The Hyundai Ioniq 5 N has collected more silverware than any performance EV of its generation — 2024 World Performance Car, Top Gear’s 2023 Car of the Year, Car and Driver’s EV of the Year — and in 2026 Hyundai is doubling down on the formula with an Ioniq 6 N sedan on the way.
Ioniq 5 N 0-60 time and horsepower
With N Grin Boost engaged, the Ioniq 5 N produces 641 horsepower in 10-second bursts (601 hp continuous) and hits 0-60 mph in about 3.25 seconds with launch control — genuine supercar-adjacent pace from a five-seat crossover. The overboost strategy is borrowed from motorsport rather than sustaining maximum power continuously, which helps manage battery temperature during repeated hard runs.
The tech that won the awards
Judges across multiple awards kept praising the same thing: the N e-Shift system, which simulates eight-speed gear changes complete with synthetic shift shock and engine-note audio — a feature that exists purely to make an EV feel like the N cars Hyundai built its performance reputation on. When it took 2024 World Performance Car at the New York Auto Show, the win signaled that character and engagement counted as much as raw numbers: the Ioniq 5 N isn’t the most powerful car in its class, but its blend of theatrics and genuine pace made the strongest case that performance EVs don’t have to be silent and serious.
What’s next: the Ioniq 6 N
For 2026 the Ioniq 5 N carries over essentially unchanged — still in limited supply in many markets — but the bigger news is what’s joining it. Hyundai is replacing the standard Ioniq 6 lineup with the new Ioniq 6 N, a high-performance electric sedan due later in 2026 that brings the 5 N’s drivetrain philosophy to a lower, sleeker body. Two years after sweeping the awards season, the Ioniq 5 N is no longer an experiment — it’s the template for Hyundai’s electric performance lineup.