2005 Hyundai Tucson GL from North America - Comments

Radio not connected to antenna when vehicle was delivered. (Repaired immediately by dealership)

Rear Defroster disconnected during repair of radio antenna (Repaired immediately by dealership)

The mileage has been acceptable - around 21 mpg city, which is where I am normally driving. The locations I am most often in are very "stop and go" type areas.

Highway mileage is great - around 25 mpg, when the car is not loaded down or traversing mountains.

Highway mileage when loaded down and traversing mountains is around 21 mpg, still acceptable.

I have no complaints so far with this vehicle. It is not as powerful as a V6, obviously, but I'm very happy with the model I chose. It suits my needs quite well.

We took the vehicle on a 2000 mile round trip about 2 months ago, with no problems.

The vehicle handles very well in the snow and ice that we have in New England.

Just wanted to add an update to my original Tucson comments. I'm still very satisfied with the vehicle. Still no problems, and we're up to about 11,000 miles now. Have had a couple oil changes, and routine service. I still really enjoy the vehicle - and still recommend it!

I have owned my 2005 Tucson since May 2005. It is one of the best appointed, most useful vehicles I have ever owned. It's a bit underpowered (I bought the 4 cyl-manual 5 speed) but the vehicle rides great anyway.

Another update:

I am now at about 27,000 miles with no issues. Continuing maintenance (oil changes, tire rotations, 15,000 mile service,etc.). Still no complaints, still love the vehicle. Averaging 22 - 23 mpg, which for an SUV is pretty good. Still recommending the vehicle.

New Update:

In December of 2007 I had to replace the tires. The ones that came as original equipment (OE) were extremely worn, and I was having serious issues with driving in the snow. I replaced the old tires (Hankook brand) with a nice set of BF Goodrich tires, and am extremely satisfied. This was at about 30,000 miles. The OE tires were supposed to be 60K mile tires, but obviously they fell seriously short of that. The 60K mile warranty is not good on OE tires though, so there was no coverage for replacement of the tires even though they only lasted half their promised lifetime. This is a bit frustrating, but from what I understand this is an across the board issue for all makes of vehicles when it comes to tires - the manufacturer does not guarantee them if they are OE tires. Absurd, but true.

Thankfully my new tires are guaranteed through Sears, which is where they were replaced. I have already tested the warranty by running over a big screw at a gas station on a Sunday afternoon and having to have the tire patched (no charge) at the local Sears. Took about an hour, and we were back on the road.

Update - January 2009.

After a few trips to the shop (airbag light kept coming on for the drivers side), they finally replaced a bunch of sensors and such to get it back to working normally. They tried resetting it a few times, but that only 'fixed' the issue for a few weeks and then the light came back on.

Personally, I don't think this is so much a problem with the car as it was with the dealership that I have been working with. I moved in July of 2008, and the nearest dealership is not very competent. I may have to drive further and hope for more competency.

I am still quite pleased with my Tucson. No other issues - still getting good mileage, and it still drives great. Going on 4 years of driving this car now, and I really have no complaints. Now if they can make an electric model or hybrid, it would most certainly be my next vehicle choice - and while I do enjoy the Tucson, I think our next new vehicle will be one that is more environmentally friendly.