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Old 11-14-2018, 11:44 AM   #1
Biggins
Crotchety
 
Join Date: Aug 2007
Carmudgeonly Ride: 22 Tiguan, 11 328i
Posts: 912
Is Hyundai a new Honda?

After spending a month driving my mother-in-law's earlier this year when she could not, I never imagined that anything from Hyundai would be tolerable. Her car is a 2012 Elantra which was probably a decent car when coming off the lot in 2012, but her car has lived a VERY tough life and shows scars inside and out and is on engine and transmission #2. I like the size of her car, but it's slow, the clutch is rough, and the interior is forgettable. I had a Veloster rental car in Nebraska years ago and thought it was just okay (for a rental). I had a manual i30 (Elantra hatch) as a rental on a trip to Ireland a few years ago and put almost 2k miles on it there. It was slow but felt solid and was very convenient with the hatch.

With all of those considerations, am I crazy to think that the 2018 version of Hyundai is better than 2012? I keep reading rave reviews or at least good reviews of the new Hyundai Veloster N and even the less tame R-Spec. The Elantra Sport (sedan and hatch) both seem like logical cars to consider against the comparable Honda Civics, Ford Focus ST, and Mazda3s. Should I really consider a Hyundai against these other options?

The Veloster N seems like a really good car with its really weird body style. I did not love the layout when I had one as a rental car years ago, but it does have that rear door that makes it much more convenient for loading the new baby. It looks like it will have almost Civic Type R numbers for more than $5k less. The Veloster seems like a modern Honda CRX with ever weirder "style." I don't particularly love the design, but the performance numbers are intriguing and is Hyundai's first car built under the old BMW M leader's direction at Hyundai.

https://www.caranddriver.com/hyundai/veloster-n

I know most of you punch above this class of cars, but does anyone have experience with any of these new Korean cars and if they are worth test driving/considering vs the established cars in the class?
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