2012 Hyundai Veloster Ecoshift DCT Review By Steve Purdy

2012 HYUNDAI VELOSTER ECOSHIFT DCT
By Steve Purdy
TheAutoChannel.com
Michigan Bureau

The Hyundai Veloster could hardly have come to my driveway at a better time. A busy week took me into the city (Detroit and environs about an hour away) three times and 4 hours north to Michigan’s Gold Coast to cover the start of The Great Race and the Bay Harbor Concours d’Elegance. The sporty little Veloster is not only great fun to drive it is economical as well.

Veloster is a front-wheel drive, 4-passenger, small, asymmetrical hatchback. By asymmetrical we mean it has just one door on the driver’s side like a coupe, and two doors on the passenger side like a sedan. On the passenger side, though, it looks like a coupe in that the door handle is nearly invisible in the black trim of the c-pillar.

Bold, brash styling makes Veloster a real eye-catcher, as I noticed right away seeing heads turning sharply as I drove down the road. Loosely based on

the successful new Hyundai Elantra platform, Veloster adds a great deal of styling drama with a complex, but smoothly attractive front fascia. Air scoops on each side wrap neatly under the intricate headlight bezel above and around the fog lights and grille below. Body side sculpting integrates with bulging wheel arches complimenting the low roofline sloping to the rear. Bold sculpting accentuates the rear view as well with the lower arched section blacked out making for a squat look. The 18-inch alloy wheels that are part of the Style Package fill the bulging wheel wells, and the rear wheels are pushed exaggeratedly outward for a water-spider stance.

Inside we find an inviting and comfortable place to spend high-quality driving time. Interior design reflects youthful exuberance.
The center stack and steering wheel remind us of Darth Vader and his Stormtroopers with sharp angular shapes. The multitude of controls and information readouts make sense and are easily managed. I especially like the design of the HVAC control with the fan control concentrically inside the temperature control. Front seats have plenty of lateral support but are not too rigid to be comfortable for long drives, as I found out first hand with one four-hour, non-stop run.

Access to the small rear seats is limited. As a person of exceptional girth I could not fit through the small passenger-side rear door and the drivers seat did not flop forward enough for me to enter.
Small passengers would be fine back there but not us big guys. The rear seatbacks fold, of course, for more cargo room but the 15.5 cubic-foot trunk is large enough for much cargo. Because of that stylish blacked-out lower fascia in the rear the lift-over height for the trunk is very high.

Under the hood is an amazingly efficient 1.6-liter, direct-injected, inline four-cylinder engine with dual variable valve timing making a modest 138 horsepower and 123 pound-feet of torque. Rated by the EPA at 29-mpg in the city, 38 on the highway and 29-mpg combined it feels just a bit underpowered with a 0-to-60 time of a leisurely 10.2 seconds. Our test car, though, has the optional slick dual-clutch, six-speed automatic transmission with paddle shifters allowing us to shift ourselves keeping the rpms up for a more satisfying performance driving feel. The available manual would be much more fun.

Our sticker shows a base price of $18,550 which includes the dual-clutch automatic transmission. With the standard six-speed manual base price is just $17,450. We have the Style Package on our tester which adds $2,000 to the price but include an amazing amount of stuff, like: the 18-inch alloy wheels, fancier grille, fog lights, panoramic sun roof, piano black interior accents, premium audio, leatherette seat bolsters and door trim, leather steering wheel and shift knob and alloy pedals. For another $2,000 we have the Tech Package including: backup warning sensors, navigation system with rear-view camera, automatic headlights and push-button start with proximity key entry and a 115-volt outlet. Our sticker shows a bottom line of $22,550 without a destination or preparation charge.

We’ve come to expect an amazing level of content for the price from Hyundai, and the Veloster is an excellent example of that. While less than thrilling in acceleration we found it agile and great fun to drive. I would probably strongly consider buying one if I was in the market for this type vehicle.

Hyundai, as you may recall, pioneered the 10-year 100,000-mile powertrain warrantee and they continue that. The full vehicle warranty is 5-years or 60,000 miles.