Hyundai N Boss Brands Nurbugring Records A "Waste Of Time"

Former M Division man Albert Biermann doesn't see the point in wasting time and money on Nurburgring records
Hyundai N Boss Brands Nurbugring Records A "Waste Of Time"

There must have been the temptation to give the I30 N - Hyundai’s first hot hatch - a silly, 300bhp+ power figure. Perhaps make a limited-run, stripped out version on sticky tyres. And send it around the Nurburgring to chase after the Honda Civic Type R’s Nurburgring record. But the Korean firm’s newly established N offshoot wants to do things differently.

Talking to Road and Track at the Detroit Auto Show, N boss Albert Biermann - formerly of BMW’s M Division - insisted the fresh performance brand is more interested in producing cars for fun rather than out-and-out-capability.

“If you’re going for lap times, the aero settings are different, the suspension setting is different…it’s not as enjoyable,” he said.

Hyundai N Boss Brands Nurbugring Records A "Waste Of Time"

Not terribly surprising - Hyundai likes to make a big deal about what it refers to as a “BPM not RPM” approach. But Biermann went much further in his comments, having a pop at the concept of Nurburgring lap records. “There are companies that spend like five months at the Nurburgring, with tons of people. For that amount [of money] we can almost develop a whole car. It’s just a waste of time,” he said.

It also turns out Hyundai N might have come out with something more potent for its first car than the I30 N. And there could yet be something pokier to come from N. “We had prototype cars with more powerful engines and all-wheel drive and all kinds of stuff,” Biermann said, before adding, “Is there room for a higher level? We need to learn with this car first.”

Comments

Anonymous
Anonymous
01/17/2018 - 15:13 |
292 | 8
Anonymous
Anonymous

In reply to by Anonymous (not verified)

Здравствуйте в этом случае я не знаю как это сделать в виде таблицы в этом случае я не знаю как это сделать в виде буквы и цифры.

01/17/2018 - 16:25 |
8 | 26
......
......

i understand his point of view
maybe they just want to build fun cars to drive thats all (for now at least)

01/17/2018 - 15:13 |
32 | 0
Olivier (CT's grammar commie)
Olivier (CT's grammar commie)

I see the point, but it’s not always about being the fastest on the Ring; and rather to see how it fares compared to other cars.

01/17/2018 - 15:15 |
20 | 0
Rahul 1
Rahul 1

In reply to by Olivier (CT's …

true…and not only that, but performance wise, style wise, handling wise, etc. they are different

01/17/2018 - 15:17 |
2 | 0
Anonymous
Anonymous

James May approved!

01/17/2018 - 15:17 |
18 | 0
Tomislav Celić
Tomislav Celić

My honest take

There are cars (such as supercars) designed to break lap records. Those cars use every single bit of engineering to make them faster

But also there are cars (like the i30N) designed to have fun, therefore making them too fast, might kill the fun in it.

01/17/2018 - 15:21 |
30 | 10
Roadster / Tail Red
Roadster / Tail Red

In reply to by Tomislav Celić

But still…

Toyobaru with more power when?

01/17/2018 - 16:32 |
6 | 2
Ruben Willems
Ruben Willems

In reply to by Tomislav Celić

Aye, the perfect example for this in the hot hatch segment is the new Civic Type R to me. Also has a 2.0 turbo inline 4 just like the i30 N and weighs roughly the same. Yet the two have different handling characteristics: the i30 N will happily let its tail say hi under braking into a corner, while the civic Type R stays planted. And hell, just look at all the witchcraft they did to the Type R for the aero, only for the engine to still overheat if its too long on the racetrack.

01/17/2018 - 18:32 |
0 | 0
Anonymous
Anonymous

In reply to by Tomislav Celić

Exactly, the hot hatches were made for the B roads fun, not for fast lap times, as if you really want to know whose best for you, you test drive them all instead of looking to the nurburgring lap times

01/17/2018 - 21:57 |
8 | 0
Anonymous
Anonymous

I’d much rather buy a hot hatch developed on British B-roads than a race track in Germany.

Real-world performance cars should be developed in the real world.

01/17/2018 - 15:31 |
34 | 2
Sudip Suresh
Sudip Suresh

people need to learn from this man

01/17/2018 - 15:34 |
0 | 0
CannedRex24
CannedRex24

isnt this the same man that headed the division that made the M4 GTS and the M3 GTS?

cars that were quite literally BUILT FROM the nurburgring?

what the hell is Hyundai paying him to say this?
(not that i disagree, i 100% agree with him)

01/17/2018 - 15:40 |
8 | 0
German Perfectionist
German Perfectionist

Yet the i30 N was developed on and named after said German race track…

01/17/2018 - 15:43 |
132 | 14
Rekord 86
Rekord 86

In reply to by German Perfectionist

Hyundai even has some facilities right at the Nürburgring, too…

01/17/2018 - 16:21 |
14 | 4
Anonymous
Anonymous

In reply to by German Perfectionist

it was developped there to make sure the car was enjoyable to drive everyday with simple aero design and good handling. Now that the car as been made, they just don’t want to invest in redoing everything just to get the best lap time possible. Sure they could simply put someone in the car and ask him to do is best in one day, but it will still be costly to hire him, pay for the full day at the track and everyone around involve

01/17/2018 - 17:30 |
18 | 0
Joel Brennan
Joel Brennan

In reply to by German Perfectionist

That is very different from testing a car for lap times. The entire fundamental goal is different.

01/17/2018 - 17:38 |
52 | 2
CleremyJarkson
CleremyJarkson

In reply to by German Perfectionist

It wasnt named after the Nurburgring, it’s where their headquarters or something are located, I can’t recall the name

01/17/2018 - 18:02 |
2 | 0
Ben Anderson 1
Ben Anderson 1

In reply to by German Perfectionist

The “N” stands for “Namyang”, which is the location of Hyundai’s global R&D centre.

01/17/2018 - 19:33 |
32 | 2
Anonymous
Anonymous

For normal hot hatchbacks and sports cars, yes they are a total waste of time
But for cars built specifically for lap times like the Camaro ZL1 1LE or the AMG GTR there is certainly a reason for them to test cars at the ‘ring

01/17/2018 - 15:43 |
10 | 2

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