The car manufacturer announced this week that the Hyundai i20 N Rally2 Step2 made its debut at the Rallye du Var in France last weekend. Kris Meeke, who competed in the Portuguese rally series this year with Hyundai’s Rally2 car, drove the updated Hyundai as the zero car.
The car in question is Hyundai’s current Rally2 model with upgraded features. According to the Korean manufacturer, the car has been tested in various conditions across Europe for several months this year. Hyundai stated that Meeke was able to match leading times and even set stage-best times in the French asphalt series around St. Tropez.
The car features revamped front and rear suspension compared to the previous version of Hyundai’s Rally2 car. The engine and turbocharger have also been upgraded, and the gearbox ratios have been improved. According to Hyundai, this is the largest update ever made to the brand’s Rally2 car.
The new Hyundai Rally2 car is scheduled for homologation in January 2025, making it competition-ready at the start of the year. The testing programme has been carried out by WRC team regulars Andreas Mikkelsen and Dani Sordo, as well as European champion Hayden Paddon, French asphalt specialist Eric Camilli, and Slovenian driver Rok Turk.
“The Hyundai i20 N Rally2 Step2 is the single largest upgrade we have delivered for the car since it debuted in 2021. Naturally, with such a large package of new developments there is some pressure to get it right,” Hyundai Motorsport Customer Racing Manager Benoit Nogier said.
“Hearing Kris Meeke’s positive feedback after running with the Step2 package in Rallye du Var shows we have done that. He confirmed that the car is a step forward in every major area we have targeted with the Jokers available to us and showed this on the stages with his times compared to the regulars of the French Tarmac Rally Championship.”
M-Sport Ford is also developing a new car for the Rally2 category. Earlier this year, parent company Ford discontinued the production of the Ford Fiesta, so the British private team hopes to begin producing Rally2 cars based on the Puma model. M-Sport already manufactures the Puma Rally1 cars used in the top tier of the World Rally Championship.
However, the project depends on whether the FIA (International Automobile Federation) makes changes to the Rally2 regulations.
“A Ford Puma Rally2 is our target. As it stands [as a production car] the height and weight of the car would be prohibitive for Rally2. The only way this can work is with a Rally1 style tubular chassis,” M-Sport team principal Richard Millener told DirtFish.