2004 Hyundai Tiburon Tuscani

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 26/12/2003 (8157 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

LIKE a typical British Tory MP, the average mid-priced sporty coupe needs a severe flogging before it gets aroused. Gentle massaging of the throttle and subtle shifting of their gears leaves them flaccid and unable to perform. Worse yet, once you get them into their powerband, there’s all manner of caterwauling from the engine bay, all the commotion making you think they won’t stand up to the abuse. And, more often than not, they’re dressed up in all manner of spoiler and body kit thingies, the automotive equivalent to a 50-year-old finance minister being caught in his wife’s bra and garters.

That’s why I like Hyundai’s Tiburon. Rev the little 2.7-litre, double overhead camshaft six to its 6,500 rpm redline and you’ll swear someone slipped a BMW engine under the hood, so sweet is the sound, so smooth is its comportment. It’s not the most powerful beast in the class, its 170 horsepower bested by both the RSX and Celica four-bangers. But, its 181 foot-pounds of torque means you don’t actually need to rev it to the aforementioned 6,500 revs to get adequate thrust. Besides, the Tiburon only weights 1,390 kilograms so even middling horsepower results in decent acceleration, plenty enough to transform the Tiburon into a legitimate sporty coupe.

Because of its relatively prodigious low-end power, the Tiburon survives being hooked up to its optional four-speed automatic (a five-speed manual is standard). Acceleration is more than competitive, even when mated to the four-speed automatic and, thanks to the engine’s torque, passing power is abundant as well.

My Tuscani tester (Hyundai’s new moniker for the V6 Tib) was equipped with the optional six-speed manual trannie. With closer gear ratios than the five-speed, the six-speed is both quicker and sportier feeling than the base transmission.

Shifting feel, however, wasn’t as smooth as a typical Honda or Acura, however. Like other Tiburons that I have sampled, the Tuscan’s clutch felt rubbery, almost worn out. There was hardly a discernible engagement point and it sometimes felt as if the clutch wasn’t fully disengaging, not matter how fully I depressed the clutch. It made for occasional notchy shifting. Hyundai needs to fix this as the point of shelling out an extra $1,600 for the six-speed is because you enjoy shifting.

Handling is much improved over previous Tiburons. Having tested the two-door Hyundai on both twisty roads and a racetrack, I can attest to its cornering abilities. No, it can’t match the Corvette Z06’s limpet-like grip on the tarmac, but with 215/45ZR17 Michelin Sport performance radials, it’ll get around corners with more than enough élan. Body roll is also well-controlled thanks to its ‘sport-tuned’ suspension that features MacPherson struts up front and a dual-link setup in the rear, both aided by gas shocks and fore and aft stabilizer bars. It does mean that the Tuscani rides more harshly than previous Tiburons, particularly over expansion joints.

Inside, the cabin layout is logical and ergonomically correct — and completely black. More austere than its colourful predecessor, the black trim is now much more appealing to the more sophisticated buyer Hyundai envisages for the new Tiburon. There are a few aluminum trim bits to break up the monotony, but for the most part, Hyundai is keeping to its monochromatic theme. I’m a fan.

A few foibles persist, however. The AM/FM/CD audio player, for instance, is perfectly adequate from a performance standpoint, but for the life of me I couldn’t find a way to manually change radio stations. That meant doing without my morning Howard Stern fix, meaning my lesbionic-stripper-babe-getting-her-bottom-spanked quota was off.

Another pet peeve is that Hyundai took the time to paint the brake calipers bright, look-at-me-I’m-a-British-parliamentarian-in-a-thong-and-boustier red and then didn’t bother to hide the brake pad’s backing plate. I reprimanded Cadillac for the same thing with its XLR roadster. Somehow, it’s a not as bad on a sub $30,000 coupe as a $100,000 luxury vehicle, though.

Speaking of which, like all Hyundais, there’s big value inside the Tiburon. Tuscanis start at $27,195 and even the fully-loaded six-speed version is only $28,795. Value is still the best reason to buy a Hyundai. Only now, it’s not the only reason.

–DIL Auto News Service