REVIEW: The 2003 Hyundai Tiburon Toscani

written by Elaine Marshall

Several years ago, I had the misfortune of riding in a friend’s Hyundai Pony. It wasn’t that old, but it was seriously decrepit.

While I was trying to open the window, the crank snapped off in my hand. I showed it to my friend. He accused me of turning it too hard. When I attempted to disembark from the car, the door lever snapped off. I showed it to my friend. He’d seen that happen before, he said. I had just tried to open the door too hard. The remedy was simple: I would just have to unroll the window then open the door using the outside handle. Guess he had forgotten that about that broken window crank. He was forced to get out and open the door for me. My opinion of Hyundai has been coloured ever since.

The 2003 Hyundai Tiburon Tuscani drives boldly up to the plate, and erased that bad memory. The Tiburon received a facelift for 2003 and a new trim level Hyundai calls Tuscani. This limited edition Tiburon is one hot little car. Styling is aggressive without going over the top. The Tuscani lacks the oversized spoiler Tiburons have sported in the past. This car has the long hood and short deck of a classic sports car.

Tuscani does go over the top in one area though: colour. It is only available in yellow, and I’m certain it’s the brightest yellow in history. This car could be seen from space. It was loud as hell and enough to put some of my passengers off (didn’t notice any of them offering to get out though!).

If you can get past the screaming yellow paint, Tuscani offers a few other goodies. The brakes are exceptional, with 15-inch ventilated discs with dual piston performance callipers (painted a snazzy red) in the front and 14-inch discs with floating callipers in the back. ABS is standard and is accompanied by traction control. With all that high-tech hardware, the Tuscani provides a hard stop. The other add-ons are more cosmetic: an analogue gauge cluster, climate control, titanium inner trim and of course, the neon yellow exterior.

Under the hood of the Tuscani beats the heart of an all-aluminium 2.7 litre V6, delivering 170 bhp@ 6000 rpm and 181 ft-lbs@ 4000. The engine has plenty of speed and power, and a thoroughly respectable rumble. In tests conducted by the Automobile Journalists Association of Canada, the Tuscani went from zero to 100 km/h in 7.8 seconds. This car’s drivers won’t be winning drag races against sports car superstars, but if you want that kind of high-end performance you’d be shopping elsewhere in the first place.

The engine is accompanied by a six-speed standard transmission. The shifter is satisfying, with short throws and gear ratios that allow the driver to make the most of engine power.

I’m sure the powerplant provides reasonable fuel economy, but can’t speak from first-hand experience, as I did tend to peel away from the lights quite a bit in this car. One thing I did notice with the Tuscani was the presence of a little bit of torque steer. Under hard acceleration, it was a tad hard to handle. Aside from that minor glitch the Tuscani handled well, blazing around corners with no noticeable body roll. The front suspension is made up of independent MacPherson struts with coil springs; the rear is independent multi-link, also with coil springs. Suspension is sport-tuned specially for this car. Overall the car handled well, even wearing clunky Pirelli winter tires.

On the inside, Tuscani is basic black (in case your eyes were burned out of their sockets from looking at the exterior!). Dash instruments are laid out in two large dials with two smaller ones in between. The dials were easy to read in the day and lit up a funky red colour at night. Console controls were within easy reach and were ergonomically satisfactory. The special analog cluster features three dials: torque, voltage and fuel consumption. Located on the centre console, these dials, while a cool idea, were smallish and not particularly easy to read.

One advantage the Tuscani has over its lesser Tiburon brethren is the titanium accents on the interior. The console, doors and steering wheel all have touches of metal, giving the cockpit some zip. I’ve seen other Tiburons without it and they were on the dull side. Tuscani also comes with metal pedals, a racing touch that sets this driver’s seat apart. The pedals were properly located as well, allowing for easy manipulation without lifting your heel off the floor.

The seats were another pleasing touch. Designed by Ricarro, they were comfortable with good lumbar support. The back seats are a different matter. Even with me in the driver’s seat (I am not tall), legroom in the back seat was almost non-existent. You could maybe take one passenger in the back, but two is seriously pushing the limits of friendship. Hyundai needs to admit that this car is really a roadster.
The trunk was a bit of a surprise, with more room than expected. Tuscani actually makes for a decent hatchback. Steeply raked windows in the back made for lousy visibility though. Good thing that with that shrieking yellow colour, other drivers can easily see the Tuscani.

A nice little sports car, the Tuscani earns a well-deserved place in the pocket rocket category. This is no budget racer though; the test model rang in at $27,375. It’s a great little sports car though and well worth the bucks.

So if you’re driving down the road one day and yellow blur zips by, rest assured. That was no high-speed banana you just saw, that was the Hyundai Tiburon Tuscani.

Our reviewer: Elaine’s love of cars started in high school. All the guys she hung out with then were car addicts (two of them when on to be auto mechanics). It was with these guys that Elaine learned all about the automobile. Her first days behind the wheel were spent in a red and white Ford pick-up, (affectionately referred to as The Pig) belonging to one of these guys (Thanks Mike!). After graduation from high school and through university, Elaine’s love of cars lay dormant, until, while pursuing a diploma in journalism at Toronto’s Centennial College, the opportunity to become editor of the Up to Speed section was presented. With a solid background in mechanics (Thanks to Humber College for that!), and her passion for cars still intact, Elaine jumped at the chance and is currently loving that role, while finishing her diploma at Centennial.

photos courtesy of John Holland