2021 Hyundai Venue

Every 2021 Venue trim (SE, SEL, Denim, Limited) uses the same naturally aspirated 1.6-liter four rated at 121 hp. With no optional engine, it sits at the bottom of the subcompact SUV pool on output.

The 1.6L four makes 113 lb-ft at a high 4,500 rpm. That is below the SUV torque floor and well short of turbocharged rivals such as the Trailblazer and Seltos 1.6T.

The 2021 car carries over the 121-hp 1.6L and IVT. Instrumented tests average close to 9 seconds, which makes it one of the slowest crossovers on sale.

Throttle response is smooth and the engine is quiet around town. There is little torque in reserve, though: the 1.6 gets buzzy when pushed and highway merges take planning. It trails turbocharged rivals on refinement under load.

Hyundai's IVT (a CVT with simulated step ratios) is one of the better-behaved CVTs in the class. Tip-in is smooth and the simulated shifts limit drone, but it flares under full throttle. The six-speed manual offered for 2020 was dropped for 2021, so the IVT is the only transmission.

Hyundai publishes no trailer tow rating for the US-market Venue, and the owner's manual advises against towing.

Every 2021 Venue trim is front-wheel drive only, while the Kona, Trailblazer, Seltos and Crosstrek offer AWD. Upper trims get a Snow drive mode, but that is a traction-control setting, not a driven rear axle.

The Venue is built for pavement. It has about 6.7 in of ground clearance, FWD, road tires and no underbody protection or off-road trim.

All 2021 trims share one powertrain: a 121-hp 1.6L four with the IVT and FWD. With the manual gone, there is no turbo, hybrid, PHEV, EV or transmission choice.

The 2021 Venue has one configuration (1.6L, IVT, FWD), rated at 31 MPG combined on every trim. That is strong for a gas-only subcompact SUV.

30 MPG city with no electric assist is among the best of the gas-only subcompact crossovers.

33 MPG highway is solid, though the boxy shape and short gearing keep it below the class's best highway figures.

Good economy is offset by a very small 11.9-gallon tank, which gives only about 369 miles of combined range. Expect more frequent fill-ups than in rivals with larger tanks.

EPA estimates about $2,100 a year in regular gas. That is low for a gas crossover, but hybrids and EVs cost less to run.

Every trim runs on 87-octane regular with no premium recommendation. It stops just short of the top because the small tank means frequent stops and there is no flex-fuel option.

NHTSA rates the 2021 Venue 4 of 5 stars overall — five stars in side barrier and side pole, but four stars in frontal crash (driver and passenger) and rollover (14.3% risk).

The 2021 Venue earned an IIHS Top Safety Pick (not TSP+), only with the Acceptable LED headlights; crash results are Good across small overlap (both sides), original moderate overlap, original side, roof strength and head restraints.

Every 2021 Venue gets Forward Collision-Avoidance Assist with pedestrian detection, lane-departure warning and Lane Keeping Assist, but blind-spot and rear cross-traffic warnings are reserved for upper trims and no trim offers adaptive cruise.

IIHS rates both the standard FCA and the optional camera/radar system (standard on Denim) Superior vehicle-to-vehicle; daytime pedestrian is Advanced standard, Superior with the optional system; no nighttime pedestrian rating.

Blind-Spot Collision Warning and Rear Cross-Traffic Collision Warning are alert-only and absent on the base SE; offered from the SEL up. No active intervention or safe-exit assist.

Lane-departure warning and Lane Keeping Assist are standard, but there is no lane-following/centering assist, so this is edge-of-lane correction only.

No adaptive cruise control on any 2021 Venue trim — conventional cruise only, no stop-and-go, no Highway Driving Assist.

No hands-free driving system is offered; the Venue lacks even adaptive cruise, the prerequisite for one.

The halogen projectors on the volume trims rate Marginal; the LED projectors on the top trim improve only to Acceptable. High-beam assist is standard, but no configuration earns Good.

Tall, boxy greenhouse gives good forward and side sightlines, but thick rear pillars limit the over-the-shoulder view, and camera help stops at a rearview camera.

IIHS rates LATCH Acceptable, with two complete LATCH positions plus a tether-only center seat; the subcompact rear bench makes multiple or rear-facing seats tight.

