South Korean giant Hyundai used the North American International Auto Show (usually called simply The Detroit Motor Show) as the site to let the buying public review a stunning new coupe.

Called Hyundai Veloster, the coupe has the most stunning lines we have seen for many a year. The Hyundai guys want to be major players on the world scene, and not just in the mundane hatchback end of market. Hence their attempt to leap to the attention of the public with what some may term outrageous styling.

Though the Veloster is aimed at the two-plus-two coupe market it uses an interesting door setup to give better than average access to the back seat. It has a rear door only on the passenger side (left side in Australia) that’s carefully integrated to try and give the sporting Hyundai the look of a two-door coupe.

Veloster is powered by a new design of four-cylinder, 1.6-litre petrol engine that features direct injection to trim emissions and fuel use. It produces up to 103 kW of power and has a torque peak of 167 Newton metres at a sky-high 4850 rpm. No journalists have been permitted to drive the car yet but it will be interesting to see what this engine feels like on the road. We anticipate a high-revvin’ screamer in the manner of a small Italian sportscar. Here’s hoping...

Transmission options will be either a conventional six-speed manual or a dual-clutch automatic transmission with manual overrides.

At this stage the all-new Hyundai Veloster coupe has not been definitely confirmed for Australia, but we would be surprised if it doesn’t make it downunder.