Veloster Clubbers, Elantra Clan, Pep Toc, Kimchi For This Family.
Veloster Clubbers, Elantra Clan, Pep Toc, Kimchi For This Family.
Veloster Clubbers
The 100 active members of VOCS (Veloster Owners Club Singapore) share the same hot passion for the cool Hyundai coupe.
The very first owners in this club are HSEQ manager Dicky Fadly, 33, who owns an orange Veloster, and Edrick Sum, 33 (who has since sold his green Veloster and left the group).
Four years ago in 2012, they hooked up with 11 other Veloster lovers to form the original committee and register the club, supported by Komoco Motors. The current, passionate president is Siti Aishah, 39, an education officer.
All five variants of the Veloster are present in the club's fleet, with the full range of paint jobs (such as Sunflower Yellow, Electrolyte Green, Vitamin C Orange and, naturally, Veloster Red).
The Veloster Turbo comes in even fancier colours -- two shades of grey, a funky blue and a chic copper tone. The members are as diverse as the Velosters. The youngest is just 21 and the oldest is 55, while the occupations include teachers, pilots, safety officers and busy businessmen. There are also NSmen fresh out of national service.
Their enthusiasm for the asymmetric Korean coupe is obvious, with remarks such as "One of the best power outputs in its class to match the looks", "Velosters have the style, the right price, the power and speed", and "It has a unique third- door design that stands out from the rest".
They're also enthusiastic about their clique, of course -- "With VOCS membership, when you buy a Veloster, you get a family!"
This family has done a lot of activities together -- road trips to Malaysia's Genting and Cameron Highlands, club anniversary celebrations, charity drives and social gatherings galore. They also organise socalled sharing sessions, which cover DIY maintenance/ installations and even the best way to wash the engine bay. Some of the more serious petrolheads have taken their beloved coupes to Johor Circuit for hot laps. The club has even appointed a tech support officer, who provides practical advice and helps to trouble-shoot.
Interestingly, most of the members use Samsung and LG smartphones, and have parked a good number of Korean appliances in their homes. And they can rattle off the names of K-pop performers such as Eunhyuk, Hyoyeon, Henry, Taemin and Kai.
They can also reel off the list of improvements that the next Veloster needs, in their opinion -- limited slip differential, electronically adjustable suspension, memory seats, remote tailgate, acoustic glass and Android Auto integration.
"Hyundai has improved tremendously through the years, breaking away from its Pony days."
Elantra Clan
Members of Elantra Club Singapore (ECS) have a strong common interest in the Hyundai saloon with Korean elan.
The newly elected president of Komocosponsored ECS, financial consultant Ng Zhao Wei, just turned 26. The boyish bachelor may be the youngest leader of any motoring organisation in Singapore, having cut his teeth as the club's well-liked vice-president and hardworking helper in the logistics sub-committee.
Like the Elantra, the man is sensible and disarmingly honest. "If the whole club were to be thrown on a deserted island, we'll probably survive, because we have members from almost all walks of life, each with skills that can build a nation," he quipped.
He's quite the salesman, too. "Buy an Elantra and join the club for the experience of a lifetime, not forgetting all the privileges!"
Said privileges, which include groupie tees and servicing discounts at Komoco, are enjoyed by some 150 members and about 120 Elantras. The model mix is fully represented, from the 2011 version codenamed MD to the 2016 version codenamed AD.
The scope for personalisation is such that ECS has a "Performance" car, "Music" car, "Decals" car and even a "Disco" car. In 2014, the club even held its first Elantra of the Year competition to pick the best-pimped ride.
The club's regular activities are weekend meetups, dinners and "poison" (accessories) workshops. Less regular are driveaways, one of which was the club's 25-car contribution across the Causeway in 2015 November to the annual Elantra Mega Convoy, organised by Malaysia's Elantra MD Club.
The memorable motorcade had a total of 135 Elantras. Closer to home, ECS once arranged a 22-Elantra entourage for a member's wedding day. The Korean fever burns elsewhere within ECS. "Almost all my electrical appliances are from Samsung, because for a similar or lower price, I get extra features and greater reliability than China-made appliances slapped with Japanese or European brand logos," said Zhao Wei.
"As for the girls, they are crazy about Song Joong-ki from the popular Descendants of the Sun TV series. For the guys, give them any K girls and they'll go gaga. They can't tell the difference anyway!"
But the ECS enthusiasts can differentiate between factory-fitted features and locally installed parts. According to their spokesman, they would also welcome the Sports and Turbo variants.
In the bigger scheme of things, the same guys feel that the LTA should relax the rules on aesthetic modifications.
They point out that frequent vehicle inspections already weed out illegally modified engines and exhaust systems, which they understand pose a danger to other road users.
The ECS president's parting shot is: "Compare the Elantras with Japanese cars, you don't have to fork out $10k more for common features sold as premium items, and Korean vehicles now can win beauty contests."
"We have members from almost all walks of life, each with skills that can build a nation."
Pep Toc
Tucson Owners Club (TOC) has over a decade on its odometer, but its crew are as energetic and enthusiastic as ever.
Formed in 2005, TOC is believed to be the first of its kind in Singapore -- a society of SUV owners. It hit the road about a year after the original Tucson made its local debut as the smaller, nimbler sibling to the Santa Fe.
