MOTORING 30 <strong>Ashburton</strong> <strong>Courier</strong>, <strong>August</strong> <strong>20</strong>, <strong>20</strong><strong>20</strong> www.ashburtoncourier.co.nz Fun plus in Hyundai’s Velostar BY ROSS KIDDIE Iknow life often means disappointments but it will take me abit of time to get over missing out on adrive of Hyundai’s new i30 Nfastback – ahighperformance car based around its hothatch stablemate. See, the turbocharged 2litre manual was acasualty of the coronavirus Level 4lockdown, I was due to have it within that period but it has since been seconded to duties in other parts of the country. That aside, the other Hyundai models Iwas scheduled into have arrived, and aweek with the latest generation Hyundai Veloster almost made up for not stepping into the i30 N. The Veloster has been around since <strong>20</strong>12, and has just undergone amajor transformation. Saying that, the one element that makes the Veloster stand out from the crowd hasn’t been changed. What appears to be a traditional twodoor coupe is actually athreedoor. Yes, there are two doors on the passenger side and just one on the driver’s side. The concept was first introduced with safety in mind, the rationale being that when children are seated in the rear they can only exit from the footpath side of the vehicle, egress to the road is denied. Bear in mind, too, that the Veloster is only afourseater. Some might say the design of the Veloster is outlandish, I’d say it is bold yet trendy, it is fresh and with an aggressive body and with vivid colours to choose from, the Veloster certainly makes astatement. The evaluation car was finished in amatte gun metal grey, it drew alot of attention during the time it was in my care. The Veloster arrives with two engine options –a2litre naturally aspirated unit that develops 110kW. Or else there is a1.6litre turbocharged option –the 150kW engine that powers several other Hyundai and Kia models. The evaluation car was the latter, and it is an engine I’m quite familiar with, it is no outright powerhouse like the engine in the i30 N, but it is a feisty little unit and stands out for its honesty and fussfree behaviour. Although it must be said there is genuine exhaust The Hyundai Veloster is abeautifullymade car and one which is both fun and exciting. sound, there’s aconstant throb under load and an enticing crackle between gears. When the Veloster first appeared, it was Hyundai’s first fullproduction vehicle with a dual clutch gearbox; that type of transmission is still used, although it now gets seven gears that can be manipulated through steering wheelmounted paddle shifters. In terms of driving, DCT units can be treated much like anormal automatic transmission, the big difference is that in itself it works like amanual but without amanual clutch and, of course, there’s no powerrobbing characteristics of traditional torque converter system. The result is aquick shifting unit that doesn’t load the engine, power is clean, and with astrong torque figure (265Nm) and available low, and all of the way between 1500 to 4500rpm, the Veloster turbo is a quickreacting car which is no slouch against the stopwatch. It will lunge to 100km/h in 7.5sec, which will satisfy those who are happy with moderate performance, but for me the big surprise is the midspeed performance, it will scorch through ahighway overtake (801<strong>20</strong>km/h) in 4.2sec, made possible through solid turbo boost and quickshifting ratios which are ideal for the wide crosssection of our driving styles and journeys. On the subject of figures, the Veloster turbo is rated by Hyundai with a7.1litre per 100km combined cycle fuel usage average. At 100km/h I recorded an instantaneous readout of 5l/100km with the engine working over freely at <strong>20</strong>00rpm. Iguess if you explore the turbo boost frequently it will be hard to match Hyundai’s claim, and with just a50litre fuel tank you need to be mindful fillups may come around quicker than expected. Nevertheless, Ienjoyed the power and strength of that wee engine, it is delightful and provides the fun factor when you feel the need for aquick burst, taking into account that several drive modes allow the driver to choose how the car behaves, from economical to sport. In terms of handling, the Veloster feels sharp up front with definite turnin. Sport specification Michelin tyres (225/40 x18in) have highgrip properties and combined with a fully independent suspension the car feels well attached to the road. The Veloster turbo is only available in one fullyspecced level –Limited. It is loaded with goodies such as full leather, heated and cooled seats, heated steering wheel, headup display, satellite navigation, keyless entry and ignition, and all the other bells and whistles that make up Hyundai’s top level trim spec. It also gets afull safety suite of technologies. Hyundai has had along history of producing twodoor coupes, even though you could argue the Veloster is essentially athreedoor. When Ifirst started writing about cars in 1988, one of the first Idrove was the Scoupe, Hyundai’s first sporty car, that transformed into what Hyundai called simply Coupe around 1996, the Tiburon followed, then in <strong>20</strong>12 the Veloster first landed in New Zealand. That history has served Hyundai well, the Veloster is a beautifullymade car and one which is both fun and exciting. It dares to be different with its styling, but that is part of its appeal, at $52,990 ($45,990 nonturbo), it’s an affordable way to make astatement. Rating Price –Hyundai Veloster, $52,990 Dimensions –Length, 4250mm; width, 1800mm; height, 1409mm Configuration –Fourcylinder,frontwheeldrive,1591cc, 150kW, 265Nm, sevenspeed dual clutchautomatic Performance –0100km/ h, 7.5sec Fuel usage–7.1l/100km Restoration Rust repairs Insurance claims -Your vehicle your choice Deal directly with the owner, Bill Johnson Panel beating and painting on all vehicles, including horse floats, caravans and small boats 2300982 16 -18Cass Street, <strong>Ashburton</strong> l E: johnsons.panelpaint@gmail.com
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