It’s not just the Japanese car manufacturers bringing some exciting stuff to this year’s Tokyo Auto Salon. Hyundai has crashed the tuner-oriented party with this, the NPX1 prototype, showcasing an array of factory-fitted add-ons customers can now spec for their Ioniq 5 N.
N Performance Parts isn’t a new thing to Hyundai. It introduced the catalog of parts for its very first hot hatch, the i30 N, back in 2018 and has rolled it out across the now fairly hefty list of models under the performance sub-brand.
It’s gone all-out on the Ioniq 5 N, too, turning the hot EV into a pseudo-race car. The front end of the car gets a gigantic front splitter with carbon fins that wouldn’t look entirely out of place on a time-attack car.
Side skirts extensions will be available, as well as a bonkers-looking rear diffuser and the touring car-style wing plonked on the back.
Those new 10-spoke wheels are made from a hybrid of carbon and steel with a set of lowering springs fitted to aid a more aggressive stance. Uprated brake pads are a feature of this car, too.
Though Hyundai hasn’t revealed interior images of the NPX1, it says Alcantara upholstery will be offered, as well as a set of bucket seats.
What hasn’t changed is the car’s underlying performance. Mind you, with 641bhp on tap from a dual-motor setup, it hardly needs it – even if it’s a heavy thing. Hyundai doesn’t officially publish a figure, but it’s believed to tip the scales at over two tonnes. It’s good for 0-62mph in 3.4 seconds.
If you’re buying a car as silly as the Ioniq 5 N, complete with its selectable sound generators and software to replicate driving a petrol-powered car, it only feels appropriate to go all out with the N Performance Parts, in our opinion.
