2025 Hyundai i20 N facelift caught on camera, confirmed for Australia this year

The facelifted 2025 Hyundai i20 N hot hatch has been spied in Europe – in right-hand drive for Australia – ahead of showroom arrivals confirmed for the final months of this year, pending any delays.

The pint-sized i20 N has been dropped in Europe – where two-thirds of examples are sold – in favour of new electric cars, but will remain on sale in Australia for the foreseeable future.

It will do so with a facelift, spotted testing for the first time in Turkey – where it is built – in recent days with mild styling changes compared to the model in Australian showrooms since late 2021.

The prototype spied in photos posted to Instagram by Nadir Araçlar is right-hand drive – likely for Australia or New Zealand, among the few remaining right-hand-drive markets that sell the i20 N.

Changes for the facelift are minimal, with restyled 18-inch machined alloy wheels, and a new grille pattern which appears to ditch the current car's chequered-flag motif.

The Hyundai badges are now black, but it's not clear if they will make production, or are specific to this prototype.

Hyundai Australia has confirmed the i20 N for local showrooms in the fourth quarter of 2024 (October to December), shortly after a similar visual update for the also no-longer-for-Europe i30 N hot hatch, due between July and September.

As confirmed by executives 18 months ago, there will be no changes to the mechanical package of the Hyundai i20 N for the facelift – with a 150kW/275Nm 1.6-litre turbo four-cylinder engine, six-speed manual transmission and front-wheel drive.

It makes little sense to introduce major upgrades to the i20 N when it is sold in so few countries, demand exceeds supply, and there are fewer competitors than ever.

Australia is likely to become the single largest market for the car once it is cut from European showrooms.

Without Europe in the mix – where all new Hyundai N performance cars will be electric – it looks increasingly unlikely there will be another i20 N, based on the next-generation, petrol-powered i20 expected in 2026.