It’s a five-door liftback that plays the role of the sedan in the i30 lineup
Hyundai has pulled the wraps off the third body style of its C-segment family, the i30 Fastback.
Looking almost like any other i30 from the front (albeit with a slightly flatter Cascading Grille), the new model features a 25-mm lower, sloping roofline compared to the i30 hatch, flowing through a fastback-style C-pillar and ending in an arched spoiler line integrated to the body shell. As you can imagine, changes to the interior are minimal.
Pretentiously described by Hyundai as a "five-door coupé," the i30 Fastback is, in fact, a five-door liftback with a lowered chassis (by 5 mm) and a 15-percent stiffer suspension compared to the i30 five-door hatch. Naturally, that results in more agile driving characteristics – after all, as with the i30 N, the i30 Fastback was tested and refined at the Nürburgring too.
It's not as powerful as its N-developed sibling, however, with the engine lineup being similar to that in the i30 hatch. At launch, the range will include a 1.0-liter T-GDI turbocharged three-cylinder gasoline unit with 120 hp and a 1.4-liter T-GDI turbocharged four-cylinder gasoline engine with 140 hp.
The smaller engine is linked exclusively to a six-speed manual transmission, while the four-cylinder offers the choice of the six-speed manual and a seven-speed dual clutch transmission.
Later on, Hyundai will also add a new 1.6-liter four-cylinder turbodiesel available in two states of tune (110 hp and 136 hp), both available with either the six-speed manual or the seven-speed dual clutch automatic.
As for technologies, the i30 Fastback will offer the same active safety features as the i30 hatch, i30 Tourer, and i30 N, including standard Autonomous Emergency Braking, Driver Attention Alert, High Beam Assist and Lane Keeping Assist System.
The Hyundai i30 Fastback will be available across Europe in early 2018.