The suburban newcomer was well received, and so was the new club's two-month membership drive, which netted close to 1300 sign-ups. The first TOC honcho was Anthony Tang, a motor trade veteran with two Harleys and plenty of road trip experience.
Eleven years later, after inevitable attrition (Tucsons sold or scrapped), TOC has over 300 members today, led by current chief Dennis Chua, 42, a navy officer. The majority are married, so all the club's activities are family-centric, and there are enough PMEBs (professionals, managers, executives, businessmen) on board to run a successful SME.
Indeed, the "factory output" has been good -- driving holidays to Malacca, Port Dickson, Desaru, Kuala Lumpur, Kukup, Genting, Cameron Highlands and even Rawa Island off Mersing, plus durian feasts in "fruit king" plantations, seafood lunches, and shopping sprees in JB's hypermarkets.
The club has a heart, too. Since 2008, TOC has been a part of Ramadan on Wheels during the Muslim fasting month. It's a yearly charity project by the Malay Youth Literary Association, roping in a fleet of vehicles to ferry the less privileged to supermarkets, where they're given free provisions and Hari Raya goodies.
Currently, TOC has 360 Tucsons, 80 percent of which are the first-generation model, 15 percent secondgen and just 5 percent third-gen. Everyone appreciates (or misses) the rear windscreen of the first Tucson that can be opened. And the consensus of the group is that Hyundais and Tucsons are not gas guzzlers.
There's an offshoot called Tucson Monsters, a bunch of about 20 chaps (described as "crazy") whose firstgen cars have raised suspension, giant wheels, winches and other hardcore 4x4 components. Roof racks and bicycle carriers are par for the (Tucson) course, too.
"May TOC swing on for another decade and more!"
"The Matrix still rides well and its engine remains responsive."
Kimchi For This Family
The three generations of the Chang clan share the same preference for Hyundai cars.
Officially, Leslie Chang runs watch distributor Big Time and is also the previous president of the Singapore Motor Sports Association (SMSA).
Unofficially, the affable 53-year-old is an ambassador at large for Hyundai cars in this country, because he put his Korean won where his mouth is, having bought/used more Hyundais as private transport than (possibly) any other motorist in Singapore -- eight in total.
Leslie's personal ride (at time of writing) is a seven-year-old Azera, the 3.3-litre V6 saloon that was the most expensive (or rather, least inexpensive) model in the local Hyundai lineup at one stage. He bought his unit, a Komoco management car, in 2010. He also had a 2.7-litre V6 Tucson then, in which he tackled the China Rally three times (he's a long-distance overland driving enthusiast).
Leslie is also a fan of the Tucson's bigger brother, the Santa Fe 2.7 -- he bought his first in 2007, sold it in 2008 and got a second one in 2009, which he used twice on the China Rally before selling it.
Both Santa Fes were white, and their only difference was "with/without sunroof". Besides the big-engined Hyundai sports utility vehicles, Leslie also owned a basic 1.3-litre Accent "for a happy couple of months while in between cars".
Leslie's father, 85-year-old retiree Chang Yee Chiang, has a Matrix (at time of writing), which was a best-selling model for Hyundai agent Komoco in 2003-2004, when the Pininfarinastyled multi-purpose fiveseater was third on the local sales charts.
This particular Matrix has the less common 1.8-litre engine, but according to Leslie: "The asking price in the used car market for the 1.8 is similar to or slightly lower than that of the 1.6!"
Leslie's son, 26-year-old Bingo, who manages business operations for his dad, drives an Avante 1.6, which belonged to his late maternal grandfather. Prior to this, Bingo drove a Verna 1.4 for a year before it was sold to a close friend of Leslie.
The Verna was a hand-me-down from Bingo's grandpa, who wanted a small and economical vehicle with a boot that could accommodate his wife's wheelchair (the eldest Chang takes care of her full-time).
The inconvenient access to the notchback boot of the Verna didn't bother the old gentleman until he rented a Matrix in Malaysia for a road trip. He found the hatchback's high roof and wide-opening tailgate very convenient for his loading/unloading of a wheelchair and other travel essentials.
He even became a one-man house mover with the help of his Matrix, whose foldaway rear seats came in handy. They enabled him to transport his belongings, including small furniture, from one apartment to another. The move was completed after several return trips.
So the Verna went to Bingo and Leslie bought a used Matrix 1.8 for his dad.
"When the Verna was assigned to Bingo, he was very happy, because it's easier to drive than all the other Hyundais in the household. But as he gained confidence in his driving, he felt that the Verna could do with a little more power and comfort.
"These issues were addressed by the Avante. He likes it because it's easy to drive, just like the Verna, and highly practical for his job. However, he feels the design is dated and he's not looking forward to the COE renewal for the car in 2017!"
Yee Chiang, on the other hand, has already asked Leslie to look into renewing the COE for his Matrix when it reaches the end of its "certificate road".
Leslie drives the Matrix occasionally when he goes out with his parents. "Although the car has clocked 150,000km, it still rides well and the engine remains responsive," he said.
"The Koreans were known for making cheap cars, but now Hyundais are good and reliable, too. I must also add that Komoco's after-sales service is among the best in the industry."
