In this series of blog posts, we already examined many cars to see if they’re sports cars or not. Today we look at the Hyundai Veloster and put this car to the test to see if it’s best classified as a sports car or something else. However, let’s start with a quick answer:
Both the Hyundai Veloster and Veloster N are not sports cars but sport compacts. The turbocharged Veloster and the N both have enough power to be classified as sports cars. Also, the Veloster has an aerodynamic styling and 2-doors. However, the Veloster is not a sports car because it’s a hatchback and has front-wheel drive.
However, that certainly doesn’t tell the whole story. Below we’ll first look into the power this car brings to the table compared to the weight that it carries. Then, we’ll discuss the car’s design, and we found out if this is sports car-like or if it’s better classified as something else. Finally, we look at the drive system and explain if the Veloster is classified as a sports car for the insurance. Read on!
Co je uvnitř show
Poměr výkonu a hmotnosti
Let’s first talk about the power-to-weight ratio of the Veloster. We should do this because it takes into account two of the most important factors of a sports car. First, that’s how powerful the engine is. Second, it’s how light the car is. Sports cars are generally powerful cars for the weight that they have.
However, it’s important to establish some benchmarks here. In this article, we wrote about whether or not the Dodge Dart is a sports car or not. We compared the Dart with other sports cars such as the Mazda MX-5, Toyota GT86, and the BMW Z4.
We found that these cars all have a power-to-weight ratio of 0.07 horsepower per pound or higher. Therefore, we’ll use this as our benchmark for the Veloster. Let’s first see what engines the car has and how much power these engines produce.
- 2011 – 2018: 1.6L I4 (with and without turbo)
- 2018 – present: 1.6L I4, 2.0L I4 (with and without turbo)
The first generation of the Veloster generates a total of 140 hp when the 1.6L engine isn’t turbocharged. Suppose you have the turbocharged version, then you’re looking at a proper 204 hp. The second generation of the Veloster produces 147 hp with the 2.0L engine and 201 with the 1.6L engine. If you have the Veloster N, then the 2.0L engine produces 247 hp.
Another important aspect of the power-to-weight ratio is, of course, the weight of the car. Below we’ve outlined the weight of the Veloster and the Veloster N.
- 2011 – 2018: 2,425 – 2,943 lbs.
- 2018 – present: 2,822 – 3,036 lbs. for the normal Veloster. 3,036 – 3,247 lbs. for the Veloster N.
The power-to-weight ratio is therefore as follows:
- 2011 – 2018 Hyundai Veloster without turbo: 0.058
- 2011 – 2018 Hyundai Veloster with turbo: 0.069
- 2018 – present Hyundai Veloster 1.6L: 0.066
- 2018 – present Hyundai Veloster 2.0L: 0.052
- 2018 – present Hyundai Veloster N 2.0L: 0.076
So, what does this teach us? First, the Veloster N is definitely going to be a sports car in terms of this metric. The 2011 – 2018 Veloster with turbo and 2018 – present-day Veloster with 1.6L engine could be considered sports cars if we are flexible with our criteria. The 2011 – 2018 Veloster without turbo and the 2018 – present-day Veloster with 2.0L engine aren’t sports cars in terms of the power-to-weight that they produce.
Design
The car’s design is most likely one of the biggest differentiators between ‘normal’ cars and sports cars. The whole goal of a sports car is to make the handling very good. This way, the car can go around a track quickly and efficiently. Therefore, the design of a sports car should be aerodynamic, relatively small, and low to the ground. Also, only 2-door coupes can be considered to be true sports cars.
When we look at the normal version of the Veloster, we see that this is indeed a small, light, 2-door car. However, this Veloster is not a coupe. Officially, it’s a hatchback which means the car’s boot is connected to the passenger area. So, the Veloster may have some features that align it with the sports car category, but it misses one. What you basically have here is a sporty hatchback. Officially not a sports car, even though the turbo version does have the power to be classified as one.
And what about the Hyundai Veloster N? Well, things become really subjective here. Again, we must say that this is a hatchback and not a coupe. However, the car does have an incredibly aggressive and aerodynamic styling and does have the power to be in the sports car category.
