Hyundai i30 N and i30 TCR: track test – Sports Cars

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Hyundai i30 N and i30 TCR: track test – Sports Cars
HYUNDAI i30N
Hyundai i30 TCR
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Hyundai i30 N and i30 TCR: track test – Sports Cars

It's not every day that you drive a street sports car and its racing sister one by one. But today, fortunately, is one of those rare days. The sun is shining Tazio Nuvolari Circuit (Cervesina) and body shops of two Hyundai i30 in front of me they are shiny and bright.

La Hyundai i30 N This is the first compact front-wheel drive sports car from a Korean manufacturer to go serious: 275 CVa limited-slip differential, a 6-speed manual transmission and a rigid and cohesive chassis have all the virtues to shine and (a lot) to irritate competitors. The data speaks for itself: 0-100 km / h in 6,1 seconds and 250 km / h maximum speed; but the numbers don't tell you how to drive.

However, next to her is Mr.Hyde: Hyundai i30N TCR race The BRC Racing team, so beefy and wicked that makes the i30 N look like a diesel version.

A real combat weapon developed by Hyundai Motorsport for World Touring Car races. WTCR and piloted Gabriele "Chingio" Tarquini e Norbert Michelis... Proof that Hyundai is serious and that after the success of the i20 WRC in the World Rally, it also intends to dominate the tracks. BRC Racing Team, the racing division of BRC Gas Equipment, an Italian company that is a leader in the sale and installation of gas, LPG and methane gas systems for road cars, operates the Hyundai TCR racing cars of the WTCR World Championship.

HYUNDAI i30N

I start with Hyundai i30 N Streetto speed up the pace a little. I love front wheel drive sports compacts, especially those that don't compromise. Outside, the Hyundai i30N is aggressive at the right moment. She is muscular, but not cocky or vulgar. Extractor, exhaust, special alloy wheels, spoiler: everything is thought out to the smallest detail. I also love its blue, a unique and distinctive color that pays homage to the company's racing cars.

I quickly find the perfect session and that's good news. You sit low with a nice upright steering wheel and free legs to move quickly between the pedals. IN steering wheel correct size and leverage Speed it's short and where it should be. A good way to start driving.

I know the track very well, so I can immediately focus on the car.

Three curves and on Hyundai i30 N I already know three things: that it slows down a lot, it has a strong engine and a sharp and precise gearbox. There's also a system that performs dual automatic downshifts, which is an advantage when aggressively entering tight corners in a second.

Feels like the car is tough and tailored like a suit, but above all, as precise as a blade. IN Pirelli P Zero 235 Cabin suffer from heat and sharp bends, but limited slip differential puts on the ground i 275 CV ei 350 Nm very effective. You do need to adjust the throttle when exiting corners, however, to avoid understeer, but a very small turbo lag helps to correct trajectory.

The third thing I found was that it had a responsive rear end. In the fast "they" Tacio Nuvolari the back slides and helps guide the rope, but not frivolously, but collectively. Something like an old woman Renault Megan RSand that's a great compliment as this is Hyundai's first attempt.

I rush into a straight line and throw myself into gears with force: the gearbox does not jam even as a joke, and the needle rises enthusiastically to 6.000 rpm. I don’t care only about the sound: it’s a quiet sound that echoes in the cabin, even enveloping, but poor in notes and too polite. But maybe I love the unprincipled tones, and I also understand that the i30 N should be an everyday sports car too. The fact remains: I am very impressed with its behavior on the track and I can't wait to try it on the mountain road. Based on these assumptions, I approach TCR.

Hyundai i30 TCR

I already drove a racing car TCRbut it is always an immense emotion. IN broad shoulders (width 1,95), smooth tires that fill the wheel arches, the ailerons, the deafening noise, the smell of gasoline: I love it all. It is a world championship racing car, the ultimate expression of front wheel drive racing cars. Given the results Hyundai has achieved in motorsport, I have high expectations.

La session it is low, recessed, with a digital tachometer in sight and the dashboard flush with the horizon. The driver's position is really perfect and the pedals are positioned so you can brake with either your left or right foot as you please. You use the clutch to launch and then just pull the coal blades to use the crazy X-Track sequential gearbox (Exchange rate 18.000 euros). WITH 1180 kg weight (with pilot) e 350 CV authorities, Hyundai i30 TC he is capable of a mind-blowing job. Just to give you an idea: a 'Audi TT RS 400 hp. in this track it turns into 1,35 minutes, una Ferrari 488 GTB from 670 hp 1,28 minutes, TCR a la i30 1,20 minutes.

That's what a racing car is capable of.

I start by jogging (the limited-slip differential is damn tight) and start the ride.

It's more like driving Porsche GT3 RS instead of one Hyundai i30; it's so tough and solid that it looks like someone screwed it in with a giant hex wrench.

It's also fast. IN engine thirsts for revs and LED red they always light up, as if to say, "Use whatever you can." The slicks stick like glue, so 350 hp. don't load the front tires that much, but that doesn't surprise me. What shocks me most (and most of all I like) about the Hyundai TCR is that braking. Discs 380 mm the front wheels kill large chunks of speed with incredible simplicity, and when you apply the brakes, you get the impression that you are driving an empty canister, the inertia of this machine is so small. There is no brake booster, so the pedal is stiff and you have to run with your foot to brake, but you have total control and perfect sensitivity that a braking system with ABS and brake booster cannot provide. I brake at the end of a straight line in fifth place. and brake shortly before 50 meters: a strong stomp, two hits on the left oar - and you rush into it. Where the road car flounders, slows down, expands and suffers (and the tires suffer too), the race car obeys, period. It follows your input so well that it allows you to focus 100% on the track. There are not even signs of a breakdown, you can brake 100 times in the same place without being afraid to drive for a long time. Only tires (which have several kilometers on their account) suffer a little, but most of all, from pressure increase.

Il noise instead, it stuns and galvanizes at the same time both internally and externally, where you can enjoy beautiful barrels, gear changes and explosions on release. The race cars are great, the Hyundai i30 TCR is great.