2002 Hyundai Tiburon GT V6 from North America - Comments

I've owned this vehicle for about three months now and I can't really complain about it in a more extreme sense. Well, here is a list of what is wrong or needs to be done as I see it.

- Either the driver's side power door lock is short-circuiting constantly or the keyless entry remote seems to be malfunctioning. When the remote is in close proximity to the car and initiated, the driver's side door unlocks and quickly locks so I have to quickly open the door to get in. Also, while driving, occasionally, the lock will lock and unlock itself. Scary, huh? Not that big of a deal to me, but I sure would like to get it fixed...

- When I purchased the car, I noticed that the sunroof shade was just sitting in two pieces in the trunk. I would like to fix that as well although I do enjoy the extra light.

- At first, the fog lights wouldn't work all the time, but I believe I tampered enough to keep them running properly.

- After returning from college classes, I got in a bit of a tangle with my backpack. I was pinned to the seat by that behemoth schoolbag and the steering wheel. When I got out, my knee went right through the Infinity speaker cover on the driver's side door panel. Although it's a minor issue and an easy fix, I believe that nothing should break that easily in a car. I recall older covers being either metal or hard plastic.

- I need an oil change soon. That's about it.

- Overall, for the mileage of the vehicle and the make of it, I am quite surprised. I used to despise Hyundai until I got behind the wheel of this beast for a test drive.

The 2003 Hyundai Tiburon GT V6 has to be the best sports car value on the market. For under $12,000 before taxes, I got a light, quick car with leather seats, a power sunroof, a seven-speaker 360-watt Infinity sound system, all power, all-disc brakes, alloy wheels, dual exhaust, spoiler, and to top it off, a freakin' V6! This machine indeed handles like it's on rails and it is not intimidating in inclement weather like my previous vehicle. To me, for an automatic V6, the 0 to 60 time is quite impressive and the manual shift gate makes driving more hands-on and exciting (wishing I got the six-speed, but I live in the city). I am seriously so happy with this car despite the few interior/electronic defects that I will fix relatively soon. Fantastic car, I must say...

The problem with the door unlocking, then locking may be tied to the ignition. My two cars (Sonata and Santa Fe) have a feature that will not allow the doors to be locked if the key is in the ignition and in the off position. If you hit the power locks, they lock momentarily, then unlock, which is opposite of your problem, though I would suspect the ignition switch.

Hey. I'm the original composer of this review and I just have a quick update on the Tiburon. Almost two weeks ago, I installed an Injen short ram intake which really, really made the engine come alive. However, Tiburon owners out there better be careful, especially with higher mileage and such (mine now has 82,400) because, in my case, the mass air flow sensor wires went bad and I had to get it replaced at a local dealership hoping that the extended warranty I got will cover it (aftermarket intake may make or break that case). Also, with a decent oil change, the car is sure to run smoothly as usual. Hmmm... what else? Well, I know for sure this car is fairly reliable since I had to take a couple long distance business trips from Philadelphia to State College and eventually Harrisburg. Gas mileage for a V6 is surprisingly fairly decent on the highway, too.