Unless you find excitement in a long warranty, there's not much in the current Hyundai lineup that will hold your interest. That will change soon, as the 2010 Hyundai Tiburon, spotted recently during hot-weather testing in Death Valley, California, is shaping up to be one good-looking performance coupe.
Hyundai turned a few heads earlier this year when it introduced the Genesis sedan, a thinly veiled concept of a high-end luxury car slated for production in late 2008. With its all-new rear-wheel-drive platform and a V8 under the hood, it promised a level of performance unheard of in a Korean four-door.
Naturally, Hyundai is looking for ways to expand the use of its new platform, and a replacement for the current front-wheel-drive Tiburon is the next step. By moving to the new platform, the next-generation Tiburon will not only switch to rear-wheel drive, it will grow in most dimensions. Styling appears inspired by the HCD-8 Concept from several years ago, which is not such a bad thing as far as we're concerned.
So it looks good and has the power going to the rear wheels — the only question left is how much power? Well, from what we've uncovered so far, base models will get a 2.0-liter, turbocharged, four-cylinder engine standard. Expect to see as much as 250 horsepower; a number that would put it well above most of its foreign competitors.
If that's not enough, top-of-the-line Tiburons will get Hyundai's 3.8-liter V6. It makes 260 horses in the Veracruz SUV, but we expect Hyundai to crank it up to as much as 300 horses for this coupe. Coupled with either a six-speed manual or six-speed automatic transmission, this Tiburon will have some pretty solid performance credentials. We expected the possibility of V8 power as well, but we've now confirmed it's not going to happen.
As close as this prototype looks to production, don't expect to see it anytime soon. Hyundai plans to launch the Genesis sedan in late 2008, so production of this coupe isn't likely to start until early 2009 at the latest. That means its warranty will go until 2020, not that any of its buyers will care.
Hyundai turned a few heads earlier this year when it introduced the Genesis sedan, a thinly veiled concept of a high-end luxury car slated for production in late 2008. With its all-new rear-wheel-drive platform and a V8 under the hood, it promised a level of performance unheard of in a Korean four-door.
Naturally, Hyundai is looking for ways to expand the use of its new platform, and a replacement for the current front-wheel-drive Tiburon is the next step. By moving to the new platform, the next-generation Tiburon will not only switch to rear-wheel drive, it will grow in most dimensions. Styling appears inspired by the HCD-8 Concept from several years ago, which is not such a bad thing as far as we're concerned.
So it looks good and has the power going to the rear wheels — the only question left is how much power? Well, from what we've uncovered so far, base models will get a 2.0-liter, turbocharged, four-cylinder engine standard. Expect to see as much as 250 horsepower; a number that would put it well above most of its foreign competitors.
If that's not enough, top-of-the-line Tiburons will get Hyundai's 3.8-liter V6. It makes 260 horses in the Veracruz SUV, but we expect Hyundai to crank it up to as much as 300 horses for this coupe. Coupled with either a six-speed manual or six-speed automatic transmission, this Tiburon will have some pretty solid performance credentials. We expected the possibility of V8 power as well, but we've now confirmed it's not going to happen.
As close as this prototype looks to production, don't expect to see it anytime soon. Hyundai plans to launch the Genesis sedan in late 2008, so production of this coupe isn't likely to start until early 2009 at the latest. That means its warranty will go until 2020, not that any of its buyers will care.
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