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The nicest thing about driving the Hyundai Tiburon SE might be its throaty, hollow exhaust note. It's really fun to run up through the six-speed gearbox and enjoy the sounds. A lot of hot sports cars don't sound so hot, but the SE does a great job of delivering that sensual enjoyment, so good you forget there's just 172 horsepower. The redline on the tach is 6500, but the V6 will rev to 7000 before the rev limiter cuts the engine, and it sounds so good you often want to take it that far.
And when you look into the rearview mirror, you see the high spoiler to remind you that the Tiburon is at least trying to be cool. It does block visibility out the rear, which might be inconvenient because if you're always revving the engine to redline, you might want to keep an eye out for the cops.
The aluminum double-overhead-cam V6 is mounted transversely. It makes 181 pound-feet of torque, which isn't a ton, but it's all there at a low 3,800 rpm, and that means a lot. Cruising along at 75 mph in sixth gear, 3,500 rpm, you can mash the throttle without downshifting, and the SE accelerates well; of course, it'll squirt away better if you downshift to fifth. Just don't expect neck-snapping acceleration from the 172 horsepower, which has to pull the Tiburon's 2,986 pounds. Torque steer from the front-wheel drive is noticeable, a tug on the steering wheel when cornering and accelerating at the same time.
The gearbox, from German manufacturer ZF, is good, but the shifts aren't so sharp because the lever has a long throw and the linkage isn't as tight as it might be. However, the clutch action is smooth, especially on the upshifts, and that compensates a bit for the long throw. So overall, the upshifts work.
We can't say the same for the downshifts, at least not with heel-and-toe downshifting, because the gas pedal is quite a bit lower than the brake pedal. So you can't fit the toe of your foot on the brake pedal and easily blip the throttle at the same time. As serious as Hyundai was about the track-tuned suspension, it's surprising they missed something simple like the pedal position for sporty downshifting.
The ratios are fine; sixth gear is a tall overdrive designed to deliver better fuel mileage. It's basically an extra gear on top, because the ratio of fifth gear (0.86:1) is almost the same as the fifth gear (0.84:1) in the five-speed gearbox on the GS model.
EPA estimated highway mileage is the same as for other Tiburons, at 24 mpg, but city mileage with the six-speed drops from 17 mpg to 16. (The more frugal four-cylinder, five-speed GS manages 20/28 mpg, city/highway.)
We got a chance to test out the brakes, pushing the Hyundai Tiburon SE hard on a downhill run to the Pacific Ocean through Malibu's canyons. The SE's larger rotors (12-inch diameter front, compared to 11-inch on the other Tiburons) are cross-drilled for cooling, the first time Hyundai has tried this technology that's not uncommon to high-performance cars. The brakes are good and solid for a car in this class.
Grip is quite good for this price range. Compared to the other models, the Tiburon SE springs are 13 percent stiffer in front and 10 percent stiffer in the rear. Strut valving is also specific to the SE, and overall roll stiffness is increased by 32 percent. This all feels pretty firm on a choppy freeway, but not unbearably so, and it's reasonably comfortable over mere ripples. The SE handles corners well for the class. The Hyundai Tiburon SE has its limits when driven aggressively through switchback curves, but handles the situation well. It does a better job than its main competitor, the Mitsubishi Eclipse.
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