“Let’s go out to Beth’s,” said my wife, the Blind Lady. “I want some garden tomatoes.” We threaded through the summer traffic in town, stopping at the crosswalks like the good citizens we aspire to be, and made our way into the countryside. “This thing rides like a truck!” She said. “What is it?” 

By way of reply, I thumbed the two buttons on the steering wheel and matted the “gas” pedal. The “engine” instantly let out a staccato Braa-a-aaap!, the “transmission” abruptly downshifted two “gears”and the car lunged violently for the next bend. Sue’s head snapped back into the seat and she shrieked. After three or four seconds of this, as the speedometer needle swept into triple digits, I stood on the brakes and hammered the left-side “shift” paddle on the steering wheel a couple of times. We both lurched forward into our shoulder belts and then the scenery re-stabilized. Sue took a deep breath and laughed. “OK, what is this?” 

This is the N-line version of a car we already love, Hyundai’s Ioniq 5 hatchback. And the quotes around the technical bits above are there because it’s all theater. This is an EV, and electric vehicles do not have engines, “gas” pedals, transmissions or (generally) gears. Hyundai’s skunkworks has somehow made this thing sound and behave like a Group B rally car, the legendary “killer Bs” that were rule-booked out of existence in 1986 because they were too advanced, too hot and, some said, too bloody dangerous. 

For their time, that is. We’ve learned a few things in 40 years, and the Ioniq 5 N, maniacally brilliant as it is, is also relatively housebroken. Thumb the right-hand button on the steering wheel again and the sound track ceases, the apparent gear-changes are replaced by regenerative braking, and we’re in an ordinary, silent EV, albeit one with up to 648 horsepower and suspension compliance that adjusts from stiff to none.  

With so many available horses as well as 568 pound-feet of torque, the IQ5N’s max range is barely 250 miles, significantly less than the everyday one- or two-motor, 225- or 320-horsepower Ioniq 5’s. But no matter—this isn’t a touring car. Aside from the harsh ride, the driver’s seat lacks an adjustable lumbar cushion, a must-have on long rides for anyone beyond the age of 40. Both front seats, for that matter, although deeply dished and supportive, adjust manually, an unusual feature on a car that costs nearly 70 grand.

The IQ5N does have all-wheel drive, of course, since it is a heavily amped-up version of the motor-on-each-axle Ioniq 5. This allowed NEMPA, the New England Motor Press Association, a bunch of hooligans if I ever saw one (I am a charter member), to name it their official Winter EV of 2025. Me, I’d swap out the P Zero summer tires for Pilot Alpins or Bridgestone Blizzaks before setting off in the snow, and then I’d proceed gingerly. 

There’s more, too. From NEMPA’s present president, who’s with Car and Driver Magazine: “Hyundai has been on a hot streak, so we expected the Ioniq 5 N to be good. That it would knock out the supercars and high-performance luxury SUVs that NEMPA regularly tests, and then glide into town in total silence and comfort? We were stunned. That's why the Ioniq 5 N is also our Best Performance Car for 2025.” Enough said? 

Next week: Hyundai Kona Limited AWD