Of Course You Should Track Your Hyundai Kona N: Members’ Rides

Hyundai’s N division keeps turning out some of the most interesting performance cars on sale today, right down to its performance crossover, the Kona N. Today’s featured Members’ Ride comes from the aptly named Nsane In The MembraNe, who’s enjoyed its his Hyundai Kona N in its intended habitat: the race track, duh.

(Welcome to Members’ Rides. This is the weekly feature where we look at people who became members of the site by signing up here and parting with a little of their hard-earned dough to keep The Autopian going. Our plan is to do these every week! Today it’s Nsane In The MembraNe’s turn!)

“But wait, isn’t that a sensible family CUV?” you ask. Well, yes, but it’s the Kona N! “N,” you fools! It’s right there in the name! The N division got its single-letter name from two things: the Namyang location of Hyundai’s research and development center, and the Nürburgring, one of my favorite race tracks on earth. You’re playing yourself if you think the Kona N is only for kid-hauling and grocery runs.

Anyway, we’ve come to expect hot track-focused versions of higher-end SUVs like the Porsche Macan GTS, so why shouldn’t Hyundai follow suit? It’s a classic case where too many people ask why, and too few people ask why not. Both Nsane and I are convinced that the Kona N is the kind of car that’s Holy Grail fodder for the future.

Sadly, we’re still waiting to see if the new 2024 Kona will get another N-variant, so maybe talking with a current Kona N owner will help force Hyundai’s hand. Take it away, Nsane In The MembraNe!

Tell us a little bit about yourself and how you got into cars.

I was born and raised in the D.C. area and still live here. I’m happily married, a lover of all four-legged friends, and my other hobbies include sports, music, and cooking. I got into cars when I was a kiddo. It started with my aunt, who’s had an NA Miata since it was brand new. When I was little, she’d let me row the gears for her and I actually wound up learning to drive stick on it back in 2020. So, things really came full circle.

One of my uncles drag races as well. Last I heard, he still has his monstrous Dodge Dart build that he’s had since I was little. I think it was a ’68 Dart, but I could be wrong. He took me to the drag strip when I was around 11 or 12, which obviously blew my mind. I also had another uncle who was a German car enthusiast. He got me several Porsche books when I was around that same age.

Although I wouldn’t call him an enthusiast per se, my dad has always owned and enjoyed quirky cars, too. He had a manual Saab 93 for years and has since moved on to an assortment of Jeep Grand Cherokees (shout out to DT) and big Audi sedans, with a few Volvos in between.

Today, I like to spend time on the weekends detailing my Kona N and going for spirited drives on choice backroads in the area. My dad and I will attend a local cars and coffee together every now and then as well. I don’t have a ton of free time these days, but I often like to spend chunks of it here with you knuckleheads or watching car YouTube. Naturally, my favorites are Regular Car Reviews and SavageGeese, but I also enjoy Throttle House and a weekly dose of Doug DeMuro, who grew up a few miles from me, although I’ve never met him in person.

So, why did you choose the Kona N?

As the commentariat knows, I more or less wound up in the Kona N as a compromise. In 2020, I bought a brand new Mk7.5 VW GTI, which was more or less a car I’d wanted since I was a teenager. However, I quickly became disenchanted with it. It had serious issues with misfires and other German car gremlins. It also got me more interested in driving actual sports cars, which unfortunately wound up making me less fond of it.

Shortly after buying it, I drove a 5th-gen Camaro, learned to drive stick on my aunt’s NA Miata, and started taking the GTI for serious backroad rips in an undisclosed location that were, of course, always within the confines of the law. The combination of the mechanical issues, experiencing more engaging cars, and the fact that VW essentially only lets you drive at 7.5/10 stock left me wanting more.

I originally set my sights on a GR Corolla, but the enormous and expensive headache it would be to get one became apparent quickly. As a result, I checked out an Elantra N on a Sunday afternoon to take a look at the competition. I wound up being absolutely smitten. Between the steering feel, the raucous exhaust and engine note (for a 4-popper), the way the DCT banged off shifts, the quickness, and the mechanical grip (praise be to the N differential), I was sold.

I then had a conversation with my wife, who said that her condition for me getting out of a car and into a new one after only two years—which is objectively dumb, financially speaking—was that it had to be a useful package. She said the Elantra N was juvenile looking (correct, at least until the 2024s get here) and asked if they had any other N cars. The Veloster was naturally out of the question because of its weird layout, and then it dawned on me…guess what, my love? There’s an N CUV!

I then earned the coveted wife blessing and managed to track one down a few weeks later at an MSRP-only dealership that also gave me $500 off sticker. I drove it, it wound up being about 95% as good as the Elantra N, and that’s all she wrote. I’ve now had it for 18 months and 11,000 miles and I’m as happy with it today as I was the day I drove it off the lot.

What are your favorite things about the Kona N so far?

I think what I like most about it is that it can essentially be a regular car when you want it to be. In Normal and Eco drive modes, it more or less acts like a plain old Kona. It has plenty of room. The seats are comfortable. The Harman Kardon sound system is pretty good. You can eat up road trip miles like you could in any commuter so long as you can put up with the ride, which is pretty rough. There’s no way around it, unfortunately. In its softest mode, it’s still a bit jolting, its middle mode is for track use or smooth backroad blasts only, and its harshest mode will send you directly to the chiropractor. With a baby on the way, I’m considering putting some aftermarket springs on it that soften things up a bit.

That being said, when you want to drive hard, it’s only a click away. I always use my custom mode and set the parameters to match whatever road I’m on. Generally speaking, I have the engine, exhaust, and steering in Sport +, the transmission either in Sport or Sport +, and the suspension in Normal or, occasionally, Sport. It’s an absolute terror on a backroad. You can also fully defeat traction control, although I’ve only ever had it intervene once when I left it on in Sport mode. Make no mistake, this car will let you boogie.

When you filled in the Members’ Rides survey, you mentioned plans to take the Kona N on track for the first time. How did that go?

I took it to a track attack day at Dominion Raceway in September, and it absolutely ripped. We lapped for about an hour and it had no issues. The engine didn’t overheat, the brakes didn’t fade, power delivery was even the entire time, and it was a menace in the twisties. One of the instructors kept moving it into faster groupings and it was keeping up with much more powerful cars, albeit in a pretty controlled setting. After we were done several folks came over to ask me about it, because no one thought the goofy looking crossover had any business being there until they couldn’t keep up with it.

Therein lies my favorite thing about the car: no one knows what it is. People more or less ignore it. It’s fairly anonymous and in its softer settings, it blends right in. It draws almost no attention whatsoever. But at the click of one of the N buttons, it turns into an unhinged maniac. I love the damn thing to death and I plan on driving it for at least another few years. I’m also going back to Dominion in the spring for some of their high performance driver education (HPDE) days where I plan on taking my track driving a few steps further. I’m sure it’ll do great and will continue to function as a great daily in the interim. The N cars are something special and I encourage everyone to give them a try because the intersection of fun, capability, and value is as good as it gets.

We love a good factory sleeper! Let’s daydream for a bit, though. What would be in your dream garage?

A Bronco Raptor for stupid capability, a Lexus LC500 for fun, and a BMW M550i as a daily that splits the difference.

Thanks, Nsane! If you’re a member and want to be highlighted, please check your email for a link to a survey you can fill out. If you don’t want to be featured, that’s also fine. Go here and join today!