Hyundai Revs Up Electric Concept

Hyundai took the wraps off its RM20e sports car at the Beijing auto show on Sunday.

The prototype is the first electric variant in Hyundai’s N line of Veloster-based RM (racing midship) models. Hyundai describes the platform as a “rolling lab” for testing high performance technologies.

“The RM20e sports car prototype clearly signals future electrified brand aspirations for Hyundai’s performance N brand, moving N into the prestigious genre of supercar-level performance,” says Thomas Schemera, Hyundai's head of product development.

Electric Power

Powered by four electric motors, the RM20e generates 810 hp and 708 lb-ft of torque. Zero to 60 mph acceleration is listed at 3 seconds.

                              Hyundai N RM20e (Image: Hyundai)

Hyundai says the car can hit 124 mph in 9.88 seconds on its way to a top speed of 155 mph.

Featuring a rear-wheel-drive midship layout, the RM20e combines racecar-like levels of performance, balance, braking and grip while retaining daily-driver quietness, responsiveness and road-going capability, Hyundai boasts.

The electric motors are connected to the wheels via a single-speed transmission. The 60-kWh battery is teamed with an 800-volt electrical architecture to enable super-fast charging.

Hyundai developed the electric racer in partnership with Rimac.

RM Heritage

Launched in 2012, Hyundai’s RM development project is designed to foster high-performance motorsports technologies with future N-badged models.

The program has yielded the RM14, RM15, RM16 and RM19, with the suffix designating the year the car debuted. Last year’s vehicle also led to Hyundai’s first electric race car: the Veloster N eTCR for the eTCR electric touring car series.

The “N” in Hyundai N has dual meanings: Namyang and Nurburgring.

Namyang is where Hyundai’s global research and development center in Korea is located.

Nurburgring, of course, is the Germany’s renowned proving grounds. Hyundai says each new N model undergoes more than 420 laps on the demanding Nordschleife (another N) circuit—in wet and dry conditions—to hone its performance bona fides. This allows development engineers to simulate more than 100,000 miles of severe driving in a month of testing, according to the carmaker.

More EV Racers

Hyundai Elantra N TCR

Hyundai also unveiled the high-performance Elantra N TCR at the Beijing show.

The new “touring car racing” model will join Hyundai’s motorsports lineup next year. It follows the 2019 Veloster N TCR in 2019 and i30 N TCR in 2013.

Powered by a modified version of the street Elantra’s 2.0-liter 4-cylinder engine, the N TCR variant is expected to generate 340 hp and 300 lb-ft of torque. The engine is mated with a 6-speed, paddle-shift gearbox.

Charging Ahead in China

Hyundai Motor Group (Hyundai, Kia and Genesis) plans to introduce 44 eco-friendly vehicles by 2025.  

Hyundai press conference at 2020 Beijing auto show

Many of the new models will be full-electric vehicles targeted at China, which is the world’s largest EV market.

To support anticipated growth in China, Hyundai is launching an “E2E” online sales portal. The program is designed to provide more consistent pricing across the country.