NIGHT TAPE — i30 N Archive 2020

ARCHIVE NOTE READ BEFORE PLAYBACK

Born in Namyang.
Honed at Nürburgring.

275 PS from a 2.0L turbo four. Electronic limited-slip differential. Adaptive dampers with three modes. Developed under Albert Biermann, ex-BMW M, motorsport-derived from the Nürburgring.

Stock spec, factory-shipped. The performance pack adds the diff, the bigger brakes, the 19" alloys, and the variable exhaust.

This specific car has done it all — in the dry, in the wet, and everything in between. Set up for actual track use and weekend cruising. Every tape on the shelf below was shot with it.

Wear, tyre shoulder, brake-dust patterning, and the modifications on TAPE 03 all reflect that. The list is short and deliberate.

MAX POWER

275

PS

@ 6,000 RPM

MAX TORQUE

378

NM

@ 2,100 – 4,700 RPM

TOP SPEED

250

KM/H

Electronically limited

DISPLACEMENT

1998

CC

Inline 4 · T-GDi — turbo, direct injection

TRANSMISSION

6-spd Manual

Rev-matching · short-throw lever

DIFFERENTIAL

Electronic LSD

Two modes · torque vectoring

STEERING

R-MDPS

Rack-mounted electric power steering · three modes

THE SHELF INDEX · 12 CASSETTES

Pick a tape, press play.

Every cassette is one chapter of the seven years. Street first, then the border, then the circuit.

SHELF A · ONE CAR · 2020–2026 · N MODE THROUGHOUT

TAPE 01 — STREETS OF SG ’20

TAPE 01 SP 2020.03.15 – 2020.03.16

Before the track,
there was the city.

Singapore, March 2020. A long weekend with a borrowed photographer, a quiet CBD, and a working container terminal. The car had less than 5,000 km on it.

i30 N at Marina Bay circuit's main straight, Singapore, with Gardens by the Bay in the background — Marina Bay · Singapore1.2820° N · March 2020

Front-on through the Singapore CBD canyon — Singapore CBDMar 2020 · Day

Front three-quarter low between CBD towers — Singapore CBDMar 2020

Rear walk-away through the CBD canyon, twin tips visible — Singapore CBDMar 2020

Container Terminal · Tanjong Pagar Port1.2589° N · 2020

Front three-quarter against an industrial steel-frame structure — Tanjong Pagar PortMar 2020

Tanjong Pagar PortMar 2020

Front three-quarter outside 71 Robinson Road, Singapore CBD — 71 Robinson Road · CBD1.2783° N · 2020

Singapore CBD alternate angle — SingaporeMar 2020 · Day

Rear under red service-bay strip lights, Millenia Tower carpark — Millenia Tower B2Carpark · Red glow

Detailing day at New Age Polish — SingaporeDetailing day

TAPE 02 — THREE QUARTERS

TAPE 02 SP FRONT / SIDE / REAR

Freeze-frame, walk around it.

Three paused frames, one per angle. The camera does the walking.

FRONT

A wide mesh N grille and angular DRLs.

Aftermarket lip splitter with a flow profile borrowed from the i30 N TCR. Side canards balance the front end above 100 km/h. The signature red accent line runs across the lower bumper. Photographed in a Sepang pit garage, overhead fluorescents picking out the shark-fang DRL signature.

Under floodlights · 1/30sFig. 02 · Side

SIDE

19" forged alloys, blurred at speed.

N side skirt with embossed badge, low and flush against the rocker. The C-pillar drop and short rear overhang give the car its planted, rally-adjacent stance. Shot at 1/30s under floodlights — the grandstand reduced to streaks of light.

REAR

Twin oversized exhausts. Triangular brake light. Diffuser with red accent.

The roof spoiler is functional above ~130 km/h, measurable downforce on the rear axle. The triangular high-mount brake light is the model's signature. Diffuser insert painted to match the front lip; everything matches. Photographed on the Marina Bay Street Circuit straight, where the Singapore Grand Prix runs every year.

TAPE 03 — THE BUILD

TAPE 03 SP SHOT LOG · 8 ENTRIES

What else is in it.

Stock spec is documented everywhere. This list is the delta.

AERO·01

Flow-design splitters

Front lip, side skirts, rear diffuser.

