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The 2021 Hyundai Kona N Is “Coming to the U.S. Later This Year”

Primarily developed in Europe, the Kona N has been confirmed for the U.S. by none other than the South Korean automaker. Just like the i30 N and Veloster N, the performance-oriented SUV is packing a 2.0-liter turbo.
2021 Hyundai Kona N 41 photos
Photo: Hyundai
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The Kona N may go on sale in two states of tune depending on the market, if I’m not mistaken. The U.S. model will probably be offered with the performance package as standard, translating to 275 horsepower and 260 pound-feet (353 Nm) of torque. As for the Old Continent, look forward to 250 PS and 378 Nm (247 horsepower and 279 pound-feet) for the base spec.

Camouflaged from the roofline down to the side skirts in the following video, the go-faster SUV has been teased with an eight-speed DCT. No details have been offered so far about a six-speed stick shift, and the South Korean automaker is also keeping its lips shut about front- or all-wheel drive.

The worst-case scenario would be FWD with an electronically controlled limited-slip differential and the dual-clutch transmission, which is exactly the same recipe used by the i30 N and Veloster N. In the back on my mind, however, I hope that Hyundai will offer torque-vectoring all-wheel drive.

Better described as a jacked-up hot hatchback, the Kona N is actually the fourth model from the N division if we include the i20 N. But as opposed to its larger brothers, the subcompact hatchback relies on a 1.6-liter turbo engine that rocks 204 PS (201 horsepower) and 275 Nm (203 pound-feet).

Hyundai won’t be stopping here, though. Not long now, the all-new Tucson will go through the N-Line treatment, after which the full-on N will enter the scene with heaven knows how much oomph. The most interesting possibility would be for Hyundai to adopt a plug-in hybrid powertrain similarly to what the Volkswagen Group has done to the Mk8 Golf GTE.

On an ending note, the Kona N doesn’t have any real competition in the United States, while Europe’s most obvious contender is the Ford Puma ST. Unfortunately for the Fiesta-based crossover, the Puma ST leaves much to be desired in terms of powertrain due to its three-cylinder motor.

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About the author: Mircea Panait
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After a 1:43 scale model of a Ferrari 250 GTO sparked Mircea's interest for cars when he was a kid, an early internship at Top Gear sealed his career path. He's most interested in muscle cars and American trucks, but he takes a passing interest in quirky kei cars as well.
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