Announced today at the Nürburgring, where its Elantra N racing machines are about to contest the touring car class in the gruelling 24-hour endurance race, Hyundai is set to attack Pikes Peak with a quartet of electric performance machines. Two specially prepared “time attack” (TA) variants of the Ioniq N will join two production-spec Ioniq Ns to compete in this year's Pikes Peak International Hillclimb, which celebrates its 102nd running this year.
The wild-looking Ioniq 5 TAs are only slightly mechanically modified from the production versions. Safety considerations include the expected roll cage, harnesses, and fire suppression systems. There's a slight 36 horsepower bump via software to 677 hp (the standard Ioniq 5 N has 601 hp standard with a 10-second 641-hp boost available), and the car features upgraded AP Racing brakes and a reworked suspension. Track rats should note that Hyundai's motorsport division is running 18-inch forged wheels and ADVAN slicks rather than the 21-inch wheels standard on the street car. The TA is also 200 kg lighter than the production Ioniq N. Less is sometimes more.
But then, more is also more too, as evidenced by the TA's hugely aggressive aerodynamics package. It's not for show: at over 4,300 metres high at its summit, the thin air at the top half of Pikes Peak means cars must carry more wing to create any actual downforce. In the century-plus that vehicles have been competing in the hillclimb, that oxygen-poor air has also been an issue for combustion engine fuel mixture and cooling. This is, of course, not a problem for EVs.
Turbocharging was first tested on Pikes Peak in 1918 by GE engineer Dr. Sanford Moss, who was experimenting with the 27L V12 of the Liberty bomber. In the modern era, turbochargers dominated Pikes Peak, pressurizing air being one of the easiest ways to get enough oxygen in the engines. In fact, Hyundai managed a showroom stock class win back in 1992, with Kiwi Rod Millen at the wheel of a humble Scoupe with just 114 hp. Millen followed this up with a second-place overall finish at PPIHC in 1993 with a monstrous open-class Elantra, modified far beyond the production car.
But battery EVs now rule Pikes Peak. The overall course record belongs to Romain Dumas, a four-time Pikes Peak king of the hill. Dumas won his first three events in purpose-built race cars, and set the current record of 7:57.148 with the battery-electric Volkswagen I.D.R in 2018. This, too was a purpose-built car, with a carbon fibre monocoque.
Hyundai's effort is aimed at proving its production Ioniq 5 N has the chops to take on the most difficult hillclimb in the world. The course is about 20 km long and climbs just under a kilometre and a half in elevation in 156 turns. In the past, there has been sunshine at the start and golfball-sized hail at the summit. Efforts towards safety have improved over the years, as the track moved from partially gravel to tarmac right to the top, with speeds subsequently increasing. Even so, it is a high mountain in the Rockies and can mete out punishment like an uncaring granite god.
The two Ioniq 5 N TA cars will be piloted by racer Robin Shute, a four-time king of the hill who was fastest up Pikes Peak in 2023, and Dani Sordo, a repeat WRC race-winning driver for Hyundai. The two production cars will be driven by one veteran PPIHC winner and one rookie. All four cars will take advantage of Hyundai's artificial sound system as carried by the production car – in this case, the sound will be broadcast through 120dB external speakers as part of the safety regulations required by the PPIHC. Ordinarily, EV racers carry warning sirens, but this soundtrack will probably be a little more exciting for onlookers.
Since the Time Attack cars use the same 800V electric system and 84-kWh battery pack as the standard Ioniq N and the same drive motors and chassis, Hyundai hopes to underline that its racing EV efforts are production-grade. It's previously done so with the Ioniq 5 N, performing two full laps of the 21-km Nürburgring in less than eight minutes each, or a maximum attack pace for a single lap of 7:45 seconds. Here, the company will aim for the Electric Production SUV/Crossover and Electric Modified Crossover/SUV record categories. This is performance you can put in your driveway. Or perhaps just download.
Gran Turismo Partners with Hyundai
Hyundai's Pikes Peak effort builds on the eN1 EV racing machine previously announced in March of this year, and the company suggests that we should see two more racing products before the end of this year. But among the guests of honour at the reveal of the Ioniq 5 N TA was Gran Turismo founder and Polyphony CEO Kazunori Yamauchi. Speaking through a translator, Yamauchi suggested that the Pikes Peak effort was just the first start of many coming projects between Hyundai and Gran Turismo.
Gran Turismo is a presenting sponsor for the Pikes Peak hillclimb and owns the digital rights for the course. However, the track hasn't appeared in the game since Gran Turismo 2. Fans of the series have long complained about the absence, especially since many Pikes Peak racing cars can still be purchased and raced even in the current iteration, GT7.
Collaborations with Gran Turismo could just include more Hyundais digitized and available for in-game purchases. Such might be your only way to get behind the wheel of a fuel-cell N Vision 74 concept (pictured above), whether or not Hyundai puts that car into production – as is the current rumour.
However, the announcement indicated that Hyundai N and Gran Turismo will work together specifically on “sim-racing activities.” At the very least, this means perhaps more Pikes Peak Hyundais available in-game – maybe that Open Class Elantra? – but the hope is that Pikes Peak might return to GT7 as a downloadable course.
If so, you'd have your chance to run an Ioniq 5 N up the mountain. The worst thing that could happen if you put it off the side is just having to press the reset button. Performance for everyone seems to be Hyundai N's mission statement of late. If you're a driving enthusiast, there are only more good things in the pipeline.