Hyundai has been working on hydrogen power for several years, but now they are doing it with some style and innovation with the Hyundai N Vision 74 Concept.
This Hyundai concept car is a rolling laboratory that feels like it could have easily been created and used by Doctor Frankenstein. The greatest difference is that, in this case, the lab is a car that looks amazing and has all the right parts in all the right places. The N Vision 74 shows what testing and guessing can do in a car that has similar proportions to the DeLorean DMC-12, which was famously turned into a time machine in the Back to the Future movies.
The internet went buzzing
The hydrogen fuel-cell and electric hybrid sports car concept was an instant hit when it first appeared. It took the internet by storm and sent the automotive world buzzing with possibilities. This incredible Hyundai shows the brand’s commitment to hydrogen power through the combination of a 670-horsepower setup and an incredibly sporty build. The first look of this car makes it appear to be an incredibly advanced drift car that could deliver some amazing angles on any track.
Once it hit the track, the N Vision 74 proved it had the desired superstar presence and the ability to tear things up with its smoking rear tires. A high-performance hydrogen car is certainly an exciting and enticing creation for the future.
Concept only
The new Hyundai N Vision 74 Concept is interesting enough that many have asked about its production plans. Unfortunately, this car will never be put into production; at least, that’s the word out of Hyundai right now. The drivable version was created to help the brand learn more about what the company is looking for in terms of a “virtual differential.” This sounds like a crazy creation, but it isn’t. There are two separate 335-horsepower motors with no physical connection between them. These two motors power the rear wheels, which means each could turn at different rates if things go badly or extremely well.
Wait, it’s not really a Hyundai?
The platform and underpinnings of this new concept vehicle aren’t actually from Hyundai. Instead, it’s a Kia Stinger underneath, which makes a lot of sense. The Kia-Hyundai connection is as strong as you get in the automotive world, which means it shouldn’t be a shock that this car has these underpinnings.
Hyundai built four prototypes to give the concept car plenty of power. These cars have an 85-kW fuel-cell stack from the hydrogen-powered Hyundai Nexo. They also have a high-performance 62.4-kWh battery pack to give the cars the hydrogen support desired. The power stack delivers 114 horsepower, which means the hydrogen system isn’t providing power directly to the high-output electric motors. Instead, this system acts as an onboard charger to extend the driving range. When utilizing the entire combination, this car can return nearly 370 miles of driving range from a full charge and a full tank of liquid hydrogen.
The chicken and the egg
Did the concept car come before the powertrains were built, or vice versa? It turns out the choice to turn one of the four prototypes into the Hyundai N Vision 74 Concept car came later, once the prototypes were complete. Building this car took a deep dive into the brand’s earliest history to find models that would work well as the right car to make the immediate impact that was achieved with this new concept car.
The N Vision 74 took inspiration from the 1970s when Hyundai commissioned Giorgetto Giugiaro to create a concept version of the Pony hatchback. The Hyundai Pony was the company’s first independently produced car, and the results of the added Italian style gave Hyundai a wedgy form that became one of the most famous designs from the era.
The car that never was
The Hyundai Pony Coupe never made it to production, which meant Giugiaro’s designs were wasted at the time. Today, Hyundai brings the style to our view with the N Vision 74 concept.
Hyundai is committed to building hydrogen vehicles and could be on the ground floor of expanding the availability of this fuel and making it more accessible. It would be easier to create a traditional electric vehicle, but the new Hyundai N Vision 74 Concept could serve as the testing lab for several future builds that might become the innovations that push driving forward with combined powertrains, much like traditional hybrids utilize electric motors and gas-powered engines.
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