Calling it right now: the 2025 Hyundai Ioniq 5 N is Car of the Year material.
This is a vehicle that turns skeptics into believers. I don’t have enough fingers and toes to count how many people experienced this part hot-hatch, part-crossover and came away with a huge smile on their face, followed by a few expletives. What Hyundai accomplished here is a game changer for the EV segment, and I expect other automakers to take bits and pieces from the Ioniq 5 N for their own performance-oriented EVs. It really is that good.
Everyone knows EVs are swift off the line. The first thing any Tesla owner shows you is just how quick they are when you floor it. Yes, they are quick, but that’s accompanied by complete silence. Every other performance EV is like this, but the Ioniq 5 N is truly something else. This car has drama and personality, and it wears it proudly to show you that with some effort and the right tricks, it’s possible for enthusiasts to experience the things they love about internal combustion vehicles — the noise, the vibrations, the feel and feedback — in the electric future.
Based on the standard Ioniq 5, the 5 N uses an upgraded version of Hyundai’s e-GMP chassis to dance on a track, twisty roads, or even tight on-ramps. You immediately feel that the ride is slightly stiffer here, but unlike previous Hyundai N models, it’s perfectly suitable as a daily driver in its softer drive modes. The steering is precise and actually provides a surprising amount of feedback for an EV. You can tell Albert Biermann — the man behind some of the most well-known BMW M cars — and his team built a proper enthusiast vehicle disguised as an EV.
With most other EVs chasing big horsepower numbers, Hyundai could’ve joined the rat race, but the Ioniq 5 N focuses on fun and bringing a (big) smile to your face. That being said, it’s no slouch: it’s rated at 601 horsepower, but tapping the N Grin Boost (NGB) button on the steering wheel bumps that up to 641 hp. Prepared to be thrown into your seat and be glued there. Hyundai says the Ioniq 5 N will do the zero-to-100 km/h run in 3.4 seconds, but based on what we’ve seen elsewhere, it’ll hit the three-second mark while barely breaking a sweat.
We were skeptical at first about the Ioniq 5 N’s simulated noises and feedback. It’s too easy to roll your eyes at first, but when you actually get behind the wheel and operate the paddle-shifters for the first time, all that changes. You can have the Ioniq 5 N operate silently and unobtrusively like any other EV, but the real fun is not just the noises it makes to mimic a gas engine, but also the fact that it provides the same sort of vibrations and jolts while you “shift” through the “gears” and the car bounces off the “redline.” This may be a massive gimmick, but Hyundai executed it well, effectively finding the secret sauce that makes an EV fun and engaging among enthusiasts, even though it’s all simulated. It shouldn’t work, it shouldn’t be fun — but it does, and it is.
Visually, the 5 N differs from the standard Ioniq in a few ways. It’s slightly longer overall, the fender flares and upsized wheels give it presence, and jumping inside, the grippy Alcantara/faux leather sport seats keep you glued in place. The N badges on the seats light up and look great at night, and the thicker steering wheel wouldn’t feel out-of-place in a BMW M car. Come to think of it, the seats with the light-up badges wouldn’t feel out-of-place, either.
Hyundai also addressed a few drawbacks we noted in previous Ioniq 5s: wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto are finally standard, and it finally gets a rear windshield wiper. The front seats being manually operated is a bit of a downer at this price point, but I don’t doubt Hyundai will rectify this if we all complain loud enough.
For all the power, performance, and technology accompanying the Ioniq 5 N, something is bound to suffer, and that would be its overall range. A standard Ioniq 5 is good for up to 488 kilometres on a full charge and in optimal conditions, but the N is rated up to 356 km. This is a big difference and might be a dealbreaker for some, but thankfully, the same fast-charging capabilities in standard 5s are present in the Ioniq 5 N. Hyundai says you can see a 10-to-80 per cent charge in 18 minutes on a Level 3 charger, as long as you can find one that’s fast enough. On a Level 2 charger, that same charge will take about six hours.
The 2025 Hyundai Ioniq 5 N starts at $78,199, a significant jump from the $55,499 Hyundai asks for a base, rear-wheel-drive Ioniq 5. It’s easy to dismiss the idea of a near-$80,000 Hyundai, but the level of enjoyment and engagement, even if it’s all simulated, is something you absolutely need to experience before you cast judgment. Whether or not you like EVs, you owe it to yourself to just try one out. The Ioniq 5 N will change the way you think about EVs.
