Veloster Turbo Brings Home ‘Best Sports Car’ Title

[Hyundai NEWS]

The Hyundai Veloster has clearly captured the attention of the folks at Ruedas ESPN, the country’s top Spanish-language radio show covering the auto industry. After the Veloster itself earned “Best New Product” kudos in last year’s annual awards roundup from the program, the Veloster Turbo has just ran off with the “Best Sports Car” award for 2012. The trophy was passed out at the recent Miami International Auto Show and determined by a panel of 16 industry leaders
The win also can be considered a victory for value: In besting much more expensive rivals for the Ruedas ESPN honor, the Veloster Turbo packs a potent 201-hp I4 engine—which also makes 195 lb.-ft. of torque—for a price tag of just $21,950. And that includes standard amenities like heated leather seats, LED accent lights, an aggressive body kit, sport-tuned steering and the Veloster’s versatility-enhancing hidden third door. Yet the car is surprisingly thrifty, too.
The same advanced technologies that help Hyundai extract all that power from just 1.6 liters of engine, including gasoline direct injection, dual continuously variable valve timing and a twin-scroll turbocharger, also help it achieve EPA grades of up to 24 mpg city/35 mpg highway/28 mpg combined with a standard six-speed manual transmission. Even with its available slick-shifting six-speed automatic, the Veloster Turbo is rated at 24/31/28.
“We’re thrilled to receive the “Best Sports Car” award from Ruedas ESPN for the Veloster Turbo,” said Scott Margason, director of product planning for Hyundai Motor America. “Its appealing combination of unique design, three-door-hatchback versatility and direct-injected, twin-scroll turbocharged power is resonating very well with sport coupe buyers.”