First, the Namyang district in South Korea, home of Hyundai's Global Research & Development Center where the brand 'N' was founded; second, the over 20 km long Nordschleife northern loop of the Nürburgring racetrack in Germany, home to Hyundai's European Technical Center and where all the 'N' models are tested - and many other brands, too.

In 2012, Hyundai made the decision to gather researchers and engineers at its R&D Center in Namyang to create a new brand focused on developing high-performance vehicles.

[5] In late 2014 Hyundai Motor Company announced that Albert Biermann would be the Executive Vice President and Head of Vehicle Testing and High-Performance Development.

In October of that year, the i30 N Fastback was also unveiled at the Paris Motor Show,[9] which is a five-door coupe version of the i30 N. After the 2019 WRC season where Hyundai Motorsport won the manufacturer's title, a new division, "N Performance Parts", was launched.

[13] This event unveiled the brand's new slogan 'Never just drive' as well as the first high-performance SUV model, the Kona N. Additionally, the new Elantra/Avante/i30 Sedan N based on the 7th generation Elantra was revealed.

Other announcements included the improved NGS of the Veloster N DCT and the use of the Knuckle Integrated Drive Axle (IDA), a technology acquired through WRC that minimizes output loss during acceleration.

[14] In 1992, Rod Millen won the Showroom Stock class of the Pikes Peak International Hill Climb with a Hyundai Scoupe Turbo.

His son Rhys Millen won the 2009 2WD Time Attack and 2012 Unlimited Championship with a Hyundai Genesis Coupe, setting a world record.

This led to the creation of the Hyundai Motorsport (HMSG) branch in Europe, which was responsible for launching the i20 WRC race car at the Geneva Motor Show.

The information obtained from this modified vehicle allowed the durability of the powertrain, suspension, and other key components to be tested prior to the mass production of the first i30 N model.

In addition to all the aerodynamic upgrades, these vehicles use N-exclusive badging, modified engines, custom gearboxes, and variable suspension systems.