Every 2021 Venue trim (SE, SEL and Denim) is a two-row five-seater with a 60/40 split rear bench. No other seating layout is offered.

The boxy roofline gives mid-pack front headroom for the class despite the tiny footprint. 2021 is a carry-over year for the body, which has not changed since the 2020 launch.

Front legroom sits near the bottom of the SUV band but is adequate for most adults, and the upright seating position helps.

The tall, square body pays off most in the second row. 38.6 in of rear headroom is good for a subcompact.

34.3 in is tight. It works for kids or short adult trips but is cramped behind a tall driver, and the rear bench does not slide.

The Venue has no third row on any trim. Per the item's rule for two-row SUVs it is scored in the low band, not omitted.

18.7 cu ft behind the second row is the smallest cargo hold in the subcompact SUV class. It falls below the floor of the SUV band and is closer to a compact hatchback than to a crossover.

With the rear bench folded the Venue tops out at 31.9 cu ft. That is roughly half what most subcompact SUVs manage and well under the band floor.

The storage is sensible rather than clever: a dual-level adjustable cargo floor, a low load height, a phone cubby ahead of the shifter and door bottle holders. The center storage box with sliding armrest is SEL-and-up only on the 2021 car; it did not become standard until 2023.

The front seats balance cushion and support reasonably well, but adjustment is manual-only with no power or lumbar on any trim. The rear cushion is flat and short on thigh support. It is fine for commuting and mediocre for long hauls.

The 99.2-in wheelbase and torsion-beam rear make for a short, choppy ride over broken pavement, especially on the SEL's 17-in wheels. It is composed on smooth roads and never punishing, but busier than larger subcompacts.

It is quiet around town but noisy at highway speed, with tire roar, wind rush and drone from the 121-hp 1.6L under load. There is no acoustic glass or active noise cancellation.

The volume SEL adds automatic climate control, but heated front seats, heated mirrors and the sunroof require the $2,350 Premium Package or the Denim trim. No trim offers ventilated seats, a heated steering wheel or rear vents.

With the 6-speed manual dropped for 2021, the base SE comes with the IVT as standard. Even so, it stays under $20k delivered and is one of the cheapest new SUVs in the US, below the band floor.

The SEL is the volume trim and lands just under $21k delivered. It got $850 more expensive for 2022.

The 2021 car has the same naturally aspirated 1.6L, IVT and FWD drivetrain as later years, and Hyundai's 3 yr/36k complimentary maintenance applies. The new-car first-5-year projection for the mechanically identical later Venue is carried over.

KBB shows the 2021 Venue retaining 70% after 3 years, in the top 10–25% of 2021 SUVs for depreciation. CarEdge puts model-level 5-year retention at about 64%, which points to roughly 60% at 5 years.

Hyundai's 5-year/60,000-mile basic coverage tops the band and leads the mainstream market.

The 10-year/100,000-mile powertrain coverage tops the band. It applies to the original owner only; later owners get 5 yr/60k.

Hyundai Complimentary Maintenance (3 yr/36,000 mi of oil changes, tire rotations and inspections) covers the 2021 Venue, as it does all 2020-and-later Hyundais, plus 5-year/unlimited-mile roadside assistance. Most subcompact rivals don't match that. Connected-service perks are thin: Bluelink is not offered on the Venue.

$20,985 volume-trim price minus its estimated resale value after 5 years (60% retained, or about $12,591) leaves about $8,394 in depreciation. Add the projected $4,350 in 5-year maintenance and repairs, and owning this vehicle for 5 years costs about $12,744 in total.

J.D. Power gives the 2021 Venue a Quality & Reliability score of 83/100 ('Great'), slightly ahead of the 2022. Some secondary sources quote an older 78/100 'Average' figure, and Consumer Reports-derived guides rate the early Venue years about average. Taken together the signals are mixed to good.

Around 2021 Hyundai sat upper-mid-pack in Consumer Reports' brand rankings, behind sister brand Kia and outside the top tier. It has generally beaten the J.D. Power VDS industry average without being a perennial top-5 finisher.

NHTSA lists two campaigns for MY2021, and both cover the same defect: front seat-belt pretensioners that can explode on deployment. 21V-796 was later expanded and replaced by 22V-458, which has a simple cap remedy. A Hyundai IVT service campaign also covered certain 2020-2022 Venues. The defect is serious but there is only one of it, so the record is typical, not clean.

