The Hyundai Ioniq 6 N Can Drift All Day While Changing Simulated Gears

• The Hyundai Ioniq 6 N is here. It’s Hyundai’s high-performance version of its electric sedan.
• It offers dual-motor all-wheel drive with up to 641 horsepower and 568 pound-feet of torque.
• It’s faster and offers slightly more driving range than the already bonkers Ioniq 5 N crossover.

This is the new Hyundai Ioniq 6 N, which could very well become one of the most affordable electric performance sedans.

In a world where the likes of the very impressive Porsche Taycan and Lucid Air can easily go over $100,000, the smaller and potentially feistier Ioniq 6 N could scratch an itch many didn’t even know they had.

With the same powertrain as the lovely Ioniq 5 N crossover, the new performance sedan ups the ante with faster acceleration and an even more gamified experience, thanks to a tighter integration between the various N-labeled systems. The driving range should also be better than its crossover sibling, seeing how it’s anything but a box on wheels.

Photo by: Hyundai

According to Hyundai, the Ioniq 6 N can drive up to 291 miles (469 kilometers) on the WLTP cycle, which is 13 miles (21 km) more than the Ioniq 5 N on the same test cycle. We don’t have the EPA range rating for the sporty electric sedan yet, but it’s safe to say that when it makes its way to the United States, it will be capable of driving further than the Ioniq 5 N’s 221-mile (355 km) EPA rating.

Two electric motors–one for each axle–deliver a maximum of 641 horsepower and 568 pound-feet of torque, the same as the Ioniq 5 N. That’s for just 10 seconds at a time, though, when the N Grin Boost feature is turned on–without it, the output is 601 hp and 546 lb-ft.

Sprinting from a standstill to 62 miles per hour takes 3.2 seconds with N Launch Control enabled, which is just a smidge quicker than the Ioniq 5 N’s 3.25-second sprint to 60 mph. The top speed is 160 mph (257 kph).

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Source: Hyundai

As you’ve probably guessed already, we don’t have the U.S. specs for the sporty Ioniq 6 yet, but the European figures are promising, to say the least.

The 84 kilowatt-hour battery pack is also the same capacity as both the regular facelifted Ioniq 6 and the Ioniq 5 N. Charging is as impressive as ever, with a 350-kilowatt DC fast charger getting the state of charge from 10% to 80% in approximately 18 minutes. 

What makes the Ioniq 6 N stand out from its boxy stablemate is the fact that all of the electronic wizardry has been updated. The N e-Shift system, which essentially simulates an eight-speed dual-clutch transmission, is now compatible with all the other N-labeled systems, including Launch Control, Drift Optimizer, Grin Boost and Torque Distribution. In other words, one could theoretically effortlessly drift their way through the simulated gears or use launch control and pretend they’re driving a car with a semi-automatic gearbox.

What’s more, all of this hooning could go on for as long as there is juice in the battery because the Ioniq 6 N gets a revised battery thermal management system with a bigger battery coolant heater to make sure the high-voltage pack can withstand the stress of track driving without limiting the power output.

This being an N-badged Hyundai, more goodies lie beneath the skin. New stroke sensing electronically controlled dampers (ECS) allow for a wide range of damping force adjustments. There’s also a fully redesigned suspension geometry and a reengineered chassis. This being a game-like EV, the N Active Sound+ system plays a big part in Hyundai’s attempt at making EVs at least as engaging to drive as gas-powered performance cars. In short, it plays fake sounds to make it feel more engaging. For some, it’s a gimmick; for others, it works just fine.

Adding to that gamified experience is something called N Ambient Light Shift. You can think of it as those TV lights that change color depending on what’s shown on the screen, only in the Ioniq 6 N, they offer visual cues for virtual shift points.

Braking is handled by four-piston calipers grabbing onto 400-millimeter rotors up front, while the rear has single-piston calipers and 300 mm discs. The wheels are wrapped in a set of 275/35R20 Pirelli P-Zero 5 tires that were specifically designed for the Ioniq 6 N.

Photo by: Hyundai

This entire rather impressive package is wrapped up into a slippery body with a drag coefficient of 0.274 Cd and a few sporty bits. There’s a pair of rear spoilers, more aggressive side skirts and bumpers, and the front lights are blacked out on the European version, making for quite the menacing look.

We don’t know how much the Hyundai Ioniq 6 N will cost when it comes stateside, but it should be more than the Ioniq 5 N’s $67,800 starting price. As a reminder, the Ioniq 5 N is imported from South Korea, despite the company building the regular Ioniq 5 in Georgia, so it’s affected by the hiked tariffs on EVs made outside of the U.S.

Whether or not anybody will buy the Ioniq 6 N is a very different story. However impressive it may be, the sad truth is that sedans are somewhat of a dying breed, with the regular Ioniq 6 being the embodiment of this fact. Last year, Hyundai sold 12,264 Ioniq 6s in the United States, down 6% year-over-year and nowhere near the gas-powered Tucson crossover’s 206,126 units. 

But there’s still hope. U.S. sales of Hyundai’s budget-minded Sonata shot up 43% last year, reaching 69,343 units, so maybe a track-capable Ioniq 6 could turn things around. Just maybe.