Buying a Volester concern

[caineroad]

Hello everybody,

Just joined the forum and the reason is that I want to seek advice to purchase this car(not turbo).

I have been reading the recall and issues forum, it seems like there is a lot...

Problems with the sunroof, no heat while turning hard, overrated mileage claim leading a lawsuit, gears not engaging, transmission replacement.

Things that should not happen at all, going reverse while in drive.

Electronics, AV volume turning up and down by itself, keyfobs suddenly not working.

A lot of quality issues on this car.

I really love the style of it and i like the price, but I wanna know if I can easily keep this for 10 years?

If you ask me if I can keep a Toyota Yaris for 10 years, I say yes the one I own is already 6 years old without major problems, the quality needless to say is good.

So am I wrong, I really like to convince myself to buy this car!

Please help!

[toshko321]

I owned a naturally aspirated one for 10 months before upgrading to the turbo a few months ago and I have to say that I have not had a single problem with both my cars.

Maybe some other people can chime in and say something about their long term ownership

I highly recommend the car though. Try out the turbo model, you won't want to go back to the regular


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[SkyriderAR]

All of the problems you mention are isolated. Most of us have no complaints with the car. Short commutes and/or stop and go traffic do eat into gas mileage. Go to fuelly.com and take a look at average gas mileage for those that report there. I've averaged better than 36 mpg (calculated) since owning the car, now at 20,000 miles. I also highly recommend the car. It's fun to drive, especially with the manual transmission.

[The HACK]

Most people go to car forums to complain. If you have absolutely ZERO problem there's little incentive to pipe up, while any problem tend to be magnified on forums.

i've had about a dozen various vehicles before the Veloster Turbo, and if I were to monitor the forums of each make and model I'd worry myself sick with all the reported problems for each. Turns out, the ONLY car I had that has had any visits to the shop for none maintenance reasons, is a Subaru WRX for a broken AC pulley.

[Curmudgeon]

There are no assurances that the V (or any other vehicle) you purchase will be trouble-free, but my V (tech with DCT) has not had any problems or issues after a year+. Caveat: if you're sensitive to harsh riding tires, the 18 inch OEM Kumho rubber, while very responsive, may not offer the comfortable ride you prefer.

In my experience, reading branded auto forums is not an ideal method to determine a car's worthiness since reports of the brand's failures tend to be concentrated in threads by the whiners and trollers.

[untouchablemc]

After one year of ownership I did not experience any issues with the V. Great car... Minus the lag, but I got used to it. I will be doing performance mods in the future so shouldn't be too big of a problem.


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[caineroad]

Thanks for the feedbacks, may I ask how expensive is the maintenance compared to Japanese (cheapest), European(most expensive). I know you guys still have warranty but any idea in the long run the potential maintenance cost, parts pricing?

[OldYeller]

I've had mine for three months with zero problems (non-turbo, style package). If you go to a Ford focus discussion group or a Honda group you will same the same level of "problems" My last car is on its tenth year (still in the driveway, use it for transporting dogs and parking at Walmart!), and was trouble free except for one thermosat. I think the Veloster can do the same. Now it does come with design quirks (as all new vehicles do ) that will get finessed over the years or can get refined via after market (like hard riding tires, but hey, if you want 18 inch rims with low profile tires you are stuck with a "firm" ride!). The lag issue that many veloster drivers refer to can be fixed with a 5 dollar switch (see threads on 1/2 lag or 3rd gear bogging) as the Hyundai engineers decided to program the ECU to force the lag to encourage more economical driving....a really dumb thing that I bet gets fixed in a future software update. The mileage is about three mpg less than advertised, still better than than my last car of similar size and displacement. I love my Veloster, it makes me smile every time I see it. Makes me smile every time I drive it (with the lag switch fix), and makes commuting an absolute joy....and the sunroof is incredible!

[tidybowl]

I've had my V for 14 months. Only problem was the peeling steering wheel but Hyundai took care of that's, no questions asked


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[Lee RideFar]

If you enjoy your Yaris the real issue is you probably won't be able to handle something fun to drive.

[Krosya]

If you want a car that looks different and people give it a second look - go for it. Otherwise - stay away. Yes - I did have many problems with my Veloster and even at this point I cant say for sure that it's fixed. While my problems may be isolated ( as some claim), lets look at the general idea. In the event you have a problem - based on my experience: 1. Half of the time dealer doesnt know how to fix it. 2. Have to wait (at times a long time) for the parts to get there. 3. Not every dealer automatically gives you a loaner (mine did). 4. hyuindai as a company, or at least people that represent it on regional level dont give a damn about you and your problems - my car more than qualified for a local Lemon Law and they just kept milking it - my car was at the dealer 6 times for the same problem, usually for a week at a time, one time for almost a month. They just kept telling me - we are working on it.... Finally when car was returned to me - they said - after all the considerations they feel that car is fixed and they wouldnt buy it back.
While I like the idea of Veloster (and even I like mine when it works fine) and have nothing against Hyundai cars in general, I think this model was out way before it should have been and company doesnt want to stand behind it.
My Veloster is a little over a year old and I already lost a lot of value due to all the repairs - imagine, someone will look up on carfax its history - what kind of an offer will I get after car spent almost half of its life being fixed?
Sure, I was probably one of the unlucky ones, but I expect better from a new car and a company that boasting in their every ad how they stand behind its product. I'd buy something that was proven "in a battle". Funny, when I told service manager at my dealer that I filed a case for a buy back - his words were - just get a Sonata and dont worry about a thing.
My advice goes along the same lines - get a Toyota, Honda, Subaru, etc. Veloster, while a cool idea, in reality is a flop for a Hyundai. They dont even advertise it anymore.