The 1.6L Smartstream port-injected four (121 hp) is simple and low-stress, with no turbo and no direct-injection carbon buildup. The volume trims use the belt-type IVT, which is the weak point: owners report judder and hesitation, a service campaign covers early Venues, and a class action names 2020+ gas Hyundais. The 6-speed manual on the base SE (its last year in 2021) avoids that risk but sells in small numbers.

Reviewers consistently point to hard plastics on nearly every surface, including unpadded armrests. That suits the Venue's entry price, but the cabin trails rivals such as the Kia Seltos and Mazda CX-30. The layout is sensible and assembly is tidy.

Assembly is solid, and owner complaints about rattles or misalignment are scarce. J.D. Power's 83/100 quality score for 2021 points to good initial quality for this carryover build.

About 860 US dealers make service easy to reach almost anywhere. Hyundai's dealer-service satisfaction, however, has historically sat near the bottom of J.D. Power's Customer Service Index.

Maintenance and repair costs are among the lowest in the segment. The Venue shares common Hyundai/Kia parts and has a simple mechanical package, and its 10-year cost projections beat the SUV average.

Every 2021 Venue uses an 8-inch center touchscreen. The navigation head unit is the same size, and no larger screen is offered.

The screen is small but well executed: bright and responsive, with a simple menu structure and physical climate, volume and tuning controls.

Wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto are standard on the SE and the volume SEL, which is rare at this price in 2021. The navigation head unit on the SEL Premium Package and the Denim reverts to wired-only projection.

Embedded navigation is optional, through the SEL Premium Package or the Denim trim. Voice control is Hyundai's basic button-prompted system, and most owners will use phone projection for maps.

The base SE has four speakers and the SEL and Denim get six. No branded or premium audio upgrade is available on any trim.

The 2021 Venue has analog gauges with a small 3.5-in monochrome trip display between them. The 4.2-in color screen did not arrive until 2023, and no trim offers a full-digital cluster.

Map and multimedia updates come only through the navigation unit on the SEL Premium Package and the Denim. The volume SE/SEL display-audio unit has no meaningful OTA capability, and there is no whole-vehicle OTA.

Blue Link connected services (remote lock/unlock, locate, emergency assistance) come only with the SEL Premium Package or the Denim, on a trial that converts to a subscription. Base SE/SEL owners get no connected app, and phone-as-key is not offered.

The SE has a single USB port, and the SEL and Denim get two up front. No 2021 trim offers rear USB ports, a wireless charging pad or an AC outlet; wireless charging first appeared on the 2023 Limited.

The SE and the volume SEL start with a turn key. Proximity entry with push-button start requires the SEL Premium Package or the Denim, and no trim offers remote start from the key, phone-as-key or a power liftgate.

Parking help is a rear-view camera with guidelines and nothing more: no surround view, no parking sensors and no parking automation. Blind-spot and rear cross-traffic warnings start at the SEL.

No 2021 Venue trim offers a head-up display.

Two full LATCH sets, a tall body and wide rear doors make buckling a child easy for the size. But 34.3 in of rear legroom struggles with a large rear-facing seat, and 18.7 cu ft is a tight hold for a stroller plus groceries.

Forward collision-avoidance with pedestrian detection, lane-keeping assist and driver attention warning are standard on the SE. The 2021 IIHS Top Safety Pick applies only with the LED headlights from the SEL Premium Package or Denim, since the halogens rate Marginal. NHTSA gives 4 stars overall, and blind-spot warning needs the SEL.

A four-person trip is where the Venue runs out of car: no rear vents, no rear USB ports on any 2021 trim, tight rear legroom, and 18.7 cu ft of cargo that cannot take four people's luggage.

This is the Venue's core competence: light steering, good outward visibility, a small footprint and a CVT that is smooth in stop-and-go traffic. It loses points for a buzzy engine under throttle, no adaptive cruise and a turn key on the volume SE/SEL.

It is cheap to buy and to run: about 31 MPG combined on regular fuel, an $18,750 base MSRP and small, inexpensive tires. It misses 80+ because a hybrid or EV commuter beats it per mile.

