WINCHESTER, Tenn. — We’re following twisty back roads somewhere between Nashville and Chattanooga, rolling over humpy convolutions of the Cumberland Plateau in the latest sporty coupe from the current red-hot car company, Hyundai of South Korea.

Our vehicle is the 2012 Veloster, a stylish new asymmetrical three-door coupe for the sport compact class with a hatchback lid at the tail, left and right flank doors for front seat riders plus a handy back door on the right side to access the rear seats.

New Veloster seems keen in shape with a sculptured body mounted on multi-spoke wheels and drawn in rectangular format but with a radically raked windshield and a low arching canopy over the cabin with low-slung windows and side pillars muted to forge the profile of a racy sportster.

Still, you can’t miss that brash face sporting corner-wrapped headlamp clusters and a way-thin grille which stacks above a down-low air intake port scored by muted fins.

Side panels are chiseled with ripples and bulges for exaggerated fenders plus a curvy character line which underscores windows and rises toward the tail.

The stubby rump looks clean with twin-lamp taillight assemblies mounted on back corners and a thick-lipped bumper swooping low with twin exhaust pipes centered beneath.

To create this all-new product, Hyundai’s designers began with a modified version of the front-wheel-drive unibody platform used for Elantra, Hyundai’s compact-class four-door sedan.

The wheelbase length stretches to 104.3 inches long while the width of the body extends to 70.5 inches and the distance from the prow up front to the back bumper tallies to 166.1 inches — almost 14 feet. These spatial dimensions serve to crimp front and rear overhangs of the body and push the four wheels outward toward edges of the package, which sets up a long and broad and stable platform.

For suspension the Veloster employs independent MacPherson struts up front with gas-charged hydraulic shocks and a 24 mm stabilizer bar, and in the rear a torsion axle with coil springs and hydraulic monotube shock absorbers plus a v-beam stabilizer bar at 23 mm.

Hyundai packs the 2012 Veloster with a long list of hardware for safety. Each issue stocks passive safety systems like frontal air bags and seat-mounted side-impact air bags up front plus curtain-style air bags above outboard seats on the two rows.

For active safety, every issue also posts a disc brake at each wheel (ventilated in front, solid in back), with electronic linkage to a four-channel anti-lock brake system (ABS) with electronic brake force distribution (EBD).

Every Veloster also carries a vehicle stability management (VSM) device to manage the electronic stability control (ESC) system and motor-driven electric power steering (MDPS) system.

For motivation, Veloster carries Hyundai’s new dual-overhead-cam (DOHC) four-cylinder Gamma engine which displaces 1.6 liters and has gasoline direct injection (GDI) plus Hyundai’s dual continuously variable valve timing (DCVVT) equipment to balance the power output with thrifty fuel economy.

The plant generates 138 hp at 6300 rpm and torque of 123 lb-ft at 4850 rpm

Shifter choices are the standard six-speed manual transmission or optional six-speed electronic automatic dual-clutch transmission (DCT) with Hyundai’s Shiftronic mode with shifter paddles for manual gear control.

EPA fuel consumption numbers extend to 28 mpg for in-town driving and 40 mpg on the road with a manual shifter, or 29/38 mpg City/Highway with the DCT automatic.

Veloster’s passenger compartment seems spacious encompassing 105.3 cubic feet, which is tops for the sport compact class. Headroom amounts to 39 inches up front and 35.3 inches in back, with front-seat legroom stretching to 43.9 inches, yet only 31.7 inches in the rear.

Layout of the cabin shows a pair of bucket seats up front flanking a floor-mounted console and two articulated seats in the rear.

The rear seatback splits 60/40 in sections and both sides fold forward to expand room in the trunk, which amounts to 34.7 cubic feet for cargo.

Then there’s the novelty of that right-side back door. It’s hinged on the forward edge like the two front-seat doors and swings wide for easy access to rear seats.

Veloster piles aboard a load of standard equipment. Gear includes 17-inch alloy wheels and 215/45R17 tires, air conditioning, power controls for windows/locks/mirrors, tilting/telescoping steering wheel, cruise control, front floor console and overhead console, dashboard 7-inch touch screen display, remote keyless entry, Bluetooth connectivity and a 196-watt AM/FM/XM/CD/MP3 audio kit with 6 speakers plus iPod/USB/RCA jacks.

Two optional packages apply more goods. The Style package installs 18-inch alloy wheels with 215/40R18 tires, chrome grille trim, foglamps, a panoramic sunroof, leatherette seat upholstery and a leather-bound steering wheel and shift knob, alloy pedals and a Dimension premium audio system with 8 speakers. The Tech package brings 18-inch alloys with painted inserts, a navigation system with rearview camera, automatic headlamps, 115-volt power outlet, and proximity key entry with electronic push-button starter.

The MSRP for Hyundai’s 2012 Veloster begins at $17,300 for a manual transmission or $18,550 with the DCT. Style and Tech packages each load $2,000 more to the bottom line.

2012 HYUNDAI VELOSTER COUPE SPECIFICATIONS

• Description: Subcompact 3-door coupe
• Model options: Veloster
• Wheelbase: 104.3 inches
• Overall length: 166.1 inches
• Engine size: DOHC 1.6-L I4/GDI/DCVVT
• Transmissions/speeds:
  • Manual/6
  • Auto/6/DCT/Shiftronic
• Rear/front drive: FWD
• Steering: MDPS/rack and pinion
• Braking: Power 4-disc, ABS/EBA/EBD/TSC/ESC/VSM
• Air bags: 2 (front), 2 (side), 4 (side curtain)
• EPA mileage est. city/hwy.:
  • MT6: 28/40 mpg
  • AT6: 29/38 mpg
• MSRP, est.:
  • $17,300: Veloster MT5
  • $18,550: Veloster DCT