Contour Enthusiasts Group Archives Forums General Common Interests Test drove a new Tiburon

had some time to kill today while in town and decided to take a look at the new Tiburon, since I've read some good performance numbers for it. I ended up taking a black, loaded GT, with the V6 and 6 speed for a ride with the sales manager. I was somewhat surprised at how nice it was. I found the seats to be quite comfortable and supportive, I especially liked the fact that they have shoulder bolsters. The car I drove had leather and I didn't slide around one bit, though in all honesty and fairness I didn't exactly get to take it down any nice twisties. As far as power goes.....it's decently quick, but didn't feel quite as quick as my 99 SE, could be slower or could just be the fact that it was really queit inside the car, with little road noise or sound coming from the engine. The shifter is ok, a little rubbery feeling, but i only needed the first 3 gears or so to hit 60, and I found myself getting lost in the gears, forgetting which one I was in. The clutch was really soft and took some getting used to and this is the first car I've driven that made my clutch feel stiff when I got back in. All in all, it seems to be a decent car, especially for under 20K. I didn't catch the price on the one I drove, but the 2 GT 5 speeds there were just under 18,000. Most of my driving was on city streets in mid day traffic though with only a short stint outside of town, and that was even on a long straight stretch of road with moderate traffic.

Interesting. Definitely an improvement over the last one. Sat in one at an auto show and liked what they did with the interior.

Most "performance" cars with 5 speeds will hit the 60mph range at the top of second gear. There was a study done that concluded this I read a few months back.

I thought it was a 6 speed?

Damn thing does not NEED a 6 speed. My TDI would make better use of a 6 speed than a Tiberon!

The highest model of the Tiburon does have a 6 speed. The V6 comes with either 5 speed or 6 but I think the 6 speed model comes with nicer wheels and more stuff.

The GT is a 6 spd I believe and the model below it is the 5 spd- but they are both V 6's atleast I think I havent been to the dealership in a while