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Hyundai i30 N, so probably Veloster N, to get dual-clutch transmission

Hyundai's N Performance division broke out of the starting gate with the i30 N in Australia, fitted exclusively with a six-speed manual transmission. Our first taste of a South Korean blue wonder will be the Veloster N launching later this year, and it also comes with that single gearbox. Hyundai executives told Australian site Car Advice an eight-speed dual-clutch transmission is on the way, but that it won't join the party until late 2019. That means we could see it in the Veloster around then or a little later, and it might portend future developments for the go-fast lineup. The in-house unit will be all-new, not a rework of the seven-speed EcoShift dual-clutch in the Veloster Turbo. It isn't clear whether the seven-speeder can handle the 279 pound-feet of torque in the top-spec N cars when on overboost. According to N Peformance boss Albert Biermann, the new eight-speed, wet-clutch, paddle-shifted gearbox has already been tested in the Kia Sorento diesel, which has 325 lb-ft of torque, and the 380-horsepower RN30 concept car. Ultimately, it will serve vehicles across Hyundai and Kia ranges. Although late introduction of a dual-clutch has been the plan all along, a Hyundai exec admitted "sales limitations" in offering a manual exclusively. Every prime rival offers dual-clutch transmissions. But Hyundai believed that it needed to appeal to the Euro hot-hatch purists first, and we can't blame it. The long delay between launch and DCT availability does raise questions and possibilities, though. Every N model unveiled so far sends all power to the front wheels because, according to Biermann, "Without a high amount of power there is no need to go to all-wheel drive." The introduction of the beefier eight-speed DCT that's ready to deal with at least 380 hp and 325 lb-ft could open up the way to even more powerful N versions and all-wheel drive, which has the potential to create real parity with segment rivals. Car Advice also reported that Hyundai Australia will cover track use in the five-year warranty on the i30 N. We'll wait to see if that line-item makes it to the U.S., but after the dual-clutch woes suffered by competitors like the Volkswagen Golf R and Ford Focus RS, such reassurance could go a long way with buyers. Eventually. Related Video:

Driving the Chevy Corvette Z06 and Porsche 911 Carrera T | Autoblog Podcast #551

On this week's Autoblog Podcast, Editor-in-Chief Greg Migliore is joined by Green Editor John Snyder and Associate Editor Joel Stocksdale. We talk about the wide variety of the cars we've been driving, starting with the Chevrolet Corvette Z06 and Porsche 911 Carrera T. Then we discuss the more powerful 2019 Mazda MX-5 Miata, our long-term Honda Ridgeline and our week with the Hyundai Ioniq PHEV. Finally with Pebble Beach on our minds, we preview the Concours d'Elegance.Autoblog Podcast #551 Get The Podcast iTunes – Subscribe to the Autoblog Podcast in iTunes RSS – Add the Autoblog Podcast feed to your RSS aggregator MP3 – Download the MP3 directly Rundown 2019 Chevrolet Corvette Z06 2018 Porsche 911 Carrera T 2019 Mazda Miata 2018 Honda Ridgeline 2018 Hyundai Ionic Plug-In Hybrid Feedback Email – Podcast@Autoblog.com Review the show on iTunes Related Video:

2019 Hyundai Nexo Quick Spin Review | A better hydrogen fuel cell crossover

PYEONGCHANG, S. Korea — When we travelled to South Korea to test out the new Hyundai Santa Fe, we also got a chance behind the wheel of the new hydrogen-powered Nexo fuel-cell SUV. Hyundai unveiled the Nexo at CES in January as a replacement for the Tucson Fuel Cell, which logged miles and gathered data in 18 countries over the course of its generation. The Nexo is an improvement: It's more efficient, packed with smarter driver assistance technologies and, in our opinion, is more attractive. With a clean an uncluttered exterior, it has a familiar crossover profile, but the front end, is a little more unique with a large grille and uber-thin lighting tucked high under the front of the hood. The rear end offers a lot of blank sheet metal, which looks fetching in white. Aerodynamic vents behind the rear quarter windows open up at the back of the car beneath a sporty-looking spoiler. But it's the clean, sustainable future that its hydrogen fuel may provide that's most important. Which is not to diminish the benefits battery electric cars offer in the interim — and likely for the foreseeable future — but renewable electricity is intermittent. So how does one store massive amounts of clean electricity for long periods to use when it's not readily available? Hydrogen electrolysis – using an electric current to decompose regular water into oxygen and hydrogen. The beautiful thing about the abundant element is that it can be converted back to electricity, either on a grid-scale, or in the fuel cell of a passenger vehicle. (The less beautiful thing is how to store hydrogen safely, but that's another story.) Our first stint inside the vehicle took place in the back seat, where we had plenty of legroom and clean surroundings. The interior was white and grey with matte silver metallic trim. The plastics in the Nexo aren't particularly soft, but somehow Hyundai makes them look premium with fine grains and patterns — one of the tricks Hyundai uses to make its affordable cars feel like higher-end automobiles. We were comfortable back there, especially with rear seat heaters to ward of the winter chill in the Korean mountains as we drove past the Winter Olympics in PyeongChang. When it came our turn to get behind the wheel, we felt right at home in the comfortable driver's seat. The steering wheel was attractive in its two-tone leather, and smooth to the touch.