Urban usability is best in class: 159.1 in long, a roughly 33-ft turning circle and an upright glasshouse with good sightlines. Thin parking hardware (rear camera only, no sensors or surround view) keeps it below 90.

It is not meaningfully work-capable. There is no tow rating, 121 hp goes through a CVT to the front wheels only, and cargo is the smallest in the class.

The simple naturally aspirated 1.6L and wipe-clean plastics are low-stress, and a 10-yr/100k-mi powertrain warranty backs them. But it is a light econobox with no fleet record or heavy-duty provisions.

Beyond a two-position adjustable cargo floor, basic tie-down hooks and the SEL's roof side rails there is little for work. There is no factory hitch, no AC outlet and no upfit ecosystem.

Range is adequate at about 370 combined miles, but the engine works audibly hard on grades and wind and road noise intrude. No trim offers adaptive cruise to ease interstate fatigue.

It is pavement-bound: FWD only, about 6.7 in of ground clearance and no tow rating. The SEL's Snow mode, the tall body and the roof side rails are its only nods to the outdoors.

The packaging is smart for the size, with a 60/40 fold, a dual-level load floor, a wide low-lift hatch and roof rails from the SEL. But the raw volumes are the class floor, and there is no factory hitch for carrying overflow outside.

It is nimble around town thanks to its 159-in length and short overhangs, and body motions are better controlled than the class's soft norm. Narrow eco tires and a torsion-beam rear put a hard limit on grip.

The steering is light and quick off-center, which helps when parking, but it builds little weight with speed and offers minimal feedback.

MotorTrend's 123-ft 60–0 stop in the 2021 Denim is respectable for a car on low-rolling-resistance tires, and pedal feel is linear and easy to modulate.

The 1.6L (121 hp / 113 lb-ft) with Hyundai's IVT, the only 2021 transmission now that the manual is gone, is smooth and shudder-free at light throttle. Response is the weak point: kickdown is slow and passing takes planning.

With the CVT holding revs under load the engine drones, and there is little sound insulation to contain it. Vibration through the controls is not an issue.

Maneuverability is class-leading and tighter than the 34-ft floor of the SUV band. The figure is identical across trims and unchanged within the generation.

Upright seating and a boxy greenhouse give good visibility, and climate and audio keep physical controls. The base SE has no center armrest (it arrives on the SEL), the driver's seat is manual-only with no lumbar, and thick rear pillars block the over-the-shoulder view.

It is light, eager to change direction and likeable in the city, but 121 hp through a droning CVT caps the enjoyment. Pleasant rather than memorable.

For 2021 the $18,750 SE gains the IVT as standard, swaps steel wheels for 15-inch alloys, and comes with an 8-inch touchscreen with wireless Apple CarPlay/Android Auto plus forward collision avoidance and lane keeping. It still lacks the center armrest and color cluster added later, and comfort features such as heated seats sit on the Denim/top trim.

At roughly $19,900–$23,200 delivered, with Hyundai's warranty and 3 years of free maintenance, the content per dollar is strong for the class. Capability caps the score: 121 hp, an IVT, FWD only and small cargo space.

Three trims (SE, SEL, Denim) span about $3,300. With the manual gone for 2021, every Venue has the same 1.6L, IVT and FWD, so buyers can't configure up in capability.

US sales hit a record 28,653 in 2021, the Venue's best year: a rising but still mid-pack entry seller, well behind segment leaders such as the HR-V, Kicks and Trailblazer.

In 2021 Hyundai's image was rising on its warranty, design and quality-survey gains, ahead of the Ioniq 5 halo that arrived for 2022. Budget models sit at the low end of that halo.

The 2021 model year launched in late 2020, when modest financing deals were still around. Through 2021 the semiconductor shortage drained inventory, and cheap new cars largely sold at or above MSRP with little cash on the hood.

MY2021 is the second year of the first-generation US Venue (launched MY2020): still a recent design with modern infotainment, updated only by dropping the manual and enriching the trims.

Reviewers rated the 2021 Venue a solid budget pick (U.S. News 7.7/10, Edmunds 7.4/10), citing ride comfort, fuel economy and infotainment against a weak engine and small cargo hold. It won no comparison tests or major awards.