Hyundai Veloster + 2012 Review

Price Guide (recommended price before statutory and delivery charges): $27,990
Options fitted (not included in above price): Metallic paint $375
Crash rating: Five-star (ANCAP)
Fuel: 91 RON ULP
Claimed fuel economy (L/100km): 6.4
CO2 emissions (g/km): 153
Also consider: Citroen DS3 DSport, MINI Clubman

When did 'trendy' and 'cool' become synonyms? Did the two words begin to merge following the death of Steve McQueen? Or was it when some nameless TV exec cancelled 'Happy Days'?

Perhaps it was when Alfa Romeo introduced the Alfasud. Alfa Romeo, previously known for its cool rear-wheel-drive cars, built a front-drive small car in the 1970s and promptly found a ready market for it among the tertiary-educated, wine-quaffing set frequenting inner-suburban cafes on weekends to discuss art, politics and social engineering.

Fast forward 40 years to Hyundai's Veloster. The sporty three-door hatch (the tailgate is a fourth 'door', if you prefer) combines the sportiness and pragmatic design of a car like the Alfasud with radical packaging. Parallels are inevitably drawn to the MINI Clubman, but the Hyundai's 'third' door is located on the kerb side of the car and it can be opened or closed without the front door being opened first. Straight away then, it's safer and more versatile.

For whatever reason, the Veloster recently tested by motoring.com.au attracted more attention from the general public than any other car in recent memory — including Porsches and Maseratis. One lady actually walked into a telephone pole as the Hyundai passed by. [Ed: c'mon Kenny, now you're stretching it!]

Not all the attention received was positive; the car tested really polarised opinion. For those of us who won't ever achieve the ice-cold coolness personified by McQueen and don't aspire to the trendiness of a Johnny Depp, there's always dignity to fall back on... But a light metallic green Veloster will tear up and cast to the four winds the last vestige of one's dignity – especially should one be of a certain age.

Let's start with the console operator at the local service station.

"That's a very nice car you have there," he said with a sincere smile.

Once he was told it was "borrowed", he then said: "I could tell it wasn't yours," which sounds very much like a backhanded compliment.

Too old to be cool? Too conservatively dressed to be trendy?

Later that evening, on the way home from the cinema, the Veloster drew the attention of an attractive young woman sitting in the passenger seat of an F100 Ford with — get this — Classic/Historic registration. Pffffft... Fail.

Anyway, the young woman began laughing when the Veloster drew up alongside. Not sure whether she was laughing at the car, or the middle-aged couple and their two kids squeezed into it. Chances are that she was actually admiring the Veloster, because the driver of the F100 took off like a shot from the traffic lights, to show who was boss.

So just as a 200 Series LandCruiser is out of place in Vaucluse or South Yarra, the Veloster is probably a car that shouldn't be seen any further out of town than Paddington or Prahran. It is 'trendy' and 'cool' for the right sort of buyer — ie: not bogans driving what the wife describes as 'cowboy cars'.

But the Veloster is more than just something that 'chicks dig'. It's clearly a car made for tight and twisty roads as much as the back lanes of inner suburbia. In character, if Mazda built a front-drive version of the MX-5, with a quirky body, it would possibly end up looking much like the Veloster.

The Hyundai is a firm-riding car that musters very strong grip in corners and provides useful feedback through the wheel. While it might not stack up on the track [Ed; as we found when we drove it in company of the Toyota 86 – check out our upcoming feature], there are no handling nasties to be encountered on the road. Indeed, the Veloster seems to lap up higher cornering loads, to deliver substantive driving enjoyment.

It will spin the inside wheel in a tight, uphill hairpin, but doesn't deviate from the chosen line. In fact, the Veloster's chassis could readily handle more power — which it will get, in the form of the Turbo model.

For the moment, however, engine output is where the Veloster disappoints. The 1.6-litre four-cylinder, which is also direct-injected, develops 103kW and 166Nm, but peak torque occurs at 4850rpm. That's not all there is to the story though. While the Veloster feels slightly friskier at engine speeds above 3500rpm, it's not altogether bereft of torque at lower speeds, for just trickling along in traffic. By dialling up 3000rpm the Veloster will launch quickly and cleanly.

It's not an engine that sounds as sporty as the engine in the atmo MINI Cooper, but it's very refined and emits a light burble at lower speeds. By the time the car was handed back to Hyundai, according to the Veloster's trip computer, its average fuel consumption figure was 8.3L/100km. Make allowances for traffic being lighter during the school holidays, but that's still a realistically good figure.

The six-speed manual transmission, which provides excellent shift quality — light, positive and well matched to the clutch action — is geared down and closely spaced for acceleration. At 100km/h the tacho is showing around 2500rpm in sixth, so it's a top gear that's useful for more than just autobahn cruising.

Despite working a little harder at freeway speeds, the Veloster's engine is inaudible. Tyres and wind noise contribute equal parts to the ambient noise when cruising, but the tyres are much noisier on country roads. On those self-same country roads, at night, the Veloster's high beam was not all that much better than the headlights set to low beam.

Inside, the Veloster is all the things we've come to expect of a Hyundai. The instrument binnacle is uncluttered, offering an open view through the wheel, and the information displayed is easy to comprehend at a glance. All the heating and audio/infotainment switchgear follow Hyundai's usual conventions and are readily understood from five minutes into the first drive. The thick roof pillars at the rear of the car make backing more of a chore, but at least there's a reversing camera to assist, and the display, in the centre console, is nice and large  — not a tiny little thing in the left of the mirror for once.

Unlike some companies, Hyundai has placed the handbrake right next to the driver's left thigh — where it should be — and the indicator stalk is on the right of the steering column too. While the seats are supportive and adjustable to meet the needs of most physiques, the cushioning is firm and some drivers will likely find them less than completely comfortable.

Thanks to a spacesaver spare, the Veloster's boot space is deep and useful, but the loading lip is high for lifting bags of groceries into the car — if that's a consideration.

Climbing into the rear seat requires adults of average height or taller to take care. The roofline over the rear door is low and adjusting the front seats for adult-style legroom will leave precious little knee room in the rear. It's barely adequate, although pre-teen kids will fit in well enough. Similarly, the headroom in the rear is marginal for adults.

Priced as it is the Veloster + is well equipped and well finished. Our one minor concern was a persistent tinny rattle from the boot over bumpier road surfaces. And forcing the gear shift lever through the gate was often accompanied by an obvious clunk — less a build quality issue and more a design or engineering flaw.

On the whole, however, the Veloster is one of the best efforts yet to amalgamate Hyundai's traditional traits of frugal running costs and affordable comfort with a, let's call it an 'interesting', visual presence.

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