Hyundai Tiburon 2005 Review

Behind the scenes the Korean giant is accelerating hard for a re-entry into the World Rally Championship and is talking up its future driven direction.

Under development for the WRC is an all-new Theta engine hatch, codenamed RC, and the company is recruiting top talent for its new rally headquarters at the design and technical centre in Russelheim, Germany.

There are also bold plans to transform its current generation Tiburon coupe into a rear-wheel-drive performance two-door with a large capacity V6.

The HCD-8 concept car will reportedly form the basis of the new coupe expected to come into production in the next couple of years.

Currently the Tiburon represents a time when Hyundai was taking its first tangible steps into image and quality.

This front-wheel-drive coupe is arguably sportier than Toyota's long-serving four-cylinder Celica and is definitely the best priced two-door V6 on the market which starts well south of $40,000.

Upgraded this year with tidier front and rear treatments the Tiburon also gained facelifts in the cabin.

There are black leather side bolsters with red stitching and red cloth centre panels woven over with black mesh-effect netting.

While most of the upgrades amount to nips and tucks here and there, they further strengthen the value-for-money edge in this V6 coupe.

It may not be the most desirable badge to have in terms of sports cars but nothing, absolutely nothing, competes with its price point.

At $32,990 for the six-speed manual, the Tiburon represents exceptional value for money.

Stunning value especially if you do your homework and find out the Tiburon was $41,888 when it was launched more than three years ago.

It is fun and functional and delivers an engaging drive.

The close-ratio six-speed box works well with the 2.7-litre V6 which is borrowed from the Santa Fe offroader.

There is not a ripping amount of power immediately but there is a good dose of torque. It delivers the power quite smoothly and offers a sound ride on the highway although it deteriorates on choppy surfaces.

On cornering, the Tiburon sometimes misbehaves without too much throttle application, the tyres up front scrabbling for adhesion.

The 17-inch rubber chirps without much provocation.

Steering is a little on the heavy side and there is a degree of understeer in this front-wheel-drive coupe.

Perhaps one of the most refreshing points about the Tiburon is the comment from a passerby after they were told it was a Hyundai on questioning what make of car it is.

"Gee it doesn't look like a Hyundai. It actually looks quite nice," came the reply.

So the challenge for the next generation of Hyundai coupes is to keep a competitive price and maintain inroads in quality and driveability.

For the moment the Tiburon, Spanish for shark, is quite a tidy package and well and truly undercuts the $40,000-plus head-banging machines.