Hyundai’s high performance ‘N’ sub-brand is coming to this year’s Nurburgring 24h race with three very interesting contenders. We’re familiar with a couple of them, including the N-spiced Veloster and the Hyundai i30 Turbo 1.6. But there is a new prototype 2.0 liter version of the Turbo we’re looking forward to seeing in action.

The Hyundai i30 Turbo 1.6 is coming to the Green Hell to defend its 2015 class win, while the 2.0 liter Turbo prototype is there mainly as part of its development program. The car boasts a newly-developed engine, enhanced transmission, suspension, dampers, wheels, steering, wider fenders and, in the racing version, the obligatory safety features in motor racing.

The Nurburgring 24h is an important part of Hyundai i30 Turbo prototype development as it amounts to 4,250 km of extremely grueling driving under unforgiving circumstances. If the car manages to pass this test with flying colors, it’ll have no problem taking on its hot hatch rivals out in the real world.

“This Nurburgring 24h race provides the ideal test bed for our motorsport-inspired N sub-brand development and a key part of our ‘born at Namyang, honed at Nürburgring’ performance-car ethos. The technological inspiration and experience gained from this extreme testing will accelerate our development of high-performance, fun-to-drive N models,” said Albert Biermann, Hyundai Motor Head of Vehicle Test and High Performance Development.