2025 Hyundai Ioniq 5 N Review: A Versatile Future in Performance

Pros

• Fabulous handling
• Dazzling acceleration
• Impressive high-tech features

Cons

• Compromised range
• Easy to get lost in all the available modes
• Occasionally reminds you how heavy it is

Hyundai didn’t have to go this hard, but it did. That’s our staff’s takeaway after spending two days lapping the 2025 Ioniq 5 N around Chuckwalla Raceway and yet another two days road-tripping the sporty EV throughout Southern California. Everyone expected something different from the hottest version of Hyundai’s electric SUV, but after days of test driving, judges were unanimous with their overwhelming enthusiasm for the Ioniq 5 N’s blend of whimsicality and thrilling performance.

In part, the joy imparted by the Ioniq 5 N comes from its theatricality. Buried under two layers of infotainment screen menus is an option to enable Hyundai’s N Active Sound+ feature, which plays three synthetic audio tracks accompanying “throttle” inputs. Ignition simulates a gas engine, Supersonic mimics a fighter jet, and Evolution is an abstracted take on what performance sounds like. Our judges enjoyed these modes to varying degrees, but most agreed Ignition was by far the best, especially when combined with the N e-shift mode.

When these features work in tandem, the Ioniq 5 N feels much like a gas-powered car. It replicates the feel of shifts, lurches when the tachometer bangs the synthetic “rev limiter,” and even plays an exhaust note when you hammer the accelerator at idle. Using these settings transforms the Hyundai into a driving simulator that you use on real roads and tracks, jazzing up the driver-engagement factor with a convincing duplication of driving a performance car with an internal combustion engine.

Then there’s the N Grin Boost button, which deploys maximum acceleration and the sharpest tuning in 10-second spurts. Fully awakened, the car almost feels too rapid for full-throttle stints on public roads. Annoyingly, you can’t N Grin Boost yourself and use the N e-shift settings at the same time, but it’s difficult to care when you’re hurtling down a straight unleashing all 641 hp. Even without any of these ludicrous settings enabled, the Ioniq 5 N is an impressive performance machine. Engaging steering, indefatigable brakes, and a responsive chassis tick the necessary boxes for a satisfying drive.

After spending a week with it, we found few faults. The biggest issue was range, which the EPA rates at 221 miles, a steep drop from the non-N AWD model’s 260-mile total. Fortunately, the Hyundai compensates with blistering charging speeds at a peak rate of 239 kW. The Ioniq 5 N also impressed us by how well it held onto its charge while being belted around the track; we noted a drop from 96 percent to 79 percent over a five-lap session of Chuckwalla Raceway’s 2.68-mile circuit. Hyundai certainly seems to have paid extraordinary attention to detail during the development of its first high-performance EV.

Provided you have sufficient patience to learn the menu system, the ultra-quick SUV can be anything you want it to be, full of seeming contradictions. Features editor Christian Seabaugh marveled at the multitudes contained within the Hyundai’s software. “One setting has it going down the track like a super SUV,” he said. “Another setup makes it feel like a hot hatch. One feels like a big sports car.” Indeed, this customization and variability increased our interest in the world of possibilities that exist for future sporty EVs from all manufacturers.