New Model Tiburon, RWD?
-
[quote author=Mazda_Power link=topic=2039.msg29934#msg29934 date=1167670345]
Hyundai will abandoning front-wheel drive for its next Tiburon.
Due to be unveiled towards the end of 2007 before a local debut the following year, the rear-wheel drive coupe will be a "serious sports car", according to a senior Hyundai Motor Company executive.
Although details are scant, it is believed the Tiburon replacement will be a three-door coupe featuring many of the styling cues as well as the general proportions displayed on the HCD-8 Concept Car, which made its global debut at the 2004 Detroit motor show and has since appeared in Melbourne.
The HCD-8, as it stands, is powered by a supercharged version of a current 2.7-litre DOHC V6 with a six-speed manual gearbox.
However, variations of Hyundai's new-generation 3.3 and 3.8-litre V6 engines are expected to debut in the 2+2 seater sports car, with the latter one likely to be the range-topper.
"Yes, we are developing rear-wheel drive for the next sports car," was the surprising response from Hyun Soon Lee, Executive Senior Vice President for Hyundai Motor Corporation.
This remark came after a suggestion from the gathered press at the opening of the 2005 Seoul motor show in South Korea that the company seek the passionate sports car route to increase its global youth appeal, rather than simply focus on quality.
Mr Lee's remark even caught out other Hyundai executives.
It is a surprising development for a model that started out as the very unsporty two-door derivation of the front-wheel drive Hyundai X2 Excel of 1990 called the S-Coupe.
That car's predecessor jumped up to the 1995 J2 Lantra platform to become the SX, FX and SFX Coupe until the current, sharper - but still front-wheel drive - Tiburon came into the fray in 2002.
A rear-wheel drive sports car is in line with Hyundai's desire to push its vehicles further upmarket.
Such a model willl probably share many components with a rear-wheel drive sedan in much the same way that Nissan's 350Z has spawned a range of mostly-US market Infinity products such as the G35.
There has been speculation for some time that Hyundai was considering releasing a luxury line of vehicles above the current, Sonata-derived Grandeur - which has just had a complete makeover and is the star of Hyundai's stand at Seoul.
Adding further credence to Hyundai's sports image push is its re-entry into the World Rally Championship from 2008.
The company says it will field an all-wheel drive "sports car" very loosely derived from the yet-to-be released Accent replacement, the front-wheel drive MC4 small car.
[/quote]Where's good old GD?
-
oh ya, it's ugly as hell but this model seems like it'll actually have performance.
-
i like it, no auto
-
Car looks goofy as hell, wont be the ugliest car on the road but damn.
I love the GINORMOUS grill with the Hyundai badge....
Going to be an expensive accident as the whole car is one peice, assuming the production model will not be??? (Note where there should be a front bumper cover and rear bumper cover.)
Also where are the damn door handles?
-
2slo50h wrote:
Going to be an expensive accident as the whole car is one peice, assuming the production model will not be??? (Note where there should be a front bumper cover and rear bumper cover.)Also where are the damn door handles?
it is a CONCEPT car....
-
wannabe wrote:
Hyundai and kia rip off all japanese car designs, and compromise quality to keep the prices low.I dont think that is true anymore at leastnot for the actual hyundais.if they skimped on quality so much then they couldnt afford to have a warrenty like they do. They would go broke, and from what I hear they are one of the fastest growing companies.
-
Jim wrote:
looks more like an aston martin rip off to me then a supra...
i agree -
-
Hyundai has made great strides in the past 10 years. When honda and toyota first came to the US, people said yeah but its still a honda...etc..look at them now. Hyundai has models that compete and match or pass the quality of other top manufactures. Look at the first tiburon that thing was an eye sore, second gen not to bad, this concept looks like they are heading in the right direction. No, i'm not a hyundai fan, but i am a fan of the auto industry. It's nice to see that they are not afraid to make a bold statement rather than produce boring models. Look at GM, most of their models are ho-hum=boring and sales prove it. So alright hyundai, way to go, how much of this concept makes it into production remains to be seen, fact is, the new kid on the block can no longer be kicked around.
Hello! It looks like you're interested in this conversation, but you don't have an account yet.
Getting fed up of having to scroll through the same posts each visit? When you register for an account, you'll always come back to exactly where you were before, and choose to be notified of new replies (either via email, or push notification). You'll also be able to save bookmarks and upvote posts to show your appreciation to other community members.
With your input, this post could be even better 💗
Register Login