We're not sure what's been going on at Hyundai lately. 8-seater Drift buses? Flying cars? Has somebody spiked the water coolers with Red Bull? Either way, we're all for it – and the latest Korean head-scratcher is this Veloster-based rally concept.
The photo above is photoshopped, and not very well at that, but it represents a concept Hyundai is bringing to Vegas for SEMA in a couple of weeks. The concept is this: take one Veloster sporty hatch, and beef it up for off-road scrambling.
Jolly good, then. The Grappler gets big, chunky wheels and oversized all-terrain tires. It gets tough front and rear brush guards, rally lights, light bars and a big ol' Thule utility basket on top with a spare tire in it. It gets a roll bar, a cheeky carbon hood and a graphics wrap, as well as a noisy Borla cat-back exhaust.
It's kitted out with camping-friendly gear like a Goal Zero portable solar power station, Napier dome tent, big ol' utility shovel and first aid kits, as well as some interior farkling, such as Recaro sports seats, fancy pedals and gear shifters, rugged foot mats and some extra interior lighting.
In this mockup, it looks surprisingly cool. We'll see it in the flesh in early November. Don't expect it to make it to production, this is just a bit of fun from Hyundai North America. But still, it's good to see what we'd have thought of as a very conservative brand getting a little silly lately. A bit of a warmup, perhaps, for when these guys start dropping Rimac-powered electric sports cars on us in the next 12 months.
Source: Hyundai