Hyundai to end hatchback coupe Veloster as Kona, Avante N favored

South Korea’s top automaker Hyundai Motor Co. will discontinue the production of its hatchback coupe Veloster to focus on the more popular high-performance model Avante N and the compact sport utility vehicle Kona.

According to local auto industry sources on Friday, Hyundai will no longer manufacture the Veloster, first introduced 11 years ago, at the carmaker’s main plant in Ulsan from next month.

The carmaker’s other hatchback model, the Ioniq, which is different from Hyundai’s all-electric IONIQ brand, will also cease production by the end of July – a move that will make it even harder for local drivers to find a hatchback in Korea.

Instead, Hyundai Motor will produce the Avante N sedan, a high-performance car and an alternative to the Veloster.

Since its launch in March 2011 to fill the void left when the company discontinued the Hyundai Tiburon after the 2008 model, the Veloster has drawn interest from younger drivers and those who enjoy athletic driving.

UNIQ DOOR CONFIGURATION

However, the hatchback has grown less popular than the sedan and SUV models due in part to its asymmetrical door configuration, featuring one large door on the driver's side and two smaller ones on the passenger side.

Currently, the Veloster comes only in Hyundai’s performance-oriented N trim.

In 2020, Hyundai sold 1,388 Veloster models in the domestic market. But last year, the sale of the hatchback model fell sharply to 510 units with the launch of the sporty Avante N in July. In the first four months of this year, only 99 Veloster cars were sold in Korea.

By contrast, the company sold 1,125 units of the Avante N last year in the local market and sales increased to 1,624 during the first four months of this year.

In overseas markets, 1,214 units of the hatchback were sold in the January-April period, almost half the 2,087 Avante N cars sold.

One of the production lines at Hyundai’s Ulsan plant 1, where the Veloster is currently assembled, will be producing the Kona SUV, one of the carmaker’s most popular models, from the second half of this year.

The Ioniq hatchback, produced at the Ulsan 3 factory, will give way to the Avante, a compact sedan that sold 71,036 units in the local market last year.

Unlike in the global market, particularly in Europe, where hatchbacks and wagons are popular, Korean drivers favor more comfortable sedans and practical SUVs, forcing local carmakers to discontinue such models, industry officials said.

Hyundai stopped producing the i30, another hatchback, in 2020.

MOTORSPORTS

However, the Veloster N and the Avante N have promoted Hyundai’s high-performance N brand globally.

Hyundai said last October that it won the triple crown of the world’s three motorsport events – the FIA World Rally Championship (WRC), the FIA World Touring Car Cup (WTCR), and the Electric Touring Car Racing (ETCR).

Hyundai’s Avante N TCR car won the second race of the WTCR held in France, while the Hyundai Veloster N ETCR car saw victory in the pure electric car race.

Established in December 2012, Hyundai Motorsport is responsible for Hyundai’s global motorsport activities, including the FIA World Rally Championship, Customer Racing, and electric racing projects.

Write to Han-Shin Park at phs@hankyung.com
In-Soo Nam edited this article.