Don’t expect to see it in showrooms, but Hyundai’s muscly new concept could be a preview of something to come.
Hyundai has finally unveiled its muscly little Insteroid concept, following last week’s revealing teaser images.
As promised, the Insteroid takes the compact Inster EV and turns it into a pocket god, thanks to the Wheels COTY winning Ioniq 5 N powertrain beating away within.
That means anybody lucky enough to launch this thing will do it with 478kW and all-wheel drive at their disposal – nearly seven times more power than the regular front-wheel-drive Inster offers.
In many ways – primarily the ridiculous power to lilliputian dimensions ratio – the Insteroid reminds us of the madcap Juke R revealed back in 2011 with the R35 GT-R’s 406kW (at the time) twin-turbo V6 and all-wheel drive system promising a 0-100km/h sprint time of just 3.0 seconds.
That’s actually quicker than the Insteroid’s claim, just barely pipped at 3.4 seconds, but it’s a fairly fine hair to split.
Hyundai hasn’t said how much the Insteroid weighs, but given it’s built on the Ioniq 5 N’s E-GMP architecture, it could be upwards of 1800kg – which is right where the Juke R lived.
The Insteroid rides on giant boxy wheel arches and a visibly wider track to get its power to the ground through the huge 21-inch wheels dominating each corner, while splitters and a massive rear wing work to keep it on the ground.
Inside, the Insteroid features a stripped-out configuration ready for racing, but the designers have still had their fun, especially around the modular driving instruments that display a mix of colours and gamer fonts above an illuminated ghost motif.
Massive speakers fill out the back half of the cabin like some sort of nu-retro Autosalon project, except that this ‘Hyundai Beat House’ is more about the sorts of mean engine sounds showcased in the Ioniq 5 N.
Apart from its functional purpose, the Insteroid’s look – designed by the company’s European division – is described as being heavily inspired by the video games world.
Exterior design manager Nicola Danza spoke of his desire to develop a look that would draw his own young sons into the emerging electric performance scene – without expecting that they somehow find the funds to reach for an Ioniq 5 N.
Danza added that he hears too often that today’s younger generations are not interested in cars, so he set his team the task of capturing their attention with the Insteroid.
“We’re getting older. My son has to buy these cars. So we have to think of that generation to buy cars, to continue buying cars … And they cannot afford the [Ioniq] 5 N. So let’s make a car for them.” Danza told Drive.com.au.
Hyundai has made clear it won’t be bringing the Insteroid to production, but we shouldn’t be surprised to see the name appear on a future, fashion-focused variant aimed directly at those younger buyers.
