Hyundai Veloster is Officially Dead. Long Live Veloster N

Only the most popular variant will be carried over to the 2022 model year.

Hyundai announced last week the changes it would be making to its lineup in 2022. The company listed which models would be updated, which would be replaced, and which would be kept. Not all models will make it to next year. Hyundai has announced it will discontinue the majority of its Veloster line. The VelosterN will be discontinued. This lineup is unchanged since 2021.

It’s not surprising that the announcement was made. A report from April noted the difficulty of finding a regular Veloster at a dealer . It was also revealed that Hyundai was paying dealers for clearing out their Veloster inventory. Both signs were indicative of the car’s imminent demise. A few days later Hyundai responded with a tepid response. It announced that the Veloster would continue for the 2022 model-year but that it would do so using a simplified lineup. We now know how simple it will be.
The 2.0, 2.0 Premium and R-Spec trims will be discontinued by Hyundai. Only the N trim will remain. That gives consumers a peppy three-and-a-half-door hot hatch that packs a turbocharged 2.0-liter four-cylinder engine under the hood. It can produce up to 278 horsepower (377 Kilowatts) or 260 pound-feet (353 Newton-meters). Hyundai will be equipped with an eight-speed, wet dual-clutch transmission in 2021. This should increase its appeal. The standard transmission is a six-speed manual.

With its Veloster announcement, Hyundai follows in the footsteps of Volkswagen. VW has announced that it will stop selling the standard Golf in the US and only sell the more expensive Golf GTI or R variants. The Veloster N is unlikely to be revived if the Veloster N lineup is lost, but the hot hatch will continue to be available for at least one year. It is hoped that it does not succumb to the crossover craze. However, things are not looking great for the model.