[3DRCAR]

I bought my 2012 N/A automatic transmission brand new in 2012. Since then, I've made sure to keep up with the maintenance and ensure I only use quality fuel. I installed a K&N CAI back in 2013 but that was the only modification done to the car. Despite this, I have encountered endless problems since the beginning that never seem to stop. I have had the radio (2015), instrument cluster (2014), catalytic converter (2014), and transmission (2019 at 70,000 miles) fail. Besides those big ticket items, I had to replace the spark plugs at 70,000 miles (sooner than I would have expected to need new plugs) and had battled issues with rouge idle since 55,000 miles. This weekend, I was on my way to my office and the car lost nearly all power (most likely due to another clogged catalytic converter but waiting to hear back from the dealership) The car is at 76,000 miles now and I'm concerned about how reliable this car will be after I'm no longer covered under the 100K/10 year warranty. All of the big ticket repairs have been luckily covered under warranty but I'm questioning if it is the right decision to hold onto the car much longer, especially as my Veloster ages out of warranty. I absolutely love my Veloster, it has been with me through college, my first job, my wedding but it has never gone a year without something big failing (even as a new car). It has been towed to the dealer twice in 2019 (once for a blown transmission and another time for the recent problem with it losing nearly all power).

My question for all the Veloster owners out there, particularly those with higher mileage Velosters, how has your experience been with your Veloster and have you encountered any significant, unusual issues as the car ages? I recognize all cars have problems but my Veloster has had more than its fair share of problems. I'd love to hold onto my Veloster for another 5 years but I'm not willing to drive a car that I can't rely on.

 

[jkt1954]

First, weIcome. Second, wish you had joined sooner. I know you are looking for someone with more mileage, but I did buy the 2012 new 8 years ago (and only have 23K on it now). My dealership also doubled the 100K/10 year to 200K/20 year so I know I'm hanging on to mine. You've go some time left on your warranty and since everything big has been paid for you are far ahead of the game. How many other brands have warranties this long to begin with? And how much would you have paid if you didn't have this coverage? Even with my coverage I bought extended care on parts that wouldn't be covered and will have that for another two years.

 

[nvyseal]

Welcome to the forums. I have seen some owners with +200,000 on their velosters with no problems at all, and others with problems bought new getting off the dealer lot. Some are just lemons and others are owner inflicted. I might suggest you taking your car to a independent mechanic, have him do a full diagnostics on your car. He might give you an insight on what problems could be coming up. Good luck

 

[TooGqForYou]

what oil do you use?
how often do you change the oil?
whats the weather like where you live?

spark plug coils need to be changed every 40k to 50k miles.
spark plugs should be changed every 60k to 70k miles.

My 2016 VT is at 114k miles right now with 2 transmission replacements cuz the dry dual clutch transmissions suck in these cars.

 

[3DRCAR]

what oil do you use?
how often do you change the oil?
whats the weather like where you live?

spark plug coils need to be changed every 40k to 50k miles.
spark plugs should be changed every 60k to 70k miles.

My 2016 VT is at 114k miles right now with 2 transmission replacements cuz the dry dual clutch transmissions suck in these cars.

My dealer did the oil changes for the first 55K miles (conventional oil, no idea what brand), then they damaged the dashboard resulting in the dashboard needing to be replaced. After that, I began to change my oil using 5W20 Castrol Edge synthetic with a Hyundai oil filter. The dealer changed the oil every 3K and I change the oil (synthetic) every 4K-5K. Weather where I live rarely gets below 30 in the winter and above 105 in the summer.

 

[3DRCAR]

Welcome to the forums. I have seen some owners with +200,000 on their velosters with no problems at all, and others with problems bought new getting off the dealer lot. Some are just lemons and others are owner inflicted. I might suggest you taking your car to a independent mechanic, have him do a full diagnostics on your car. He might give you an insight on what problems could be coming up. Good luck

Yeah my Veloster is definitely a lemon. Dealer came back and said it had water in the gas which is odd because I had just purchased gas from a high volume Shell gas station. The gas station of course denies they have any water in their fuel and that there has been no other reported cases. After the dealer drained the fuel and gave it back, it has a tapping sound that sounds like a bad lifter. I'm aware these GDI engines are noisy and whatnot but this is a brand new sound that it didn't have before.

 

[Blaster]

I'm at 133,000 miles now, and this car gets a real workout everyday. I've put 100,000 delivery driver miles on it.

2015 Veloster Base, with the 6DCT. Yes, the dual clutch transmission, literally the only reason I bought it.

The engine sees 6000 RPM and WOT many times a day.

I have the transmission in manual shift mode almost all the time.

I have back to back go stop go highway pulls off of stop signs.

The amount and severity of the driving I do every day is roughly a month and a half of daily driving for normal people.

So, how's my car doing?