So, what is the conclusion here? Well, Hyundai is ahead of us in this case. They also don’t classify the Veloster and Veloster N as sports cars. Rather, they opt for the term ‘sport compact’, which we feel suits all the generations of the Veloster (although some have more ‘sport’ in them than others depending on the engine’s power).
Řídící systém
Finally, there’s the drive system that the car uses. As a general rule of thumb, we can say that sports cars typically have a rear-wheel-drive system. The reason for this is that this is considered to be more fun to drive because it gives you the possibility to drift with the car.
In the case of the Veloster and the Veloster N, we can say that this car makes use of a front-wheel-drive system. This means the car doesn’t fall in the original ‘sports car’ category. Given the research we’ve already done, we would still consider the car to fall into the ‘sports compact’ category because this is simply a better category for the car.
However, let it be clear that having a front-wheel-drive is not an automatic no-go for a sports car. For example, in this article, we already looked at the Honda Civic, and we saw that, even though it’s FWD, some of the Civics are best classified as sports cars.
Is The Hyundai Veloster Considered A Sports Car For Insurance Purposes?
Finally, there’s the question of whether or not a Honda Civic is considered a sports car for insurance purposes. Let it first be said that insurance companies don’t just classify a car as ‘sports car’ or ‘not a sports car.’ Insurance companies take into account many, many different factors to come up with the price. Using thezebra.com and smartfinancial.com, we found the following:
A 2020 Hyundai Veloster costs an average of $1,624 per year to insure. The Veloster N from 2021 costs an average of $2,400 per year to insure, whereas the 2020 Veloster N costs $2,028 per year.
Having said that, we feel that insurance companies do not specifically classify the normal Veloster as a sports car. Yes, $1,642 per year on average is not the cheapest of them all but certainly not as expensive as other cars. For example, we also looked at the Dodge Challenger in this article, and that one costs $2,270 per year.
Looking at it from that perspective, we do think the Veloster N is classified as a sports car, given that its insurance rates come very close to the one of a Dodge Challenger. Given that the current Veloster N produces 320 hp and is quite lightweight, we also think this is a logical way to go for insurance companies.
Zdroje
- Autoevolution.com
- Wikipedia.com
- Thezebra.com
- Smartfinancial.com
Ahoj! Jmenuji se Stefan; Jsem vlastníkem a hlavním autorem na TheDriverAdviser.com.
Sám jsem aktivním spisovatelem na tomto blogu a také začínajícím automechanikem. Pro skutečně technické věci najdu spisovatele se zkušenostmi jako mechanik nebo kteří vystudovali strojní inženýrství.
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Jako automobiloví nadšenci mluvíme a odkazujeme na několik služeb v našem oboru, které jsou užitečné, včetně Amazonu. Předpokládejme, že tyto odkazy jsou affiliate odkazy, což znamená, že můžeme získat provizi, pokud kliknete a nakoupíte. Jako spolupracovník Amazon vyděláváme z kvalifikovaných nákupů.
What’s not to love about a car that demands to #KeepVelosterQuirky?
And Hyundai is keeping it quirky. The all-new 2019 Hyundai Veloster and Veloster Turbo have perfected quirky with its complete redesign giving drivers and bystanders a new sports car experience.
Hyundai’s goal is to keep it fun to drive and fun to look at and they’ve excelled on both.
They are also keeping it safe with a bevy of new safety features and appealing to the geeks in all of us by packing it up with loads of tech.
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Pro koho je to určeno
- Millennials
- Sports car enthusiasts
- Buyers who love quirky cars
- Singles who occassionaly need room for back seat passengers
- páry
Co toto auto stojí
- 2.0 Base Model: $18,500
- 2.0 Premium: $22,750
- Turbo R-Spec: $22,900
- Turbo: 25,400 XNUMX dolarů
- Turbo Ultimate: $26,650
A New Shape for 2019 & Beyond
Hyundai took the first generation Veloster and gave it a complete redesign. They’ve kept the additional side rear door on the passenger side of the car giving the car two different looks. From the driver’s side you see only the front driver door, but from the passenger side, there is a front passenger and rear passenger door.
