Next-Gen Hyundai Veloster Could Turn Up the Heat

With the Civic Type R expected to appear on lots any day now, and no end in sight to the continued popularity of the Ford Focus RS and Volkswagen Golf R, consumers can be forgiven for not thinking about the Hyundai Veloster.

The long-in-the-tooth model remains a valuable oddball for the automaker, but it isn’t without its flaws — namely, a super-harsh ride. Still, it’s a quirky model that adds flair in an increasingly conformist marketplace. Hyundai even saw fit to endow the Veloster with a turbocharged 1.6-liter four-cylinder in a bid to perk up its little hatch.

Despite falling sales, Hyundai isn’t giving up on the model, and a new report claims the Korean automaker could give the next-generation Veloster a heaping dose of competitiveness in the hot hatch segment.

According to Australia’s Motoring, Hyundai’s fledgling N performance division will likely put its stamp on the next-gen Veloster. Currently, the automaker is readying an N variant of its compact i30 for the overseas market (the basis for North America’s Elantra GT), with unconfirmed plans for a Veloster N to follow.

We already know the division’s engineers have used a Veloster as a “rolling lab” technology testbed, so the model’s potential is no mystery to Hyundai.

At this point, it isn’t known whether the upcoming Veloster, expected as a 2018 model, will bow with a performance variant at its side. An N version could follow a year later, with power coming from the 2.0-liter turbocharged four-cylinder found in the i30N and Sonata Turbo. That would elevate the model’s top power rating from the 201 horsepower seen in the Veloster Turbo to anywhere between 245 and 271 hp (as the i30N will come in two flavors).

With its RM16 concept, N engineers massaged 295 horsepower out of the corporate 2.0-liter, so a Veloster N could turn out hotter than expected. Time will tell. Based on spy photos, we can tell the stock model’s third side door will remain, with front-end styling mimicking the i30 and 2018 Elantra GT.

Hyundai plans to roll out its first N model, the i30N, at the Frankfurt Auto Show this September.

[Image: © Timothy Cain/The Truth About Cars]