Remember when
Car journalists have the same issue with the
Enter the new
Even a decade ago, the idea of Hyundai building a class-leading hot hatch was unthinkable. The South Korean company made reliable, budgetpriced vehicles for folk who didn't particularly care about cars: white goods on wheels. Today,
Creating a credible Fiesta ST rival hasn't involved cutting corners. As well as establishing a permanent test centre at the Nordschleife,
Arch-filling 18-inch alloys, branded brake calipers, a jutting roof spoiler and a full complement of red go-faster stripes: the i20 N wears its heart on its sleeve. You wouldn't call it pretty, but its four-square stance and fat oval tailpipe clearly mean business. More practically, it also comes with five doors - unlike, for instance, the Mini Cooper JCW or Toyota GR Yaris.
There's more jazziness inside, in- cluding a 10.25-inch touchscreen and big-bolstered heated seats. The sat-nav flags up exciting corners in advance, while the digital dials explode into cartoon flames when you select maximum-attack N mode. Traditionalists will be pleased to note the six-speed Hpattern gearbox (unlike the larger i30 N, there is no paddle-shift DCT option) and physical handbrake lever.
As you'd hope after all that 'Ring time, the i20 N's chassis is the main event. It corners with terrier-like tenacity, Pirellis biting hard as the Torsen diff hooks the front end around. Try hard and it will lift an inside rear wheel, classic Golf GTI-style, but mostly it just grips and goes. Taut damping and a stubborn resistance to roll mean you scarcely need to slow down. The pay-off is a restless ride that's perhaps too stiff for some. If it meant driving an i20 N every day, I could live with it.
On balance, the Fiesta has livelier steering and handles with slightly more finesse. The
HYUNDAI I20 N
PRICE: £24,995 0-62MPH: 6.2 SECS TOP SPEED: 142MPH CO2 G/KM: 158G/KM MPG COMBINED: 40.4MPG
(c) 2021 City A.M., source