Hyundai's mid-engined Veloster continues its years of development with the debut of the new RM19 Racing Midship Sports Car Prototype at the Los Angeles Auto Show. This time the company is hinting at a possible production version that would be the halo vehicle for the company's N performance division.

Gallery: Hyundai RM19

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The RM19 packs a mid-mounted 2.0-liter turbocharged four-cylinder out of a TCR-class race car and produces 390 horsepower (291 kilowatts). A motorsport-spec, six-speed sequential gearbox sends power to the rear wheels. Hyundai estimates that the sprint to 60 miles per hour (96 kilometers per hour) takes less than four seconds, and the top speed is in excess of 155 mph (250 kph). The automaker also notes the possibility of building a fully electric version in the future.

The RM19 looks race-ready with a big front splitter and large vent in the hood. Huge fender extensions give the car an aggressive stance. The rear is where things are really interesting because of the extra vents in place of the windows for directing air to the mid-mounted engine. A huge wing attaches to the rear deck, and there's a gargantuan diffuser beneath it.

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The interior mostly comes straight out of the Veloster. The tweaks include thick-bolstered sport seats and a racing steering wheel. Rather than rear seats, a bulkhead separates the cabin from the mid-mounted engine.

Hyundai started developing these mid-engine performance vehicle prototypes in 2012 and showed off the work with the RM14, RM15, and RM16 concepts. "Throughout the evolution of the RM series, our engineers have gained tremendous hands-on knowledge of high-performance vehicle dynamics with various front-to-rear weight distributions coupled with the effects of a fully-weighted, high-strength body structure on vehicle performance," Albert Biermann, Hyundai's head of global research and development said in the announcement of the RM19 debut.

Beyond vague hints at a production version, Hyundai isn't offering much info about the RM19's future. The existing Veloster N is already Road & Track's 2019 Performance Car of the Year, so an even hotter Veloster could be great.