If you’re a motoring enthusiast, then you are most likely familiar with the letters: M, AMG, RS, OPC, R, JCW and ST. Each represents the performance pinnacle of their respective brands denoting performance models of regular models. And now we have another letter to add to the mix: N. Hyundai took the occasion of its WRC launch announcement to herald the arrival of N, the high-performance arm of the Korean manufacturer.
N will be headquartered in Alzenau, Germany, at the same facility housing Hyundai Motorsports World Rally Championship (WRC) team. Details of the scale and extent of the changes have yet to be made public, but more info will be released in the new year. The first N-badged model will be the Hyundai i20 WRC car. Talk about a halo model.
N represents Namyang, the R&D centre for Hyundai. This firm isn’t traditionally associated with high performance models, but extensive work in the field of powertrain development means that it is finally ready to take the next step. N will represent the halo model within each model range, much the same way in which AMG does for different Mercedes products.
Understandably, local Hyundai sources are remaining mum on the likelihood of N versions making their way to SA, but seeing as how we receive almost all other models, we wouldn’t bet against it.