Hyundai Curb Tries Too Hard To Be Cool

The Hyundai Curb mini-crossover concept is a test of the company's future Blue Link multi-media interface and "fluidic sculplture" design language, as well as an attempt by Hyundai to be hip. Hop on your "fixie" as we bike to dreamland.

As unreal as it may look now, the Curb's a lot like the Veloster concept, which debuted more than three years ago as a design study and turned into a production car. Small CUVs are one of the few segments where bold design's being encouraged, as exemplified by the Soul, Sportage, and most obviously the Nissan Juke.

The most obvious visual features are the long, thin wrap-around headlights and pronounced black grille. Like the production Veloster, the front A-pillars are blacked-out in a nod to motorcylce helmets. There's also a strong "boomerang" character line on the body.

And that's not even the crazy part. Out back are exhaust vents that pop out to hold a bicycle as an alternative transportation source. But what kind of bicycle?

The exhaust vents serve a dual purpose. They pop out to reveal a bike rack so the owner could park and ride a "Fixie" (fixed gear) bike to the rest of his destinations as an alternative transportation source.

Hear that hipsters? Hyundai made a car for you! Except you probably don't own a car, and if you do it's your dad's old BMW.

The rest of the car is pure digital magic, with an acrylic screen that wraps around the car displaying information. Most of the controls are touch capacitive and there are monitors and cameras everything. A 12-inch head's up display greats the driver, as well as a clear steering wheel containing a monitor. It's a pure expression of the self-obsession of the hipster gen-x generation.

For gearheads, the one interesting bit of news is they claim the car gets 175 hp with a turbocharged version of the same 1.6-liter "Gamma" engine in the Veloster, a hint at how much we can expect from a more potent version of that car.