Hyundai i20 N Line: Tuned for the twisties
This i20 N Line is the closest thing to the full-blown i20 N that India never got
This i20 has a stage 1 tune from Code 6. Harsh's car now makes 145bhp and 250Nm at the crank — Shot by Rohit G Mane for Evo India
“It’s just a cosmetic upgrade.” That’s what we’ve always heard about the Hyundai i20 N Line. But what if someone took the N Line and gave it the go to back the show? Maybe even go one better than the i20 N itself? You’re looking at the closest to what could have been, had Hyundai gone all-in with their N Line cars for India.
Harshvardhan is a car guy. One of those you can talk cars with, debate over project builds, and mutually scoff at all the riced-out rides on our roads. And now, he’s gone and built a project car of his own. The brief was simple: start with a hatch that looks sharp, packs a punch, handles well and is on sale today. The answer was obvious – the Hyundai i20 N Line.
After putting a few kilometres on the odo to get familiar with the car, the modification journey began. First up, a stage 1 tune from Code 6. Harsh has always leaned more towards go than show and the tune bumped power up by 27bhp and 78Nm. The motor now makes 145bhp and 250Nm at the crank. There’s also a Wind Booster throttle controller that sharpens pedal response depending on which mode you’re in – a small addition that makes a noticeable difference in the daily drive. Under the bonnet, things get even more interesting. You’ll find a custom full-system cat-back exhaust, a BMC DIA (Direct Intake Airsystem), and a Turbosmart blow-off valve. It makes all the right noises and backs them up with real performance.
Harsh's i20 N Line makes all the right noises aided by a custom full-system cat-back exhaust, a BMC DIA (Direct Intake Airsystem), and a Turbosmart blow-off valve — Shot by Rohit G Mane for Evo India
On the outside, the visual mods are tasteful and well judged – no over-the-top cosplay here. The car rides on bronze-coloured JDM-spec 17-inch wheels from Stance, wrapped in sticky Michelin rubber. To ensure that braking confidence matches the added poke, there’s upgraded Brembo brake pads and HEL braided brake lines. The car also sits 30mm lower on Cobra springs and coils, giving it a more purposeful stance and better handling. The stock white paint has made way for a matte steel grey wrap, and the stock red accents have been replaced with cyan. The DRLs are now multi-colour LEDs with different modes and at the rear there’s a secondary spoiler stacked on top of the factory unit, plus a diffuser with cyan accents, and an F1-inspired brake light. It’s subtle enough to fly under the radar, but sharp enough to catch the eye of anyone who knows what they’re looking at.
Despite the long mod list, the car isn’t a cop magnet – and that’s very intentional. Harsh wanted a quick daily, not a rolling NFS Underground cut-scene. And the interiors reflect that thought too. The ambient lighting is tasteful, and the seats have been reupholstered in Alcantara. The seats now resemble those on the full-blown Hyundai i20 N. He’s also replaced the factory TPMS with a more accurate setup from Blaupunkt, which displays live pressures on a dash-mounted screen. Instead of clunky aftermarket boost gauges, there’s a sleek Lufi XF Revolution OBD gauge. It plugs directly into the car’s OBD port and shows a whole range of data – temperatures, pressures, back-pressure, oil levels, GPS speed and more. It’s got a modern interface, endless customisation and genuinely feels like a factory-fit digital upgrade. But the pièce de résistance? The forged carbonfibre steering wheel. It’s the single biggest upgrade to the cabin’s look and feel.
After running through the upgrades and modifications the next step was to experience it all. A rainy day over the roads going up to Lavasa on the outskirts of Pune is always a true test of a car’s capabilities, complete with tackling big craters and puddles of water on the shortcuts leading up to the main event. Even though it was a rainy day there was plenty of grip; the car sat low, drove like it was on rails and the steering felt direct. It was immediately apparent that the car had a lot to give. No need to brake for the faster corners, just downshift using the aluminium paddles and let the engine braking do the work. It was all like ballet and I did the dance for the 20 minutes it takes to drive up the hills leading to Lavasa.
Even on a rainy day enroute Lavasa, the grip levels were impressively high; a direct steering feel further elevated the driving experience — Shot by Rohit G Mane for Evo India
Every mod, every tweak on this i20 N Line has been added with a clear purpose, and that clarity shines through when you’re behind the ’wheel. It still looks like something you could drive to work without raising eyebrows, but underneath, it’s sharper, quicker and far more engaging than stock. It’s a build that balances fun with function – a car that can cruise through city traffic on weekdays and carve up corners on the weekend. And even though this i20 N Line might not wear an official N badge, it truly delivers the kind of driving experience that badge was built to represent.
