Hyundai iMax N: the ultimate drift van

Hyundai’s Australian division has created the Hyundai iMax N, a rear-wheel-drive van built for drifting with the whole family on board.

Hyundai surprised the automotive world in 2018 with the first member of its high-performance N family, the Hyundai i30N we tested a few months ago. This compact sports car has managed to rival the best GTIs in its segment and has shown that the Korean manufacturer can build cars of the highest level.

However, the latest product of the N family has very little to do with the Hyundai i30N. Not in terms of sportiness, which it certainly has, but because the concept belongs to a different world: it is a car made for very large families with a taste for fun. Its name is Hyundai iMax N “Drift Bus”. You may not recognise it, but you might if we tell you that in the Spanish market it is sold as the Hyundai H1.

407 horsepower to turn it into a wolf in sheep’s clothing

Building a high-performance van may sound crazy, but it has already been done more than once, the holy grail of these madcap projects being the brutal Renault Espace F1.

This curious creation comes from Hyundai Australia and aimed to build a high-performance van. To do so, they replaced the 2.5-litre, 170 CV turbodiesel engine with an all-powerful 3.5-litre twin-turbo V6 capable of delivering a staggering 407 CV and 555 Nm of torque. In addition, the strangest yet most thrilling feature of the Hyundai iMax N is that all of its power is sent to the rear wheels through an eight-speed automatic gearbox. All this while keeping its original eight-seat layout, glorious madness.

Hyundai Australia has fitted electronically adjustable dampers and an upgraded braking system. The whole package sits on 19-inch wheels that look very familiar, as they are the same ones fitted to the i30 N.

The Hyundai iMax N was born to drift

A rear-wheel-drive setup with more than 400 CV reveals the manufacturer’s intentions quite clearly, and this van is determined to live up to its nickname: “Drift Bus“. As its name suggests, it was built to spend more time sideways than in a straight line.

To achieve this, the Hyundai iMax N “Drift Bus” is fitted with a mechanical limited-slip differential to make the rear end break loose on this monstrous van. It cannot be easy to control a slide in a 2.2-tonne mass, although given that it goes from 0 to 100 km/h in under 5 seconds, there is no doubt it has more than enough power.

Furthermore, the Korean manufacturer has announced that it has achieved a perfect weight distribution whenever all eight seats are occupied. It therefore seems to be the ultimate weapon if you want to drift with the whole family.

An interior to match its sportiness

The sporty nods also extend to the interior: the front seats are the same as those in the Hyundai i30 N, and the second and third rows have been upholstered to match. Thanks to its size, it also offers a 842-litre boot, so there is no need for a trailer to carry all the spare wheel sets this monster needs to devour at a track day.

Now for the bad news: as expected, the Hyundai iMax N will not go into series production. Instead, it is a demonstration of what the manufacturer is capable of if it sets its mind to it. All that is left for us to do is share the video so you can see its drifting ability and imagine humiliating more than one sports car on the straight of your favourite circuit.