Hyundai Veloster 2012 Review

Hyundai has taken its range in a new direction with the Veloster. If the admiring looks and comments we received during our week at the wheel are any indication of admiration, then Veloster is set to be a sales success. All the more so when interested parties realise it has a starting price of only $23,990.

Veloster is a coupe on the driver's side and a hatch on the other. Quirky, yes. Practical: absolutely. The bane of owning a coupe has always been getting passengers in and out of the rear seats. This simple solution overcomes this. The forward hinged rear door on Veloster has the handle cleverly integrated into the door so that it is deliberately difficult to spot.

Part of Veloster's visual appeal is the diving roof line and expansive hatch lid. This gives the car its sporting lines. The front is aggressive and distinctive and the rear end is also impressive.  There are two Veloster models, Veloster and Veloster +.

ENGINE AND MECHANICAL

At this stage Veloster is conservative under the bonnet. The 1.6-litre petrol direct injection has peak power of 103 kW at 6300 rpm and 166 Nm of torque at 4850 rpm. It redlines at a sporting 6700 rpm. There are two transmissions, a six-speed manual (as tested) and a six-speed dual clutch gearbox (DCT) developed by Hyundai.

Hyundai claims combined consumption of 6.4 litres per 100 km. We managed 7.4, but that including a lot of city driving and performance testing. The good news is that Veloster is to get a turbocharged engine later in the year.

SAFETY

Hyundai Veloster has a 5-Star ANCAP rating. Six airbags, stability control, stability management, traction control, ABS brakes and EBD with brake assist. Veloster comes standard with a reversing camera in the tailgate handle with images relayed to the 7-inch centre console LCD screen. Veloster also comes with rear park assist with sensors built into the rear bumper.

DESIGN AND EQUIPMENT

The dashboard is all curves and lights, yet still manages to be a user-friendly. Our test car was the Veloster + so we had leather sports seats with lumbar support, panoramic glass roof and what Hyundai calls its supervision instrument cluster. This has blue back-lighting and the centre display has a blue/white matrix providing trip information.

While the car is stationary passengers can view movies on the 7-inch screen. The audio system provides MP3, CD and AM/FM radio via four speakers, a centre speaker, two tweeters and a subwoofer, all powered by an external amplifier.

As well as USB and Auxiliary inputs, there’s connectivity with iPod and Bluetooth including audio streaming on both models. The steering wheel has an array of remote controls for audio, telephone and cruise control. There are plenty of storage bins, cup holders and bottle holders in the front doors.

DRIVING

The front seats are supportive and comfortable as are the two rear seats. Obviously access to the rear seats is easy via the kerbside second door, but it's also easy to get in or out via the driver's side door with the front seat electrically moving forward.

Many will find the rear seats a little claustrophobic thanks to the diving roof line and high side windows. In fact the passengers' heads are below the top of the vast hatch window and are likely to be cooked in the sun. The rear seats have a 60/40 split and fold to create a good size luggage area of 440 litres.

Veloster has a solid feel about it from the moment you close the driver's door. Our test car was fitted with the six-speed manual shifter which was smooth and direct, but not close gated like some more expensive sports cars.

Our first impression was that the car is under-powered. It’s certainly not rapid off the line and seems highly geared. Yet, when we took it for a spin through some of our favourite winding roads in the Gold Coast hinterland, Veloster was more at home and lived up to its looks.

Peak torque is not reached until 4850 rpm so acceleration is a little tardy. The engine revs out to a tad over 6500 rpm. So holding on to the gears above 3500 rpm Veloster actually delivers plenty of punch, particularly if you are using second, third and fourth gears on winding country roads.

There is no hill-start on the manual version, so poor drivers may have to opt for the automatic, or get some more driving lessons. Hyundai Veloster handles really well, flattening out corners with little body roll. The engineers have got the suspension sorted pretty well.

The interior rear view is impeded by the design of the hatch so the adjustment of the rear view mirror is important to make the most of what is available. Road noise intrusion into the cabin is not too bad, but if you’re going to be spending a lot of time cruising on coarse-chip back country roads it might be worthwhile including these in your own pre-purchase test drive.

VERDICT

From the drivers' perspective there’s not a lot to dislike. Many people will buy Veloster on looks alone, but there is so much more to this car. We can't wait to drive the turbo version later in the year...

MODEL RANGE

• Veloster 1.6-litre three-door coupe: $23,990 (manual), $25,990 (automatic)
• Veloster + 1.6-litre three-door coupe: $27,990 (manual), $29,990 (automatic)
• Note: These prices do not include government or dealer delivery charges. Contact your local Hyundai dealer for driveaway prices.