[Curmudgeon]

Thanks for the feedbacks, may I ask how expensive is the maintenance compared to Japanese (cheapest), European(most expensive). I know you guys still have warranty but any idea in the long run the potential maintenance cost, parts pricing?

Perhaps you ask for info that is only speculative. What potential maintenance costs? Well, 3.5 quarts of Kendall 5W20 syn blend oil at $3.70/quart and $6.00 per oil filter (OEM only) per 5K mile OCIs, occasional air filter, etc. IMO, you're overthinking this. This is not a Mercedes that requires (?) a periodic $380 visit to the dealer at exorbitant prices.

Loosen up...this is a $18-21K econobox that is one of the best looking, fun to drive, go-kart handling, high mpg, iconic styling, ergonomic cars on the market.

[Bucephalus]

14 months and just a touch over 52K miles. I blew out the left right speaker (M/T Base) from too much Metallica at too much volume. Otherwise, I'd buy another tomorrow

[Goose]

It took me a while to get comfortable with my Veloster. I'm middle-aged, so the seats gave my back a little trouble. Had to get used to the headrests, too. After three months, no problems with the Veloster. Now that my car has about ~2,500 miles, I'm getting almost 40MPG on the highway (DCT tranny).

I can think of only two caveats, one of which has already been mentioned. If you get the Style or Tech package with 18's, the ride can seem a bit harsh/noisy. Swapping the OEM tires for something a bit cushier might help, but I doubt the improvement would be drastic.

The other item still bothers me: the DCT transmission - I don't like it. I think the Veloster would be a better car if Hyundai simply installed the 6-speed slushbox from the Accent. To me, the DCT saps what little power the engine produces and is needlessly complex. The Veloster isn't a sportscar, so why do we need dual-clutch shift speed? To me, the DCT feels sluggish in normal operation. It drives me nuts that the car doesn't want to start moving off of the line unless you mash the throttle. When cruising, take your foot off the gas and it's like tossing an anchor out the back - the DCT doesn't "coast" at all. Highway passing with the DCT results in loads of revs/noise, but no forward thrust. My wife's automatic Accent accelerates like a sportscar compared to the Veloster. Frustrating.

[caineroad]

It took me a while to get comfortable with my Veloster. I'm middle-aged, so the seats gave my back a little trouble. Had to get used to the headrests, too. After three months, no problems with the Veloster. Now that my car has about ~2,500 miles, I'm getting almost 40MPG on the highway (DCT tranny).

I can think of only two caveats, one of which has already been mentioned. If you get the Style or Tech package with 18's, the ride can seem a bit harsh/noisy. Swapping the OEM tires for something a bit cushier might help, but I doubt the improvement would be drastic.

The other item still bothers me: the DCT transmission - I don't like it. I think the Veloster would be a better car if Hyundai simply installed the 6-speed slushbox from the Accent. To me, the DCT saps what little power the engine produces and is needlessly complex. The Veloster isn't a sportscar, so why do we need dual-clutch shift speed? To me, the DCT feels sluggish in normal operation. It drives me nuts that the car doesn't want to start moving off of the line unless you mash the throttle. When cruising, take your foot off the gas and it's like tossing an anchor out the back - the DCT doesn't "coast" at all. Highway passing with the DCT results in loads of revs/noise, but no forward thrust. My wife's automatic Accent accelerates like a sportscar compared to the Veloster. Frustrating.

So using DCT A/T, if you are doing 55mph, floor the pedal, there must be some forward thrust i mean.... right?

If not, just paddle shift down a gear then floor the pedal. still no?

[MTD]

6 months and about 10,000 kms on my Turbo with zero issues. My clock even keeps good time lol.

And Carfax reports dont show repairs done because of a warranty or TSB repairs.

Caineroad, Id say probably 99% of the owners on this forum are very happy with their cars.

[Goose]

Regarding your question about the dual clutch transmission:

I use the DCT in fully-automatic mode since I'm not interested in a sequential 'box. The problem with the DCT seems to be in how it behaves as an automatic transmission. In my experience, flooring the pedal at highway speeds results in a slow gear kick-down that doesn't result in much actual acceleration. Only after a rather sluggish couple of kick-downs is the engine in its power band and car accelerates.

The DCT does indeed react a little better as a semi-auto 'box when the driver has more direct control over gear selection. In my opinion, the DCT's auto-mode software could use a little more work.

Just wanted to point out something that you may want to concentrate on during your test-drive(s).

[NujeeV+]

I will be investigating this in my test drive next month. thanks for the heads up!!

Regarding your question about the dual clutch transmission:

I use the DCT in fully-automatic mode since I'm not interested in a sequential 'box. The problem with the DCT seems to be in how it behaves as an automatic transmission. In my experience, flooring the pedal at highway speeds results in a slow gear kick-down that doesn't result in much actual acceleration. Only after a rather sluggish couple of kick-downs is the engine in its power band and car accelerates.

The DCT does indeed react a little better as a semi-auto 'box when the driver has more direct control over gear selection. In my opinion, the DCT's auto-mode software could use a little more work.

Just wanted to point out something that you may want to concentrate on during your test-drive(s).

[Boots Ylectric]

3 months into ownership and have not had a single problem. In fact it's one of my favorite cars I've owned. And I've owned pricier and "higher classed" cars than this, and I still like it better.

[Mingo85]

Almost 5 months now and the only problem I've had was with the wiper motor.