A more potent variant of the new-gen Hyundai Veloster was first spotted on Nurburgring a few months back. The test mule was heavily cladded with faux body panels under the camouflage. Now the hot hatch returns to the Green Hell, this time without that unwanted cladding, to reveal the updated design.
The all-new Veloster’s design is an evolutionary upgrade over the current model. There are now sharper, more aggressive lines, especially at the front. The cascading grille is very similar to the one seen on the recently introduced Hyundai i30 N. However, the front bumper and air vents are unique to the Veloster. The headlamps look redesigned, though it’s hard to tell the difference under the heavy cladding.
The characteristic door-layout of the Veloster is carried forward. The camouflage fails to hide the Veloster’s flared wheel arches. The large sporty alloy wheels confirm it is indeed a performance variant. There is also a large wing mounted atop the tailgate. The high mounted tail lamps now look sleeker with a new lighting signature. The aggressive rear bumpers still bear those sporty designs and the dual circular exhaust mounted on either side of the diffuser screams out performance. Also visible is the red accent strip near the diffuser similar to the one seen on the i30 N.
There are no visuals of the interior of the hot hatch available as it was spotted whizzing past on the Nurburgring. However, a slight peek inside the car confirms Recaro sports seats and a roll cage at the back.
The new-generation Veloster is expected to adopt a new platform. This will enable the manufacturer to make the hatch lighter and stiffer. There is no official word yet, but it will get a newly developed 2.0-liter turbocharged four-cylinder which does duty in the new i30N. The power output could either be 250bhp or 275bhp. The six-speed manual transmission would send power to the front wheels only.
Hyundai remains tight-lipped about the launch details of the new generation Veloster. The standard variant is expected to debut next year, while the performance N variant would join the line-up later. Upon its arrival, the new Veloster will continue to compete against the likes of Kia Procee’d GT, Renault Megane RS, Ford Focus RS and Volkswagen GTI.
