Hyundai Commissioned a Blacked-Out Widebody Ioniq 5 N That Revives the Spirit of Group B

Few names carry more weight in the digital automotive space than Khyzyl Saleem. We’ve been following the self-taught British artist since his Need for Speed days at EA, and when we sat down with him back in 2021, he told us the radical machines of Group B were his motorsport “holy grail.” Five years later, Hyundai USA handed him the chance to make good on it, commissioning the widebody creation you see here, the Group B-inspired Hyundai Ioniq 5 N.

The concept was modeled entirely in 3ds Max and Corona, and wears its ’80s inspiration proudly. Sharply creased fender boxes swallow fat rubber, a chin-scraping splitter juts out front, and a quartet of auxiliary lamps rides the vented hood like it’s 1985.

The details go deeper than aero, though. Buttresses climb from the rear fenders to the C-pillars in a clear nod to the Lancia Delta S4, while Lexan windows and a visible roll cage finish off the stage-ready credentials.

Saleem actually rendered three flavors of the thing. There’s the big-winged matte black hero car, a bronze homologation-style street version, and a wingless “Birmingham spec” he’s called his personal favorite.

Despite the donor car packing dual motors good for an impressive 641 horsepower, Saleem has something else n mind. He imagines his creation stripped of its batteries entirely, instead swapping in a turbocharged 1.6-liter four from Hyundai’s i20 N Rally1 racer. And get this; his backup plan is actually a rotary power plant.

On paper, that’s definitely a downgrade. The Rally1 unit makes roughly 370 horsepower now that the WRC has ditched hybrids. But, let’s be real for a second, nobody ever loved a Group B car for their numbers, and we’d argue that boosted four banger is actually a better choice here.

And a rallying Hyundai isn’t as far-fetched as it might sound. The brand has been a WRC mainstay since 2000, its RN24 rolling lab already stuffs Ioniq 5 N hardware into a rally-bred chassis, and this render follows last month’s Baja-themed Santa Fe in an ongoing Hyundai USA collaboration.

Existing entirely in pixels, the Group B Ioniq 5 N carries no price tag and never will. You can see the full set over on Saleem’s Instagram, where Hyundai USA has been polling followers on which model he should tackle next.

Khyzyl Saleem x Hyundai Ioniq 5 N “Group B” Concept

Commissioned by Hyundai USA, digital artist Khyzyl Saleem reimagines the 641-hp Ioniq 5 N as a widebody Group B rally weapon that swaps its batteries for a midship WRC turbo four.