What's broken over time:

Speedometer, reads 3-4 MPH fast (always been this way, no one would fix it under warranty)
Cargo cover, damaged when I got it (still haven't replaced it lol)
Engine knock, 50k miles (thought it was transmission, turns out fueling up with 93 fixes it)
Passenger CV Axle, 55k miles (warranty repair, was driveable)
Power steering flex coupler, 55k miles (replaced with same but newer part by mistake, still clunks today)
Inner tie rods, ~60k miles (replaced under warranty?)
Trunk release button, ~60k miles (replaced under warranty)
Purge can mounting hardware, ~60k miles (preventative recall)
Stock non-navigation head unit, 66k miles (replaced with aftermarket Android HU)
Radio antenna cover, ~80k miles (glued it back on more than once)
Primary Catalytic Converter, ~84k miles (replaced with exhaust header, didn't have money for another catcon)
A/C switchgear, ~80k miles (replaced with used part twice, finally just bought the Shiny OEM replacement)
Door weather seals, ~100k miles (can't pin exactly when they started turning to goop and grime, but it's really obvious now since it literally falls apart off the doors)
Hydraulic motor mount: ~120k miles (replaced with OEM part)
Hood struts and trunk struts, ~120k miles (they don't whoosh up anymore)
Front headlight seals, ~120k miles (one of the seals is no longer sealed, and the light builds moisture inside)
Crankshaft Position Sensor, 125k miles (replaced with generic part due to time constraints)
Inner tie rods and sway bar end links, 125k miles (replaced with aftermarket parts, didn't have money for OEM)
Front struts, 125k miles (still saving up for those, driveable, but probably getting sketchy)
Air conditioner, 130k miles (actually going bad for a long while, finally gave up, possible leak)
Headlight and Wiperblade switchgear, ~120k miles (works, but is a bit loose and have to fiddle. Replacement TBD)
Left and right side air vent trim pieces cracked
Passenger door handle retainer piece, ~130k miles (broke off from the mounting, will probably hot glue it on)

How long between maintenance parts:

Brakes: 80k miles (insane, I go 40k tops with every other car before. I use those brakes!)
Spark Plugs: 120k miles (probs should have done them earlier, see my picture in the did today thread)
Engine Belt: 60k miles (absolutely imperative this gets replaced by 60k)
Air conditioner: 120k miles (pretty normal for most cars in this climate)
Oil Change: 4k miles (Amsoil Signature Synthetic 5w30 due to climate, used to use 5w20, way better than Mobil 1, also OEM filter only)
Intake cleaning: Literally every 3rd oil change! However, spraying CRC and mosquito fogging at midnight may not be a good idea anymore, lots of engine knock when the cleaner blows through on the drive.
Headlight bulbs: every single year (normal for me on every car I've had, and I use the Philips bulbs, Sylvanias burn out at the same time)
Battery: every 2 years, a completely different battery type is recommended every time
Tires: also 9 months to 1 year, replace on the wear bars, usually using "Summer" road tires around 400 Treadwear
TPM Sensors: every year and a half, must replace with every new tire set
Dual clutch assembly: TBD

Mods:

OEM mudflaps, almost immediately after I bought it
Philips LED lights on all the interior lights, also almost immediately after purchase
Philips 1157 Vision LED bulbs on the brake lights, 921 LED bulbs on the reverse lights
Sylvania ZEVO LED 194 lights on all the marker lights (appropriately colored) and 4000k white LED on the license plate lights. Reverse the left and right light housings so the bulbs point into the license plate instead of away from it.
TurboKits CAI, ~70k miles (possible it accelerated catcon failure, but catcons fail around 80k on stock engines)

Notes:

The TurboKits CAI is very cool, but the engine intake temps still come up hot

LED turn signals cause hyper flashing, and because the relay is electronic, you have to just use burners. Which is fine, I have not had a burner turn signal fail yet, and they are the original Korean ones.

LED high beams can cause hyper flashing, if they don't work in DRL mode. I find "ballasted" LED lights to be the problem there.

H7 LED lights with ballasts can't be reliably installed in the Veloster, as you need an adapter ring to retain them, and a custom dust cover to be installed and sealed against the headlight, unless you like your headlights getting caked in dust on the inside.

The engine backfires when cold and you upshift early. It gets worse when it's time to do intake cleaning.

Like every car I've had, I baby it when it's dead cold, and keep it under 4000 and less than half throttle until the engine is at operating temp.

I used to daily drive a standard manual car, and knowing how the dual clutch is basically that, I drive it with the same discipline. Don't ride the brake to creep forward, no brake boost launches, keep on the brake until setting off on a hill (without brake boosting), no reversing uphill, and no creeping in reverse. Probably these things have saved me from getting a new clutch assembly, and at $2500 (internet parts buy + bringing it in for repair), I loathe the day I have to eventually do it. Not that my standard manual car was any better, at $700 labor + the clutch every 60,000 miles.

The engine has a harmonic vibration at around 2000 RPM. It gets worse when the ignition isn't firing right and the carbon has built up. It didn't entirely go away when I replaced the plugs and cleaned the engine. You notice this vibration more when driving around 40-50 MPH when the engine is cold, though it probably happens any time you have the engine near 2000 on the road.

I've run this car on 93 octane for a long time now, and any lower octane fuel causes engine knock, including non-ethanol REC 90.

Dual Clutch transmissions are a huge unknown, reliability-wise. Few people push these cars past 120,000 miles, the expected lifespan of the clutches, based on the average replacement mileage for standard manual clutches (60,000)

The car is very well engineered, and has an insanely strong chassis, but uses very cheap materials for non-structural components, which negates the durability to average. Also, this car rusts easy if it's within 3 post codes of salt.

The heavy fabric of the seats has lasted all 100,000 miles (from when I got it roughly) of getting in and out up to 40 times a day every day.

The lack of a foot mat, however, has led to a giant hole in the floor. Through several OEM carpets and mats.

Also this was a used rental car. Not from Enterprise, but some small time company in the midwest. It drove like a new Veloster when I tested it, so it felt good. It had some rental car battle scars, but nothing indicating any real problems.

This car has also survived several car accidents, because Mayhem really likes me.

I got to get this car to 230,000 miles, so here's to hoping, I guess. If I am absolutely thrashing it everyday and it's lasted this long, I can't imagine how someone that actually takes care of it will fare.

 

[RPW00Mirage]

@Blaster you would LOVE the weathertech mats...