RE: Hyundai Veloster Turbo: Spotted
Discussion
I know beauty is in the eye of the beholder but god these have had a serious dose of the ugly stick. It may drive well, (I don't know) and be good value but I could never own one due to the looks alone, I'll put it in the same category as some of the latest Toyota offerings and the new civic in terms of styling.
On the plus side when you are driving it you can't see what it looks like!
On the plus side when you are driving it you can't see what it looks like!
I've got one of these in red for when I'm over in Korea. Unfortunately it's an auto but everything is over there, rare even in the city where they're made (Ulsan). Nicely pointy, the steering's a bit light and the ride is quite hard (although Korean roads can get pretty rough off the main highways). I'd wager they're less hassle than the Sirocco - never had so much as a squeak out of ours. Coincidentally I had an Astra GTC as a hire car yesterday; the VT is better in every respect. I think the turbos all had the full length retractable glass roof which is a great option.
They do indeed have a third door; I think they swapped it over for RHD markets so it remained on the passenger side (unlike the first MINI Clubman).
I've also got one that turns into a robot...
They do indeed have a third door; I think they swapped it over for RHD markets so it remained on the passenger side (unlike the first MINI Clubman).
I've also got one that turns into a robot...
Be interesting to see how the I30N fares, this seems quite lukewarm where the I30N is the full fat Hot Hatch, will the badge put folk off or is the market ready to embrace something Korean, as long as it delivers a proper Hot Hatch experience ?
Personally, I dont think the cachet of German stuff is worth as much these days, they are absolutely everywhere, but a lot of that is the popularity ensuring good residuals and in turn, good residuals providing competitive deals, the Hyundai is a bit cheaper but is it going to be available to a large number of potential customers via methods other than an outright cash purchase ? if a Golf GTI is 300 quid a month and a Hyundai is, how many will go Korean ?
Personally, I dont think the cachet of German stuff is worth as much these days, they are absolutely everywhere, but a lot of that is the popularity ensuring good residuals and in turn, good residuals providing competitive deals, the Hyundai is a bit cheaper but is it going to be available to a large number of potential customers via methods other than an outright cash purchase ? if a Golf GTI is 300 quid a month and a Hyundai is, how many will go Korean ?
J4CKO said:
Be interesting to see how the I30N fares, this seems quite lukewarm where the I30N is the full fat Hot Hatch, will the badge put folk off or is the market ready to embrace something Korean, as long as it delivers a proper Hot Hatch experience ?
Personally, I dont think the cachet of German stuff is worth as much these days, they are absolutely everywhere, but a lot of that is the popularity ensuring good residuals and in turn, good residuals providing competitive deals, the Hyundai is a bit cheaper but is it going to be available to a large number of potential customers via methods other than an outright cash purchase ? if a Golf GTI is 300 quid a month and a Hyundai is, how many will go Korean ?
Agree absolutely about the cache of German metal. There's certainly no prestige to be had from them being rare or unusual - look on autotrader (if we're allowed...) and there are three or four times the amount of Audis for sale compared to KIA or Hyundai. The Germans have done an incredible job so far in shifting volume numbers but keeping brand image and thus residuals high, certainly for cars in the 3-6 year bracket. Having said that, Korean residuals don't seem all that bad these days - used Santa Fes aren't exactly cheap. I suspect the name of the game isn't out-voluming the performance Golfs here though; it's more about the 'N' badge as an alternative to the established (German) performance sub-brands as somewhere to go once they've finished eating Groupe PSA and Ford's lunch. Personally, I dont think the cachet of German stuff is worth as much these days, they are absolutely everywhere, but a lot of that is the popularity ensuring good residuals and in turn, good residuals providing competitive deals, the Hyundai is a bit cheaper but is it going to be available to a large number of potential customers via methods other than an outright cash purchase ? if a Golf GTI is 300 quid a month and a Hyundai is, how many will go Korean ?
As you've probably gathered, I would be one of the people who'd 'go Korean'. Ironically enough the only thing stopping me getting an i30N is my Korean wife who can't drive 'stick' and would much prefer a nice European car like one of those posh Audis thank you very much...
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