When Sensible Hyundai Goes Mad, We End Up With Electric Insteroid
Image Credit: Hyundai.
Hyundai's done something rather unexpected. They've taken their city runabout, the Inster – a car that probably blends in with the scenery like a beige cardigan at a beige convention – and seemingly injected it with a shot of pure lunacy. The result? The "Insteroid" concept. Yes, Insteroid. It sounds like something you'd find lurking in the asteroid belt, not something you'd expect from the same folks who brought you sensible family haulers. But here we are.
Hyundai's European design team was apparently told to mix "gaming influences with extensive customization." The end result, judging by the pictures, looks like a Hot Wheels car that's escaped its packaging and gone on a serious bender. We get flared wheel arches that could house a small family of badgers, a rear diffuser that looks like it could generate its own weather system, and a front splitter sharp enough to shave with. And then there's the rear wing. Oh, that wing. It's so enormous, it probably requires its own air traffic control. It's magnificent, in a completely bonkers kind of way.
And the wheels! Oh, the glorious, mismatched wheels! Up front, we've got these rather sensible-looking circle-spoke alloys. Perfectly fine, if a bit… pedestrian. But then you glance at the back, and BAM! Deep-dish wheels that look like they've been borrowed from some sort of low-rider drag racer. Somebody has clearly been watching way too much of Initial D. It's the automotive equivalent of wearing a sensible business suit on top and clown shoes on the bottom. I absolutely love it.
Then there are the air intakes on the side skirts. Good heavens, they're practically the size of Texas! What on earth are they trying to cool? A nuclear reactor? The sheer audacity of it is rather… endearing. According to Eduardo Ramírez, a principal designer at Hyundai, this Insteroid "represents a modern take on the idea of a dream car." Well, Eduardo, my friend, my dreams are usually filled with fast cars and endless stretches of open road, not something that looks like it's about to enter a time warp. But I am warming up to this wild approach.
Image Credit: Hyundai.
The clever chaps at Hyundai are being rather coy about what exactly powers this electric Frankenstein. They've mumbled something about a "Drift Mode" and a "unique" sound signature. Drift Mode, eh? In a car that looks like this, it's about as surprising as finding tea in England. My guess? It's got to be all-wheel drive, likely with a dual-motor setup, something akin to what they've got in their Ioniq 5 N and that rather intriguing RN24 prototype. You need all four wheels clawing at the tarmac to even contemplate taming this beast.
Peeking inside, it's less "luxury lounge" and more "stripped-out racecar." We have a proper roll cage – because apparently, just looking at this thing is a dangerous activity – and sporty bucket seats that probably hug you tighter than your overly enthusiastic aunt at Christmas. There is, however, a rather funky instrument display they're calling the "Message Grid." Apparently, it's supposed to simulate in-game notifications. Right. Because when I'm hurtling around a track, the first thing I want to think about is whether I've unlocked a new achievement.
And because no self-respecting gaming-inspired concept would be complete without some serious audio, Hyundai slapped in a sound system from Beat House that apparently resembles a DJ turntable. I'm picturing some frantic knob-twiddling while trying to navigate a hairpin bend. Marvellous. They've even thought of a reflective race suit with the word "Insteroid" emblazoned across it, just in case you forget what you're driving (highly unlikely). Eco-conscious lunacy? Now there's a combination you don't see every day.
The whole thing is finished off with a lightweight latticework – presumably to shave off every last gram – and a rather fetching soft white exterior with a single, striking orange highlight. Squint your eyes just enough, and you'll see a polar bear that's decided to wear a racing stripe. And apparently, every single component is modifiable. Their tagline? "Built it, play it, break it, repeat." Sounds less like a car and more like a particularly destructive video game.
Now, the million-dollar question: why? Why would Hyundai go to all this trouble for what seems to be a one-off concept? Are they planning to unleash a horde of electric boy racers onto the world? Are they secretly plotting a low-cost electric hot hatch that will terrify the established petrolheads? I sure hope so, but Hyundai themselves are being rather cagey, suggesting that this "sporty show car aims to spark further interest in the Inster production model already on sale in key markets." Key markets, mind you, that pointedly exclude the good old US of A. So, we will just have to gaze longingly from afar at this electric oddity.
So, what to make of it all? Well, it's certainly got my attention. It's loud (in a quiet, electric way), it's brash, it's utterly ridiculous, and in a world of increasingly sensible electric vehicles, that's a rather refreshing change. If Hyundai ever does build something even remotely like this, the roads are about to get a whole lot more… terrifying. And I'll be getting one - just for giggles.
