Another day, another hot SUV has broken cover (sort of).
This time it's Hyundai. The South Korean manufacturer have long been rumoured to be working away quietly on a fizzy N performance variant of their Tuscon compact SUV. Now, they've issued a few hazy preview pictures of a softer N Line Tuscon.
For those who missed the memo, mild performance 'line' model vehicles are all the rage these days. They generally sport the same styling and similar suspension tuning to their big brother and sister editions, but with standard power-trains and a more mainstream price. BMW, Lexus, and Kia are among those who do it (via their M-Sport, F-Sport, and GT-Line) — and Hyundai is now wanting to muscle in on the action with the N Line sub-brand.
Among the few nuggets of info we can take away from these images is that the N Line model will come with large lace-look wheels, lower ride-height, and a revised front bumper with new angular 'check mark' integrated LED day-time running lights.
Inside new bucket seating and a new (automatic) shift knob are dressed up with leather and red stitching, plus prominent N badging.
This is all well and good of course, but those of us who want a proper performance car wrapped in a small SUV body will naturally want more than just a few new panels and bigger wheels. But, Hyundai might have an answer to that question too.
Speculation of them producing a proper fully fledged Tucson N were recently bolstered by insider rumours circulated in the British press that not only is a Tucson N currently in development, but it's also said to be far enough along that performance figures have been generated.
The rumours went on to say that the Tucson N will produce at least 250kW, and a 0–100km/h time of less than six seconds. That compares well to the likes of European-based rivals from Seat and Volkswagen. Add to all this that Albert Biermann himself, the boss of Hyundai's N Division, hinted at producing a vehicle similar to the proposed Tucson N.
He told Aussie publication Drive that, among other things, it'd have "a lot of power". Lovely.
There is no N Line vehicles in New Zealand at this stage, while our friends in Australia recently had the first Hyundai i30 N Line models land — to a positive critical reception.
We'll keep you posted on any developments, as well as the Tucson N Line's imminent unveiling.