Hyundai Tiburon Interior Review
The seats are comfortable and well bolstered, with lumbar and seat bottom support. We like the available leather with its nice cloth inserts. The three spokes of the leather-wrapped steering wheel are fairly fat, but the leather feels nice in your hands. The instruments are backlit in cool blue. The speedometer is on the left and tach on the right, with temperature and fuel gauges between them, plus a digital display for the odometer and average speed. The gunmetal accents on the panel add brightness.
The center stack is squarish, with two big round climate vents over smaller ones on top of the dash. We found the air conditioning performance strong. The usual accessories run down the center, with reasonable controls without bran-teasing challenges to figure out. There are two cupholders, a small glovebox, door pockets and a small single-chamber console between the seats. Our SE had the sunroof and we opened it to the Pacific sky, which came through with a loud whoosh. There's an optional wind deflector for the sunroof, but our test model didn't have it.
The rear seats offer 29.9 inches of legroom, which isn't much but isn't bad for a two-plus-two coupe. The Eclipse has 29.2 inches.
We had a couple of problems, namely our right toe making contact with some low-hanging thing under the dash, every time we moved our right foot from the brake to the throttle. And there's a horrendous blind spot behind the right C-pillar, when you look over your shoulder in that direction.
Hyundai Tiburon Road Test
The nicest thing about driving the Hyundai Tiburon SE might be its throaty, hollow exhaust note. It's really fun to run up through the six-speed gearbox and enjoy the sounds. A lot of hot sports cars don't sound so hot, but the SE does a great job of delivering that sensual enjoyment, so good you forget there's just 172 horsepower. The redline on the tach is 6500, but the V6 will rev to 7000 before the rev limiter cuts the engine, and it sounds so good you often want to take it that far.
And when you look into the rearview mirror, you see the high spoiler to remind you that the Tiburon is at least trying to be cool. It does block visibility out the rear, which might be inconvenient because if you're always revving the engine to redline, you might want to keep an eye out for the cops.
The aluminum double-overhead-cam V6 is mounted transversely. It makes 181 pound-feet of torque, which isn't a ton, but it's all there at a low 3800 rpm, and that means a lot. Cruising along at 75 mph in sixth gear, 3500 rpm, you can mash the throttle without downshifting, and the SE accelerates well; of course, it'll squirt away better if you downshift to fifth. Just don't expect neck-snapping acceleration from the 172 horsepower, which has to pull the Tiburon's 2986 pounds. Torque steer from the front-wheel drive is noticeable, a tug on the steering wheel when cornering and accelerating at the same time.
The gearbox, from German manufacturer ZF, is good, but the shifts aren't so sharp because the lever has a long throw and the linkage isn't as tight as it might be. However, the clutch action is smooth, especially on the upshifts, and that compensates a bit for the long throw. So overall, the upshifts work.
We can't say the same for the downshifts, at least not with heel-and-toe downshifting, because the gas pedal is quite a bit lower than the brake pedal. So you can't fit the toe of your foot on the brake pedal and easily blip the throttle at the same time. As serious as Hyundai was about the track-tuned suspension, it's surprising they missed something simple like the pedal position for sporty downshifting.
The ratios are fine; sixth gear is a tall overdrive designed to deliver better fuel mileage. It's basically an extra gear on top, because the ratio of fifth gear (0.86:1) is almost the same as the fifth gear (0.84:1) in the five-speed gearbox on the GS model.
EPA estimated highway mileage is the same as for other Tiburons, at 24 mpg, but city mileage with the six-speed drops for 17 mpg to 16. (The more frugal four-cylinder, five-speed GS manages 20/28 mpg, city/highway.)
We got a chance to test out the brakes, pushing the Tiburon SE hard on a downhill run to the Pacific Ocean through Malibu's canyons. The SE's larger rotors (12-inch diameter front, compared to 11-inch on the other Tiburons) are cross-drilled for cooling, the first time Hyundai has tried this technology that's not uncommon to high-performance cars. The brakes are good and solid for a car in this class.
Grip is quite good for this price range. Compared to the other models, the Tiburon SE springs are 13 percent stiffer in front and 10 percent stiffer in the rear. Strut valving is also specific to the SE, and overall roll stiffness is increased by 32 percent. This all feels pretty firm on a choppy freeway, but not unbearably so, and it's reasonably comfortable over mere ripples. The SE handles corners well for the class. The Tiburon SE has its limits when driven aggressively through switchback curves, but handles the situation well. It does a better job than its main competitor, the Mitsubishi Eclipse.
Hyundai Tiburon Lineup
The 2008 Hyundai Tiburon is offered in four trim levels, beginning with the inexpensive GS ($17,025), which uses a DOHC 2.0-liter four-cylinder engine, mated to a five-speed manual transmission or optional ($1100) four-speed automatic with Shiftronic manual control. Standard equipment includes power windows, doors and heated mirrors, air conditioning, keyless entry, tilt steering, a 220-watt Kenwood MP3 sound system, XM Satellite Radio (with three months free service), fog lamps, and 16-inch alloy wheels. Cruise control isn't standard, but it comes in a Premium Package ($1150) with a power tilt-and-slide glass sunroof.
The Tiburon GT ($19,925) uses a DOHC 2.7-liter V6 with the same transmission options as the GS, and rides on 17-inch alloy wheels. Inside, there are black leather seat bolsters with cloth inserts, leather-wrapped steering wheel and shift knob, driver's-side adjustable lumbar support, automatic climate control, trip computer, and metallic trim. Cruise control is also standard, although the sunroof is optional ($900).
The GT Limited ($22,525) adds a red leather interior and makes the sunroof and automatic transmission standard.
The SE ($22,375) is the "track-tuned" model, with a suspension set up for hard cornering. It comes with the same the 2.7-liter V6 as the GT and GT Limited, but the only available transmission is a six-speed manual. Other special equipment includes Electronic Stability Control (ESC) with Brake Assist and Traction Control, red front brake calipers on big vented rotors, a high rear spoiler, aluminum pedals, and the red leather seats with black cloth inserts. Climate control reverts to manual, and the sunroof is optional ($900).
Options for all models: Bluetooth hands-free phone system ($325), cargo net ($45), carpeted floor mats ($90), mud guards ($85), sunroof wind deflector ($85), and wheel locks ($40).
Safety equipment that comes standard includes front airbags, front side-impact airbags, seatbelt pretensioners and force limiters, anti-lock brakes with electronic brake-force distribution, and a tire pressure monitor.