[GCHUJNG]

Hi Guys,

I have been looking at a new car for the last few weeks and have always had my heart set on a GTI. Doing my research while waiting for my Jeep to sell and I kept seeing this peculiar little blue car from Hyundai popping up... I ignored it for a few days and then clicked on a review video...

When the original Veloster first came out, I test drove one and thought it was a great little package but seriously lacked power. I was turned off by that and hadn't looked at one since then.

So, I was actively ignoring the N until I learned about it. This seems like an amazing little drivers car and after watching the reviews I am 95% sure that it will be my next ride.

I went to a local dealer to look at it and they only had one non-pp car and they wouldn't let me drive it unless I put down a deposit. I HATE limited run cars at "regular" car dealers. I can walk into the local Mercedes dealer and test drive a $90k car without batting an eyelash but the normal car dealers get these types of cars and all the rules go out the window. I get that they don't want to deal with joy riders and looky-loos but I am a middle aged dude and am a few days from signing papers on a VW. A $30k car isn't a big deal. You would think they would be chomping at the bit to convert me to the brand...???

So, looking around, I can't find any PP cars in my state but several in the neighboring state. Its worth a plane ticket for me to fly over and grab a car from one of these neighboring dealers.

Any thoughts on availability of the PP cars? Are they building more? Was it a special edition run to build awareness and they aren't going to do a lot more? I am not one to pay over sticker for a Hyundai and will just get the GTI and throw a tune on it if I can't find a PP car for sticker or less in the next two weeks.

Is that a reasonable goal or am I out of luck? Seriously looks like a great car and congrats to those that already have one.

 

[Zokinho1]

I've tried GTIs and the N drives much better, no question. It's less refined than the GTI but a better driver's car. I know this also matters to some people so I'll tell you my experience. My car is in Performance Blue, it gets so much attention, so if you're not looking for that, I'd suggest getting the black one if you can, maybe white. The exhaust doesn't help with the attention either 🙂

There's more and more aftermarket support for korean cars so if you're thinking of throwing on a few mods, there are some solid options (Lap3 amd SXTH element come to mind)
I heard that dealers are starting to order 2020 models but it does take some time for them to get those delivered, so I think you might be out of luck for the 2 weeks deadline for your local dealer.

If I were in your position I would definitely check a bit further out if you don't mind the plane ticket.

 

[GCHUJNG]

Thanks for the feedback. It will be interesting to see what I can find in a few weeks. The local dealers seem to be fairly clueless about it all.

I was really expecting the interior to be awful but it was much better than I expected. The plastic was pretty hard but the fit and finish was fine.

Good to know about the color. I love the blue but white is probably my first choice and I agree that it would probably attract a little less attention. I don't think I can do black. It is so dusty where I live that it would be a constant battle.

 

[Zokinho1]

Yeah. Black was my first choice but it would have taken too long to get one so I took a blue one. Now that I have it, I'm glad. I live in Canada and it's a nightmare for keeping a car clean especially in the winter and a dirty car drives me nuts. The blue makes it more bearable.

Good luck on your search and let me know if you find one, I'd love to hear how it goes.

 

[xplorguy]

GC! I have spent quite a bit of time researching pricing and I do think you can find a PP unit at List or a little better. But you may have to cast a wider net than your local area. If you do look outside I advise getting a quote in writing for an out the door price. Some dealers will quote an excellent price and charge you for add-ons you don't want or excessive administrative/documentation fees.

If you go on popular on- line sights you will find many N's listed. The N looks great in White...also seeing the Red in person..that looks great also. If you aren't in a terrible hurry, I would like to think these will become a bit easier to come by and pricing will be more normalized...as mentioned, the 2020 model year can't be too long now...Hyundai seems to start their new model year early..but then the N's were not available until year end. Also wishing you good fortune in your search....

 

[DaNVeR]

I bought my N at the end of March. I had been harassing my local dealer in Shreveport, LA since September about deliver dates. They originally started saying January, but by the end of March, they were pushing it out to the beginning of May. I was already in a lease on a 2016 Veloster Rally, that was grounding the first week of April, so I decided to look further out.


