Mention the name Hyundai and the image that comes to mind is one of cheap and formerly crappy cars from Korea that just borrowed technology from Japanese manufacturers. The fact though is that Hyundai has improved its quality standards but has yet to capture the imagination of the motoring enthusiast as a choice for a play car. Hyundai did commission a British outfit to build and campaign an Accent-based World Rally Championship contender but the company quit the program after a few years. Now, Hyundai is once again turning to rally-style motorsports to burnish its image and capture some mindshare. It’s tapped the considerable talents of Rhys Millen Racing to build up a Hyundai Veloster-based rallycross contender.
The race car is powered by an HKS-turboed Hyundai 2-liter four which, according to Hyundai, produces 500 horsepower and 600 pound-feet of torque. It would be interesting to plug-in the engine’s specs into a performance calculator to see if the claims hold up, specially the torque rating. At any rate, additional components include an Xtrac six-speed sequential gearbox connected to an Xtrac full-time four-wheel drive system. Proflex coilovers give the Veloster racer the requisite suspension travel needed for rallycross competition. Alcon six-piston calipers and rotors reside behind the 18-inch HRE alloy wheels shod with 245/40-18 Hankook racing tires. Curb weight is 2,656 pounds, which gives the car a power-to-weight ratio of 421 bhp per ton.
The car is being squared off against the factory Ford Fiesta rally cars of Ken Block and Tanner Foust in the 2011 U.S. Rallycross Championship. Doing a creditable showing against the highly experienced Ford team should give Hyundai and company the confidence to expand their racing program and consequently, the user base which will influence sales of their production cars.
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