AERO·02

Flow-design canards

Front-axle balance above 100 km/h, or maybe it just looks better.

WHEELS·03

SSR GTX04 19"

Lighter than OE by ~1.4 kg per corner.

TYRES·04

Track-focused tyres

200 treadwear Bridgestone RE71RS, soft, track-biased rubber.

BRAKES·05

Paragon big brake kit

355mm discs with Winmax R7 pads. Brake feel that survives consecutive flying laps.

SUSPENSION·06

Neotech coilovers + Whiteline sways

Adjustable height and damping. Front and rear anti-roll bars to match. SPL spherical bearings replace the compliant rubber.

COOLING·07

Airtec intercooler package

Larger core, silicone hoses, alloy expansion tank. Resists heat-soak across back-to-back sessions.

INTERIOR·08

Recaro front buckets

OE rails. Harnesses optional.

SSR GTX04 with Paragon big brakes — WheelsSSR GTX04 · Paragon BBK

Recaro Pole Position, red 4-point harness, Performance Blue gear knob — SeatRecaro + 4-point harness

Steering wheel with N buttons lit blue, dash and instrument cluster — CockpitN buttons · instrument cluster

Rear Neotech coilover and Paragon big brake, in the wheel well — SuspensionNeotech coilover · Paragon brake

Twin exhausts and red diffuser accent — ExhaustTwin tips · diffuser

6-speed manual gear knob with blue stitching — Shifter6-speed manual

TAPE 04 — JB CONVOYS

TAPE 04 SP CAUSEWAY NORTH · 2024–2026

Cross the border
before 7am.

The occasional routine: cross the border before 7am for a breakfast run. Fuel up on the Singapore side, shophouses, fast switchbacks and jungle on the other.

Roadside lineup with a Swift and a black i30 N, Johor jungle backdrop — JohorConvoy roadside

Front detail at dusk, Malaysian suburb backdrop — JohorApr 2026 · Dusk

Side panning through Johor shophouses on the convoy north — JohorApr 2026 · Day

Front three-quarter at a Caltex petrol station, Malaysia — JohorApr 2026 · Dusk

Shell V-Power fuel stop before crossing the Causeway — SingaporePre-trip · Fuel up

White i30 N parked under a Shell V-Power canopy at dusk — Shell · Pasir Gudang Highway1.4710° N · 2024

TAPES 05–09 — SEPANG

SESSION TAPES SP 2022–2026

Sepang.
Five years.

Sepang International Circuit · 5.543 km · 15 turns · run clockwise. Three hours from home if the border gods are kind. Five if they're not.

TAPE 05 — MAY ’22

TAPE 05 CH.01 / 05 2022 · MAY

First track day.

Stock brakes, OE tyres.

Track action, May 2022 — SepangMay 2022 · Day

Dusk panning shot — #69 MOTUL livery — SepangDusk

TAPE 06 — NOV ’22

TAPE 06 CH.02 / 05 2022 · NOV

Sunset to floodlight.

Two events that month.

Sepang sunset silhouette — SepangNov 2022 · Dusk

Night panning shot under floodlights — SepangNight

Night track action under floodlights — SepangNov 2022 · Night

TAPE 07 — SEP ’24

TAPE 07 CH.03 / 05 2024 · SEP

Big brakes, real glow.

Big brakes and track tyres for more fun.

LYNLEX dusk panning — SepangSep 2024 · Dusk

Side panning past the Malaysia flag mural — SepangSep 2024

Night panning, brake lights glowing — SepangNight

Rear three-quarter under floodlights, brake lights lit — SepangSep 2024 · Night

TAPE 08 — SEP ’25

TAPE 08 CH.04 / 05 2025 · SEP

Wet, but worth it.

Half the day rained on. Best traction lessons of the seven years.

Rear three-quarter at the pit exit, SEPANG signage and grandstand canopy in the background, green light — Sepang · pit exitSep 2025

Wet front three-quarter — SepangSep 2025 · Wet

Wet side panning, spray off the rear tyres — SepangSep 2025 · Wet

Wet rear, brake lights on, spray off the rear tyres — SepangSep 2025 · Wet

Daytime panning — Sepang · main straightSep 2025 · Day

TAPE 09 — APR ’26

TAPE 09 CH.05 / 05 2026 · APR

Track day regulars.