The first one I found was in Dallas, but the dealer was quoting $42k. "It's a rare limited edition". LOL. NEXT!


Then I found one in Houston for list plus $600, for the window tinting and door and bumper coating they added. Made the five and a half hour drive down, grounded my lease and drove home in the new N.


I guess I'm a little biased toward the Veloster, coming from the Rally. However, I did a ton of research over the past 6-8 months. Price vs. Power mainly. Looked really hard at the Type R, and might have been hooked, but they pulled that same "put down a deposit and run through financing before you can test drive" thing. The GTI never really entered the mix for me. I'm sure it's super tuneable, but with the lower stock HP, it just never jumped out at me. The RS and STI both got a lot of looks mostly due to the AWD, but I just couldn't stomach the price jump.


I like my N. And I bought this time around, so I'm looking forward to the mod market. I wanted to do so many things to the Rally, that I just couldn't justify on lease.

 

[get_schwifty]

It depends entirely on what you want in a car IMHO.

The GTI has a much, much nicer interior, is a far more refined car, and offers a lot of bells and whistles. The N is a much more capable performer and a more fun car to drive, and it strips out most of the bells and whistles (many of which you can get on other trim Velosters but not the N) and supplements them with features specifically for the driving aspect - resulting a car with a very low price that has a stupid crazy amount of driver's features that many cars costing twice as much lack.

For example, with the N, you will NOT be getting auto-up/down passenger windows, power seats, heated seats/wheels/mirrors, auto-dimming mirrors, garage door memory, leather, mood lighting, any driver assistance tech beyond a backup camera, and any interior that does not entail a MASSIVE amount of plastic. However, you WILL get a track computer, the ability to adjust the ride stiffness, steering weight/sharpness, throttle response, allowable oversteer, LSD lockup, and exhaust output...all in a package with respectable straight line acceleration and crazy good tossability. You'll also get well-bolstered seats with a driver-side electronic lumbar support, LED (low-beam) headlights, and a spectacular infotainment + audio system (oh, and cool blue seat belts). When they designed this car, they knew exactly what they wanted it to be (as well as what they did not want it to be), and they made it for a very specific type of driver...so IMHO this is a car you either fall totally in love with or despise.

The N with the Performance Package compares in price with the GTI, but the two are not even close when it comes to performance. The base N without the Performance Package is more comparable to the GTI, and the base N outperforms it. While the N with the Performance Package is priced along the likes of the GTI, WRX, and Si, it's performance is going to be closer towards that of the Golf R, STI, and CTR than it will the former.

Where are you at? Definitely do not pay markup because some dealers are selling these well under sticker. I got my N for about $25.5k (model without the PP). With the one with the PP, IMO $27.5-28.5k is a very reasonable price.

 

[GCHUJNG]

Well, after playing dealer roulette and coming up short here in Utah, I looked online and the dealers in AZ that had the PP cars I wanted, in the right color for me, have big markups listed on the website. I don't want to play the game and fight with them over price. While the N is a fantastic car, because of timing and the lack of availability, I have decided that it isn't going to be the one for me.

I found a GTI S with DSG in a color I like and feel that as an all around car it will be a better fit. (wish I could have found a manual in a the right color...) I will be looking for Ns at stoplights and in the canyons to play with. If I can't keep up, there are lots of tunes available and the aftermarket is pretty amazing for the VWs already.

Congrats on your cars, they really are fantastic.

 

[code3racing]

GCHUJNG I was at a dealer in Gilbert and they had marked a base N at 37k and wouldn't let me drive it unless I put down a deposit. I told the guy I wasn't going to put down a deposit until I was ready to buy. He said that it's to keep the 19 year old joy ride kids from coming and putting miles on the car, which I understand, but I'm 50 and drove up in a 50k full size pick up truck, which he saw me park and get out of. So, I completely understand what you're saying about the way they are treating this car. Good luck on finding one and if we both do, we'll have to meet and do a road trip of the fun roads in AZ, UT, and CO.