August 1, 2015 Hyundai Veloster purchase
2012 37k miles

After our Suzuki blew it's engine where repairs would cost more than it's value, we began to quickly search for a replacement vehicle. Fortunately we had done some looking at cars just a month ago, for something fun to do, so we already had some crossed off the list and a couple that we already liked. A Navigation system was a major requirement for Noel for her Real Estate job. An automatic transmission was also a priority. After that, the ability to transport stuff for road trips, bike trips, and Costco trips were needed. Since cost would also be a factor, we would end up with a used vehicle that already had a low starting price when new. Although a small SUV would fit the bill well, the small hatch backs were lower in cost and also got better gas mileage.

Noel had looked at a few more vehicles while I was still in MN and we immediately went on the hunt straight from the airport when I returned to Phoenix on Friday. We found some more nice SUVs, but the used models were still too pricey. The Hyundai dealership seemed to have overall lower prices on used vehicles than the surrounding competition at the Tempe AutoPlex, so we pulled in there. We again were drawn to the Hyundai Veloster, though this time they had two in stock with automatic transmissions. Actually the 2012 base Veloster had what's called a dual clutch transmission, which drives like an automatic, but is completely sealed (no checking of fluid levels).

Noel got back from her showings a little earlier than expected on Saturday, so we did a quick glance at some more used cars, just to make sure we were on the right course. It was hard to find anything cheaper than our Veloster selection unless it had about 100k miles and still we didn't find a model that seemed to better the design of the Veloster for us. I had also checked online in the morning for any other Veloster in the area that might be a better deal or a nicer color and all were more expensive regardless of bells and whistles. We also looked at a couple of other Hyundai hatch backs: the Accent it a bit smaller and has a cheaper feel to it, but Navigation is not even available on it. The Elantra hatch back has more headroom for rear seated passengers, but costs thousands more and the actual rear hatch is smaller overall than the Veloster's due to the hinge of the hatch on the Veloster being much farther forward on the roof line, resulting in a much longer hatch door and giving much vertical access to the rear cavity. We felt very comfortable that the Veloster was the right car and a very good value. It's basically an inexpensive hatch back with great gas mileage, but in a very sporty package.

 

We were able to pick up the Veloster and bring it home Saturday. It was amazing that it took 3.5 hours to complete the paperwork, but also the shop was doing last minute detailing on the car as well. I am amazed at how a three year old car can look so immaculately new. Except for many small rock chips in the paint on the front end and some scrapes on the left front rim from hitting a curb while parking, everything else is showroom pretty, even under the hood. Their top mechanic came out and filled us in on the details of their certification inspection and did another check on the viability of the battery, which was in excellent shape (the AZ heat tends to quickly kill batteries). He gave us the wear specs of the brake pads and tire depth and they were both about 80% good.
 
After finally getting it in possession, it continued to wow us even more. It came with two keyless keys, where all you need to do is walk up to the car with the key in your possession and it unlocks itself on the drivers door. In an emergency, there's actually a mechanical key in the keyless key that can work a mechanical lock in the drivers door and you could still start the car with a dead key by pressing the start button with the keyless key instead of just your finger. We also put the Blue Link app on our phones, which allows us to start the car with our phone from anywhere and have the AC cool the car before we even get to it. We can also make sure the car is locked with the app in case we forgot to lock it when we left it. When you start the engine, it locks all the doors, and then unlocks them immediately when the car is turned off. The Navigation system is much higher resolution than the unit I put in the Suzuki and it can be operated by Voice instead of the touch screen. The touch screen also links to our phones via Blue Tooth and downloads our complete contact list and via voice activation you can tell the system to make a call (e.g. Call Lionel) and the radio cuts out and the car speakers become the phone speaker and the car microphone becomes the phone microphone; of course you can answer an incoming call with a touch of a button on the steering wheel. The sound system has a 360w amplifier where half volume is as loud as we would ever use, and it includes a subwoofer as well.

Since I was not listed as a driver for the rental car, Noel had to drive the rental home and I had my first experience on the road bringing it home. The acceleration from the 138 HP engine is definitely no match for even the weakest muscle car, but there's a display in between the tachometer and speedometer than can display various bits of information, such as two trip odometers, average speed since a reset, miles left of gas, and MPG since the last reset (where each reset can be independent of the other recordings). I watched the MPG from a steady state of 40 mph and it was getting over 50 MPG (it's rated at 29 city, 38 highway), which then slowly went down as I had to stop for stop signs and then accelerate; but it was an amazing difference from the maximum 20 MPG of the Suzuki. The vehicle even has a built in 150W 110V inverter outlet in the center console.

The road feel is definitely oriented towards a sports car rather than a luxury car, where smaller bumps are easily detected, but still not severely harsh. Road noise is also a bit high, but easily drowned out with the powerful entertainment system. The seats cradle the sides of your hips and back to keep you very secure around corners. The seats have a lever to adjust the tilt of the entire seat, allowing control of the critical area at the front of the seat where it contacts your thighs; it's all mechanical, so different people have to readjust it manually each time, but at least it can be done. The acceleration is predictable, as is the very powerful braking from the 4 disc brakes; steering feels extremely connected. This will be a very fun car to handle on twisty roads.

The exterior appearance is becoming even more appealing as it sits in our driveway. It looks very sporty, with clean lines. The turning radius is less than our Suzuki, which was already a breeze to park. I put it in reverse to go up the driveway and the backup camera automatically came on the screen to help guide me, with a box showing where my sides would be and two lines towards my rearward destination to help gauge how far to continue (wonderful for me, as my last two mishaps were backing up and I usually dread backing up because of that).

Noel and I are both anxious to experience the joy of this new addition to our lives. Thank you to all that helped make it possible. Our Suzuki was sold to an auto repair shop on Monday for a meager price as the retail price of repair parts would cost more than blue book value and the shop is taking a risk that they can actually make a profit after getting it road worthy again, even using idle man hours when the mechanics demands slow down.

It looks like the next major house project will be to open up the far garage door and install rails, springs, and a garage door opener so that the new vehicle can be parked out of the sun and away from the birds that like to perch in the shade tree and drop turds on the hood that ruin the paint.








Hyundai 2012 Veloster

Suzuki 2003 Grand Vitara

Hyundai 2015 Veloster

Space Veloster Home page