Concept cars rarely resemble anything that eventually rolls down a production line, but I hope Hyundai is serious about making something influenced by its i-oniq show car, which will be exhibited at next week’s Geneva Motor Show.

Hyundai uses the term “fluidic sculpture” to describe its current design theme. I’m not sure why, since the i-onic doesn’t look very fluid or sculptural to me, but it’s certainly a muscular design with plenty of visual heft. There also seem to be quite a few other cars peeking through the sheet metal – the bonnet line and lamps are reminiscent of the Nissan 350Z, while the rising crease beneath the doors is very Aston Martin. The broad shoulders seem a little Volvo, and the rear end has me thinking of Audi. Nissan aside, those are all in line with Hyundai’s aim to create a design that “exudes premium qualities”.

Whatever references may or may not be there, it’s intended to be a four-seat sports hatchback based around extended-range electric running gear.

A 1.0-litre, 3-cylinder petrol engine runs a generator, Chevrolet Volt style, to supplement a set of mains-charged lithium-ion batteries. Both feed an 80kW (108bhp) electric motor that does the job of pushing the i-oniq along. Hyundai predicts a battery range of 75miles, with the petrol tank keeping things going for another 360 miles or so. Overall CO2 emissions would come out at 45g/km, the company calculates.

More details will follow at next week’s show.