Forza Motorsport 7: Live Loud

We begin with the Hyundai Veloster. When this car was first launched, the whole crowd got into mixed reactions over a peculiar hot hatch with peculiar 2+1 door layout that is unheard for a car like this. Yes, that idea looks pretty much cool but for their personal experience, it never really made the cut above the competition.





I mean yes. Hyundai's got the best people in town to make the Veloster, they have a alluring body design, they have an engine from the Avante, they even had Lee Min Ho to drive one. It could have been the coolest hatchback offered by the Koreans, but instead, it turned out to be awful and it has the sense of what happens next.  The main problem was they didn't what the Veloster is made for. Is it coupe? Is it a hatchback? Neither. It was more of a forgotten jack knife that hasn't been sharpened after over a decade when it was bought at the thrift store.



Hyundai once said that they had no plans for a new model but due to a change of business, Hyundai decided to have their one last ditch attempt to get it right.









This is the second-generation Hyundai Veloster and I got this car in-game via the free Hyundai Car Pack thanks to the ongoing partnership between Turn 10 Studios and Hyundai Motor Group. Collaboration aside, Hyundai promised that this is an all-new model but to my mind...well, let's find out.



Before explaining about my first impression, what's what with the second-generation Veloster? Unveiled at the 2018 NAIAS, the all-new, second-generation Veloster (bearing the chassis codename of JS) is a fresh new take on a potential cult classic hatchback coupe, retaining the signature 2+1 door layout (with the extra door on the passenger side) while promising a much improved dynamics and performance better than the previous FS model.

In North America, the base Veloster comes with a Nu 2.0L engine but the Turbo variant features a 1.6L T-GDi engine, which is the same as the one used in the Avante (Elantra) Sport and the i30. It produces  201HP of power and 202lb-ft of torque. It can be mated with either a 6-speed manual or a 7-speed  DCT. The new Veloster now comes with Torque Vectoring Control, which takes advantage of its Electronic Stability Control and powetrain control systems for improved dynamics while driving.

The new Veloster will hit showrooms this 2018, even in South Korea. It even has a special role in Marvel's Ant-Man and The Wasp film as well.



Anyway, onto my impression and after thorough driving with the new model, the simple answer is not what I'm expecting for and despite the added Torque Vectoring Control that results to a much better dynamics, getting it round the corner is like opening a tightly-sealed jar that even six men couldn't handle that much pressure. Besides, the new model weighs more than the previous model so that's terribly weird and that sounds like hard work to me. Believe it or not, Hyundai did made a hotter version of the Veloster but I'll deal with it later and in the meantime, let's talk about the base Veloster.



Before I'm taking it for a spin round my little flashback, no, producers. It cannot do 250HP as mentioned in-game. Sounds like an erratum occurred because someone rushed to get the new Veloster range featured in Forza Motorsport 7 without looking at the details. It's like what happened on every Japanese manufacturers last year over their inspection discrepancies. Anyway, erratum aside, I'm going to make do with the new model round Catalunya to see if there is some method to madness after all of these chinks behind its glamour.



Despite all the downsides I've mentioned, I'm starting to fall in love with the new model even though the new model is heading to the wrong direction, albeit in normal Turbo variant. I know Hyundai tried so hard to correct the mistakes the previous model has done after over a half a decade but I am so hard-pressed to tell this car to the original. Anyway, let's find out if the new Veloster is better than the original, time to put these two Velosters around the National Circuit part of Circuit de Catalunya. It's going to be a battle between the past and the present with a major plot twist.





Look at these two, it's like history repeating itself because back in 2012, when Hyundai unveiled the original Veloster Turbo in NAIAS, they even pitched the Forza games to put this car on FM4. Now, here we are, six years later, Hyundai's at it again as they called on their old friend to put the new model in FM7 alongside its hotter variant that is, sadly, not available in South Korea. I don't know why but they were too scared of the N cars. Anyway, no time for sentimental steps because let's get this show on the road.



And now, the lap times...

FS - 1:43.907
JS - 1:40.984

To my mind, that wasn't worth the result because while the producers are fixing the erratum over the new Veloster's specs later on, I have to call this one a no contest to me.



I should be thankful that the new Veloster as well as its high-performance variant are the only 2019 models in Forza Motorsport 7 and because of the ongoing climate of this game, the producers are still reverting themselves to the baby boomer era, putting so many "old" cars that caused so much rant from the fans who are demanding to put new and exciting models in-game. Yep, this is why this game has been poisoned against us by baby boomers but thanks to the new Veloster, despite its faults and the mea culpa, they really balanced it out.

I know, this pack offered us a hot variant that is not available in South Korea but I will deal with later on and in the meantime, it's time to "Live Loud" with the new Veloster.