Same circuit, same car, different problems.

Rear three-quarter, exiting the hairpin — Sepang · hairpin exitApr 2026 · Dry

Front three-quarter side panning — SepangApr 2026

Sepang · main straightNo.7 on the door · found on the same tape

Side panning, hill backdrop — Sepang · hill backdropApr 2026 · Day

TAPE 10 — DAMAGE REPORT

TAPE 10 DO NOT RECORD OVER FILED 2026 · APR–AUG

One tape
for the costs.

April 2026: the destroyed Nankang CR-S and the flat it left. Then a Bridgestone let go with some catastrophic collateral damage. Those frames are from right after, and the left side came home wearing the rest of it. The cracked spoke of the SSR GTX04: found post-session. Five years of laps settle their bills somewhere; this is where.

Pit garage detail — Enkei PF05 gunmetal 5-spoke with Paragon big brake, flat tyre — Sepang pit garageApr 2026 · Flat tyre

Destroyed Nankang CR-S tyre — Sepang pit garageApr 2026

Cracked rim spoke discovered post-session — Cracked spokeFound, post-session

Destroyed Bridgestone tyre collapsed around a forged ten-spoke wheel, south pits — South pits, SepangBridgestone, gone

Debeaded tyre hanging off the forged wheel, cords and carcass exposed, south pits — South pits, SepangDown to the cords

South pits, Sepang, front tyre shredded to the cords still fitted, car on a jack right after the blowout to assess the damage — South pits, SepangRight after the blowout

At restUnpainted new bumper already on

Wide side view, damage limited to dents and scraps, sill marked along its length — Both doorsThe full length of it

Improved airflow — Carpark · Front-onAs it came home

Left fender and door scraped, door mirror torn off and wrapped in cling film — Left fenderMirror taped, wires out

Side profileNose stripped

Rear door and fender scrape detail over the rear wheel — Rear doorScrape detail

Sill and rocker panel torn and scraped, close detail — SillTorn at the jack point

TAPE 11 — ROAD TO RECOVERY

TAPE 11 SP MODE RCVD 2026 · AUG

Road
to recovery.

The other half of Tape 10. Bumper on the floor, intercooler bare to the room, a wheel swap, masking tape and primer — then the car back on its feet, out of the booth.

Rear three-quarter in the body shop, front bumper lying in the foreground, plates obscured — Body shopBumper on the floor

Front end stripped, hood up, intercooler and intake bare, headlights loose — Front endStripped bare

Up on the jack, damage assessment in progress — Damage assessment in progressDamage assessment in progress

Left side masked with tape for paint, hood up in the booth — Paint prepMasked up

Front three-quarter out of the booth — panels straight, mirror back on, plate obscured — Out of the boothBack on its feet

INSERT PHOTOCOPY · KEPT WITH THE TAPES

Everything,
on the record.

i30 N · FACTORY SHEET

COPY OF COPY

Engine

FamilyTheta II

ConfigurationInline-4, transverse

Capacity1,998 cc

Cylinders / Valves4 / 16, DOHC

ValvetrainCVVT, dual variable

InductionTurbocharged · intercooled

Bore × Stroke86.0 × 86.0 mm

Compression9.5 : 1

Fuel GradeRON 95 min, RON 98 rec.

Transmission

Type6-spd Manual, rev-matching

Final Drive4.063

1st3.769

6th0.795

Reverse3.700

Chassis

Front SuspensionMacPherson strut · adaptive damping

Rear SuspensionMulti-link · adaptive damping

Front Brakes355 mm ventilated disc

Rear Brakes314 mm solid disc

SteeringR-MDPS · variable ratio

Turning Circle11.6 m

Dimensions & Mass

Length4,340 mm

Width1,795 mm

Height1,447 mm

Wheelbase2,650 mm

Track (F / R)1,559 / 1,575 mm

Kerb Weight1,429 – 1,510 kg

Fuel Tank50 L

Wheels & Tyres

Wheel Spec8.0J × 19, forged alloy

Track Tyre245/35 R19, track-focused semi-slick

▤ SOURCE — HYUNDAI i30 N SPEC SHEET

NIGHTTAPE.

Born in Namyang.Honed at Nürburgring.