► Hyundai Veloster axed in UK
► Oddball coupe too slow selling
► ‘Replaced’ by new i30 Turbo
Hyundai has stopped selling the niche Veloster coupe in the UK after slow sales made it unviable. Fewer than 2600 were sold in Britain in the four years it was sold here.
The leftfield coupe was always a curiosity, with its asymmetric doors and rival-less positioning. And we liked it all the more for that.
Click here to read CAR magazine’s Hyundai Veloster long-term test review, when we lived with one for a year in 2013.
What a shame! Why has Hyundai killed the one car that appeals to enthusiasts?
It’s pure commercial logic at play here, not a deliberate move to spite those Hyundai buyers who actually enjoy driving.
And to prove the point, the Koreans are launching their first warm hatch in the UK with the imminent arrival of the new i30 Turbo as part of the refreshed 2015 model year range.
i30 Turbo: a warmer kind of Hyundai
Arriving in March 2015, this is a 184bhp 1.6-litre turbocharged version of the i30 hatch, designed to rival the likes of the Peugeot 308 GT and warmer Focuses. Top speed is 136mph and 0-62mph takes 8.0sec dead.
Think of it as a warm-up act for the forthcoming N-series performance models, announced at the same time as Hyundai re-entered rallying. It’s all part of a push to make Hyundais more desirable, more upmarket, more – whisper it – European.
It’s just a shame that a gently massaged hatchback is more likely to sell in numbers than a more visibly sporting coupe…