EXCITEMENT CLIMBS
Our man goes race-ready to the Noosa hill event
Win on Sunday, sell on Monday. That’s the long-held philosophy behind the marketing power of motorsport, from the greenest of grassroots all the way up to F1. Some car brands may have abandoned motorsport but Hyundai — a new performance player with its road-going N models — is properly suiting up and donning a crash hat.
Not only has the i30 N had a crack at the 24 Hours of Nurburgring but Hyundai’s i20 WRC is leading the World Rally Championship.
Back at grassroots level, the hot hatch wunderkind i30 N made quite the impression on debut at the Noosa Hill Climb with yours truly at the controls.
I didn’t deliver on the “win on Sunday” part but I’m convinced some expressions of interest went Hyundai’s way after the bargain $40K Korean thrilled at this holiday region’s twiceannual climb against the clock.
Refreshingly, Hyundai really wants owners take the i30 N to the track. Its five-year warranty covers non-competitive track use, so non-timed track days are encouraged. Noosa’s timed nature meant if I blew the engine I’d be liable but the warranty wouldn’t be void for evermore, only during competition. Admirable faith in the product, I’d say.
No need to be daunted then, especially as the i30 N is designed to make anyone who’s not Daniel Ricciardo feel like a hero. It lacks niceties such as keyless entry, front parking sensors or leather-trimmed seats but more than compensating are the 202kW turbo four, electric adaptive suspension, electromechanical limitedslip differential and active variable exhaust.
Throw in an aero body kit, 19-inch alloys with Pirelli P-Zero tyres, 345mm brake discs, alloy pedals and race telemetry and clearly your money is well spent on go-faster bits.
In WRC Performance Blue, the i30 N cut quite a dash in Noosa’s pits. As my fellow racers offloaded cars from trailers, fitted race wheels, adjusted timing and got covered in oil, I was race-ready and sat in the winter sunshine enjoying a cup of tea.
My lazy prep had involved remembering my helmet, driving from home to event, putting some stickers on and removing the kids’ car seats. This easy motorsport life seemed to catch on, as a couple of young chaps and a retiree racer pawed over the i30 N making positive noises about investing in one.
Maybe it was the smile on my face after each hill run that convinced them. The playful i30 N is, quite simply, very easy to drive fast safely, no matter your racing ability.
Its clever front diff seems to hunt out the corner apex for you, and compels you to get on the power early to slingshot out again.
There’s a dose of torque steer, not least when the (extra-cost option) semi-slick tyres scrambled for grip from a cold standing start but with a bit of heat in them they held on mightily.
On Noosa’s 14 tight and often bumpy turns, the chassis displayed superb balance. Its sharpness and steering were the high points for me, alongside the slick six-speed manual (straight from the hot-hatch textbook) with revmatching to blip the throttle on gear changes.
The power was enough to thrill but not terrify — a bonus when concrete walls up the 1.5km climb were a minor mistake away — and the machinegun popping exhaust on lift-off entertained inside the cabin and out.
The i30 N’s customisable N Mode was a boon, as I set engine response, diff, steering and exhaust to maximum attack, leaving suspension in “Normal” to smooth out the bumps. No tools required here; all was managed in 20 seconds via the touchscreen.
So how did it go? As the sole road-registered representative in its class it finished midfield, behind a race-prepared, slick-shod Renault Megane RS250 — but ahead of a few Holden Commodore 6.0-litre V8s. It also trumped some Lotus Elises and all-wheel drive Subaru WRXs and Mitsubishi Evos. Eye-opening.
After a weekend of cheap thrills, I peeled off the stickers, fastened the kids’ seats back in and the Hyundai was ready for school run duties — that would be a good sell on Monday.