.4 in. Height – 62.4 in. Wheelbase – 118.1 in.
One key specification you may have noticed missing is range (torque too). At this time, Hyundai N isn’t even sharing its own internal range estimates, stating EPA numbers will be revealed closer to the IONIQ 5 N’s launch in the US, which expected to take place in March of 2024. Before then, we should also learn what this performance EV is going to cost consumers. Stay tuned on that.
If you happen to be attending the LA Auto Show this week, be sure to seek out the Hyundai IONIQ 5 N and get a good look at all of its unique design features inside and out. Maybe we’ll see you there!
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The all-electric Cadillac LYRIQ was an Electrek favorite when it first made its debut two years ago. Now, LYRIQ buyers who have been waiting for a deal can score more than $10,500 in discounts on the Ultium-based Caddy.
Our own Seth Weintraub said that GM had come in, “a year early and dollar long at $60K” when he first drove the Ultium-based Cadillac LYRIQ back in 2022. He called the SUV “a stunner,” too, heaping praise on the LYRIQ’s styling inside and out before adding that the EV’s ride quality really impressed on long journeys.
Well, if the first mainstream electric Cadillac was a winner at its original, $57,195 starting price (rounded up to $60K for easy math), what could we call it at $10,500 less?
That’s a question that’s suddenly worth asking, thanks to huge GM discounts on the LYRIQ that prompted the automotive pricing analysts at CarsDirect to name the 2024 LYRIQ one of the industry’s “Best New Car Deals” this month:
A slew of incentives can enable you to save big on a 2024 Cadillac LYRIQ. First, EVs eligible for the federal tax credit qualify for $7,500 in Ultium Promise Bonus Cash from GM. Additionally, competing EV owners can score $3,000 in conquest cash.
With more than 100 kWh of battery capacity and 300-plus miles of real-world driving range (plus available 190 kW charging capability) the Cadillac LYRIQ ticks all the boxes – but you don’t have to take just my word for that.
A global shortage of qualified operators is impacting job sites everywhere, precisely at a time when demand for housing, mineral mining, and renewable energy construction is going from peak to peak. That’s why companies from Caterpillar to Tesla to Einride are pushing to advance autonomy the way they are.
First revealed as a concept in 2021, Volvo CE’s CX01 autonomous “single drum” asphalt roller concept has seen continuous development in the years since. Making its Volvo Days debut, the CX01 has shed the original single drum design for a “split drum,” with each half being controlled by an internalized, independent electric motor.
The CX01’s electric motors not only help to propel and steer the roller, they also vibrate the drums individually, using some trick software calibration to effectively “cancel each other out,” delivering all the benefits of vibrating drum rollers without the noise.
It’s so smart, you guys
It’s also worth noting that the CX01 is something of an “extended range” EV, instead of a “pure” BEV. That’s because it uses a small, 1.4L diesel engine to spin a generator that powers not batteries, but capacitors (those blue things, above right). Those capacitors can be charged on grid power (or from an accompanying TC13 trench compactor), but they’re much better than batteries at releasing energy really quickly, enabling the diesel to operate at its maximum efficiency while maintaining extremely precise, high-torque movement from the motors.
Volvo CE engineers envision a team CX01 rollers units deployed on larger job sites that could work together and communicate with other pieces of equipment on the site. The connected equipment could help survey the job site, report on the conditions of the mat (density, temperature, and passes), and leverage AI to determine when and where to compact without the need for human operators.
All of which is great, sure – but they had me at “giant OneWheel.”
Volvo TA15 autonomous electric haul truck
Volvo TA15 autonomous haul truck; photo by the author.
Part of Volvo CE’ “TARA” line of autonomous products, the “production ready” TA15 autonomous electric haul trucks are already part of a number of pilot programs on Volvo customer job sites. Being autonomous, they’re ideally suited to performing repetitive routes, dozens of times per day, without exposing human operators to fatigue or injury.
“TARA enables you to downsize and replace larger diesel-powered vehicles with a fleet of autonomous electric Volvo TA15s capable of running 24/7,” reads the official TARA release. “This not only helps you cut emissions and increase productivity, it will also help you rightsize your machinery and optimize your hauling routes.”
And that brings us to the real topic at hand: sustainability.
Electrek’s Take
Volvo SD110 single drum roller, via Volvo CE.
As we’ve often discussed on The Heavy Equipment Podcast, there are two types of sustainability, and both are important. The first is the “classic” version of sustainability, in that our choices need to sustain the planet and environment we live in. The second is sustainability of the business – the ability to keep doing business in a way that ensures the survival of the business, itself.
Looking at the conventional Volvo SD110 conventional roller, above, you can see the incredible amount of materials – of steel, rubber, plastic, glass, etc. – that simply isn’t needed to produce the CX01 roller we started this article with.
All that added mass has a massive hidden carbon cost. The cost of getting those materials out of the ground, the need for bigger, heavier roads to support the weight of the machine, and the bigger, burlier trucks and trailers needed to transport it. Heck, even the operator’s commute to and from the job site adds to the carbon cost of the SD110, over and above the harmful emissions from its diesel engine’s exhaust stack.
The CX01? It’s objectively more sustainable than the SD110 roller in every way, and does pretty much the same job.
Following successful inbound implementations in the Pacific Northwest, North Carolina, and Mexico, Daimler Trucks North America (DTNA) is expanding the reach of its electric semi fleet into Arizona with long-time associate JB Hunt.
JB Hunt will add the new Freightliner eCascadia electric semi to its Arizona fleet immediately, and put it to work delivering aftermarket truck parts from DTNA’s parts distribution center (PDC) in Phoenix to multiple DTNA dealers along a dedicated route.
The electric Freightliner truck is expected to cover approximately 100 miles in a given day before heading “home” to a Detroit eFill charger installed at Daimler’s Phoenix facility.
“This solution with DTNA is a great example of our commitment to supporting customers’ efforts to reduce their carbon footprint and work towards energy transition,” explains Greer Woodruff, executive vice president of safety, sustainability and maintenance at JB Hunt. “JB Hunt owns and operates several eCascadias on behalf of customers, and our drivers have really enjoyed their in-cab experience. As customer interest continues to grow, we are here to enable their pursuit for a more sustainable supply chain in the most economic means possible.”
Daimler is analyzing future expansion opportunities throughout its internal parts distribution and logistics with an eye on electrifing additional routes and further reducing the carbon footprint of its logistics operations.