Whoever thought the day would come when we’d be talking about an exciting Hyundai electric crossover? The Ioniq 5 N is just that, and these hot laps of the Nürburgring show it’s a real track weapon despite its heft. It may weigh close to 4,900 pounds but the hot EV is properly fast, provided it’s in the hands of a skilled driver as is the case here.
Nordschleife “resident” Misha Charoudin took the high-performance electric crossover for a full lap of the challenging track, overtaking dozens of cars in the process. The intense onboard footage shows the YouTuber who knows his way around the Green Hell chasing another Ioniq 5 N. The two cars did back-to-back laps, switching positions during the second run.
The 84-kWh battery pack was fully charged before hitting the track. Despite being pushed hard, the Ioniq 5 N still had 42 percent of juice left at the end of the second lap. As a refresher, the Nürburgring is one of the longest circuits in the world, at nearly 13 miles long. The two runs weren’t timed but Sport Auto’s test driver Christian Gebhardt did a 7:45 lap a few months ago. That made it only 2.6 seconds slower than a BMW M2 CS.
To be fair, not all other drivers on the track that day were as experienced as Misha. Knowing a circuit like the back of your hand gives you the confidence to push the car further. However, even if we were as experienced as him, we’d be reluctant to punish the Ioniq 5 N while the owner sits on the passenger seat.
The exciting track footage goes to show the era of truly exciting EVs is upon us. We could honestly do without the fake engine noise and gear changes, though. The recipe should be further improved if Hyundai decides to come out with a smaller and lighter vehicle. A dedicated sports car with the dual-motor setup and all the other N trickery would be wonderful.
In the meantime, the Korean brand is gearing up to launch an Ioniq 6 N sedan that could have even more power. You know, because 641 hp is apparently not enough.