Hyundai's RM15 Concept Is A Burnout-Hungry Drift Monster That Simply Must Get Built

Not too long ago the idea of a Hyundai hot hatch would’ve raised a few eyebrows, but it’s fair to say the South Korean manufacturer has established itself in the mainstream in recent years, making the prospect of a performance car mighty appealing indeed. Also, everyone loves an underdog, so a production version of the RM15 would be an intriguing alternative in the bloated hot hatch market.

What makes this car so appealing is the way it throws the traditional hot hatch formula out of the window. Front-wheel drive, front-engined is ditched in favour of a mid-engined, rear-wheel drive layout. The 2.0-litre T-GDI engine is transversely-mounted behind the two-seater cabin and in front of the rear axle. It makes 296bhp and is mated to a six-speed manual transmission. It’ll tear through 62mph in 4.7sec.

To lower the car’s weight, the RM15 gets an aluminium spaceframe with carbonfibre-reinforced plastic panels to make the overall weight just 1260kg, a saving of 195kg over an all-steel structure. Weight distribution is 43/57, front/rear.

There’s also an integrated subframe front and rear, and a roll cage inspired by Hyundai’s WRC efforts aiding stiffness. The aluminium double-wishbone suspension sits behind 19-inch monoblock forged alloy wheels.

The car went on display last week at the Seoul Motor Show, and we can only hope that Hyundai is secretly planning on making this thing a reality.

Source: Pistonheads.