Daewoo Tacuma Review
Published: 19th January 2004
Daewoo Tacuma
How It Drove - Performance
Town driving is the perfect environment for the Tacuma the automatic gearbox does the hard work for you so that you can concentrate on the road ahead. On the open road the Tacuma performed well although the engine became noisier when pushed harder and whilst overtaking on the Motorway.
Our test car was fitted with a four-speed automatic gearbox which was developed for Daewoo by ZF and is available on the 2.0 CDX as an £875 option. This transmission featured a hold button which allowed you to hold a gear and a power mode for improved acceleration allowing the engine to shift gear at higher revs.
The 2.0 CDX engine was developed for Daewoo by General Motors in Australia and coupled to the ZF automatic gearbox develops 121PS and has a very respectable 0-62mph time of 12 seconds. The engine isn't the most refined in its class and mechanically made the Tacuma feel slightly dated.
Fuel economy was also a concern with a combined figure of 26.2 mpg it inevitably means more trips to the petrol station for the proposed budget conscious family buyer.How It Drove - Ride/Handling
The Tacuma's overall ride and handling was good, this has been achieved with the help of Porsche. The steering is a bit on the light side which may or not be to your liking but was excellent for low speed manoeuvring. On 'A' roads the steering lacked any real feel and the ride became a bit harsher.
However, you must remember that the Tacuma is an MPV albeit a compact version and they have different handling characteristics. Their high centre of gravity means that they will not drive or handle like a conventional car, despite some road users believing the contrary. The Tacuma's high driving position does give you a commanding view of the road and is also beneficial for passengers as it makes the journey more interesting.
