Hyundai’s Passocorto Preview Aims for Geneva

However, here is something that came through the pipeline from the good people at Road and Track – a glimpse at Hyundai’s next serious step into the performance market, with a mid-engine sports car with exotic aesthetics.

It’s aggressive as hell and is reminiscent of a Koeniggsegg CCX + Lamborghini Aventador + Toyota FT-1 Concept + Veilside RX-7 that served as Han’s (played by Sung Kang) coffin in Tokyo Drift.

*If that actually spoiled the movie for anyone who’s been “holding off on watching it”… GOOD. You deserve it.*

The ambitious mid-engine coupe is called the PassoCorto (Italian for “short wheelbase”, is sized about the same as an Alfa Romeo 4C, and is proposed to use a tuned version of the 1.6L turbo-four in the Veloster Turbo. The engine will sing to the tune of 268hp (though we’d be happier if they didn’t pussyfoot around and just threw the Genesis 2.0L turbo in).

It’s an interesting prospect, with little real potential to make it past Geneva as a great way to get press and media to clamor at their exhibition booth. But with the Korean car maker’s track record of continual innovation of their product line (which yes, is often based on copying design cues from others), it would be extremely interesting to see how far along this concept goes.

via [Road and Track]