B&M Shifters On The Way For Hyundai Accent, Veloster

Michael Karesh
by Michael Karesh

Hyundai doesn’t get every bit of a car perfect before introducing it. No auto maker does. But Hyundai does pay attention to feedback from reviewers and owners, and often upgrades its cars in response to criticism. Only in its fourth model year, the Genesis Coupe already has had its interior upgraded twice.

My least favorite part of the 2012 Accent SE was the cheap, sloppy feel of its manual shifter. In the past, Hyundai included B&M-supplied short throw shifters in driver-oriented versions of both the Accent and the Elantra Touring. Why not with the current cars? Well, towards the end of 2012 a B&M shifter will become optional in the Accent. Later one will also be offered in the Veloster. No plans have been announced to also offer a short-throw shifter in the new Elantra GT, but one seems a natural fit for an upcoming more powerful engine option.

Michael Karesh operates TrueDelta, an online source of automotive pricing and reliability data.

Michael Karesh
Michael Karesh

Michael Karesh lives in West Bloomfield, Michigan, with his wife and three children. In 2003 he received a Ph.D. from the University of Chicago. While in Chicago he worked at the National Opinion Research Center, a leader in the field of survey research. For his doctoral thesis, he spent a year-and-a-half inside an automaker studying how and how well it understood consumers when developing new products. While pursuing the degree he taught consumer behavior and product development at Oakland University. Since 1999, he has contributed auto reviews to Epinions, where he is currently one of two people in charge of the autos section. Since earning the degree he has continued to care for his children (school, gymnastics, tae-kwan-do...) and write reviews for Epinions and, more recently, The Truth About Cars while developing TrueDelta, a vehicle reliability and price comparison site.

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  • NotFast NotFast on Aug 26, 2012

    Every time I drive a Hyundai I get BM, so this seems appropriate.

  • Sideshowtom98 Sideshowtom98 on Aug 26, 2012

    Hyundai/Kia is now the fourth largest seller of automobiles in the world. If you think they are buying market share, its a public company, and their gross revenues, gross profit, net profit, and ETIBA are available online. They smash most car makers in terms of profitability. Quite to my surprise, I bought a KIA SUV last week. I began the search assuming I would buy a Honda or a Toyota, and had an open mind about Ford as well. I would never consider Government Motors. I ended up with a KIA Sorento, AWD, and have been very satisfied with the buying experience, price, and value. If you look with an open mind, KIA is going to be on your RADAR. The 5 year 60K Warranty is unmatched, as is the 10 year 100K Powertrain Warranty.

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    • Highdesertcat Highdesertcat on Aug 27, 2012

      tom, if more people would take the time to check out what is available in the class of vehicles they are interested in buying, more of them would be pleasantly surprised. Last Hyundai product we bought was a 2011 Elantra for my grand daughter and it has been completely trouble-free. The Elantra blew away the offerings from all the other automakers in that class because of content and value for the money. Nothing else even came close!

  • Acuraandy Acuraandy on Aug 26, 2012

    As a '12 Accent owner (with 6spd!), i'd be interested in a B&M. Especially with an old school round knob without the atrocious reverse-lockout. Keep us informed, i'd love to get one as an accessory.

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    • Acuraandy Acuraandy on Aug 27, 2012

      @mcs: Thanks for the input, and nice to know. My only bitch with the OEM shifter is the reverse-lockout; I intended to replace it upon purchase with a round shift knob, but was unable to because of said reverse-lockout. The OEM shifter is not bad (especially for an OEM in a base model), but a B&M would be ideal to me. However, if they won't back up their product, I may pass unless Hyundai will back it up as well. Again, thanks

  • Darex Darex on Aug 27, 2012

    I'm a bit puzzled by this. When I test-drove my Veloster (even beforehand), I said to myself, "If Hyundai STILL hasn't managed to make a decent manual transmission; if it's vague and rubbery like they always had been, I'm 'out'". To my pleasant surprise, it was a precise, snappy affair, nearly as good as my MINI Cooper's Getrag unit, and it felt great in the hand. It is completely satisfactory to me. So, why should this announcement get me excited? I have no complaints about the current Veloster shifter. Hyundai finally got it right.

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