2025 Hyundai Ioniq 5 N at Lightning Lap 2025
Class: LL2 | Base: $67,575 | As Tested: $67,785Power and Weight: 641 hp • 4858 lb • 7.6 lb/hp Tires: Pirelli P Zero PZ4 Elect; 275/35ZR-21 103Y PNCS HN
We ran the Hyundai Ioniq 5 N's platform-mate, the 576-hp Kia EV6 GT, at Lightning Lap last year, so it's natural to compare the performance of these brothers from different mothers. How much would Hyundai's upgrades to the 5 N's structure, chassis, tires, software, and motors improve its lap time over the EV6 GT? And would the changes tame the EV6's dicey handling?
The answer is unequivocally yes. The 5 N crushed the EV6 GT's time by 4.6 seconds. It clawed around Turn 1 at a sports-car–like 0.98 g versus the GT's 0.93 g, and it rushed into the Climbing Esses at 133.4 mph, almost 10 mph faster. It was quicker through all the track's sectors and faster virtually everywhere. We realized after our third and quickest run that on VIR's straights, we'd forgotten to punch the N Grin Boost button, which takes power from 601 horses to 641 for 10 seconds and may have cut a few more tenths. After a lunchtime recharge, we tried a final run, using N Grin Boost, but the afternoon heat degraded track conditions, and we couldn't find more time.
The 5 N has a dizzying number of settings. Here's our setup for VIR: Track mode with N Race on to maintain the battery for hot-lapping, the dampers in Sport (one rung down from the stiffest setting), stability control off, and the battery charged to at least 95 percent. Stable and sure-footed, with mild understeer, surprisingly tactile steering, and capable brakes, it was a 4858-pound cube of fun to drive. We barely noticed the powertrain's silence—sounds and simulated shifting are off in these settings—but the instantaneous torque meant mid-corner accelerator adjustments required barely moving a big toe.
On track, the 5 N's need to recharge limits it to maybe two 20-minute sessions. Absent a track-side fast-charger—we shared Lucid's portable unit—the Ioniq 5 N isn't going to log many laps in a day. The 5 N's weight and speed tax the tires too, turning them greasy after a couple of laps. It would kill at autocrosses, though, which rack up only a few miles of flat-out running per event, thus eliminating the need for recharging. Guess where we'll be taking it next.
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