Although they kept the quirky three-door configuration (two on the passenger side and one on the driver’s side), the new shape is truly cool sports car style. The lines of the car carry the eye from front to back and showcases a lowered roofline and sloping back.
The appealing shape and style on the outside carry through to the inside providing a driver-friendly layout and the Turbo Ultimate trim offers up a contrasting color on the interior that makes the Veloster much more fun to drive.
I believe the inside of a car should be as much fun as the outside and the Veloster Turbo Ultimate has that option.
Because Tech Is The Way To Your New-Car Heart
We live in a connected world. We are on our smartphones almost 24/7 and have our fingers on the pulse of what is happening around us all the time. We expect that same kind of connectivity when we get behind the wheel and Hyundai is making that happen. Now you can connect your phone to the car through Apple Car Play or Android Auto for a personalized driving experience while charging said phone on the Qi wireless-charging pad while zipping around town.
- Advanced connectivity features: Android Auto, Apple CarPlay, SiriusXM and HD Radio
- Seven-inch color LCD display includes AM/FM/MP3 touchscreen audio, auxiliary inputs, and rear view monitor.
- Available floating-design eight-inch touchscreen navigation display that includes next-generation Blue Link, traffic flow, and incident data via HD radio, and Infinity premium audio with eight speakers, including a subwoofer and Clari-Fi music-restoration technology.
- Heads-Up Display (HUD) projects information, like speed, directions, cruise control and safety warnings, onto a transparent panel mounted behind the instrument panel.
- Qi wireless-charging
- Blue Link LTE-powered connectivity offers tech like Remote Start with Climate Control, Remote Door Lock/Unlock, Car Finder, Roadside Assistance, and Stolen Vehicle Recovery. Access Blue Link from a smartphone app, Amazon Alexa, smartwatch app and more.
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Keep Mom Happy By Driving A Car Packed With Safety Features
Mention buying a sports car to your mom and she may try to talk you out of it. She got you this far in life and knowing that you want to drive around in a small sports car may just add more grey hairs to her head. Ease her mind and let her know that Hyundai has seriously upped the safety game with the end-goal of keeping her precious pumpkin safe and sound behind the wheel. The main features include:
- Forward Collision-Avoidance Assist: uses the car’s front-facing camera to detect an imminent collision and avoid impact or minimize damage by braking autonomously
- Lane Keeping Assist: prevents accidental lane departure by helping to steer the vehicle
- High Beam Assist: automatically controls the high beam headlights by dimming and illuminating them automatically as needed with approaching traffic
- Driver Attention Warning: monitors driver-related signals to determine if the driver is tired and in need of a break.
- Blind-Spot Collision Warning: detects approaching cars for the back that may be hidden from view
- Rear Cross Traffic Collision Warning: detects when another car has entered the reverse path of the Veloster.
- Smart Cruise Control: Keeps the car at a safe distance from other cars on the road when using cruise control
- Rearview Camera: Let’s you see behind the car as you are in reverse.
Living Life Like a Californian in the 2017 Hyundai Veloster Turbo Sport Compact
Dad Always Said Color Doesn’t Drive It, But It Sure Makes It More Fun!
The new Veloster is available in
- Ultra černá
- Chalk White
- SonicSilver
- Hromově šedá
- Západ slunce oranžová
- Závodní červená
- space Gray
I’m convinced if you are going to drive an eye-catching car you need to dress it in an eye-popping outfit. The Sunset Orange or Space Gray are bold and quirky choices and certainly memorable.
The interior choices include cloth, a cloth/leather combination or an all leather option. The Ultimate trim package has the option of color coordinating trim in the interior of the car as well.
What We Listened To In The Hyundai Veloster
A great sports car demands a great playlist; this is what got our adrenaline pumping in sync with the Veloster:
Thank you to Hyundai for inviting me to their Hyundai Veloster Drive Event. All opinions are my own.
Deb Thompson
Deb lives in Michigan with her husband and a very spoiled Maltipoo. She is an avid road-tripper who always searches out the quirky, weird and haunted when she travels. She blogs at Just Short of Crazy, has written a couple travel guides, and loves driving cars, probably faster than she should but we’ll keep that between us.
