Hyundai Coupe Review
Published: 26th July 2007
Hyundai Coupe
On the road the 2.0 litre coupe’s performance is best described as warmish. You have to work the gearbox to get the most from the car, it felt more like a family saloon rather then a sports coupe.
On the motorway it felt as though a sixth gear would calm the engine down, it revs a little too high and we felt like we wanted to change up into sixth.
Overall the engine and gearbox are fine but do not inspire the spirited drive that the exterior would suggest. We don’t remember the 2.7 litre series II feeling this way, so perhaps that is a better option if performance is your key reason for buying a coupe. Although on paper the V6's 0-62 mph figure is only one second quicker at 8.3 seconds and academically 8 mph faster.
The fuel consumption is not too bad and figures are quoted as 25.9 mpg for the urban cycle, 44.1 mpg for the extra-urban and the combined works out as 35.3 mpg. The CO2 emissions are 193g/km putting the Coupe in VED Band F.
For those of you who like to watch how many Newton’s of torque your car is producing, there is even a gauge, although we had trouble watching it and looking where we were going.
How It Drove - Ride/Handling
The 2.0 litre Hyundai Coupe rides on 17” wheels with 215/45 ZR tyres, the ride is quite compliant with British roads, although it will crash over pot holes and at lower speeds it did feel a bit harsh. The steering is very direct and well weighted and quite heavy compared to most cars today.
We were surprised that the 2.0 litre Coupe was not equipped with electronic stability programme (ESP) and traction control. We think that this safety feature should be standard on all cars, just as ABS (anti-lock brakes) have become. Being front wheel drive and without the protection of traction control, pulling out off of a road junction in the wet does require restraint as you will face the inevitable torque steer and wheel spin.
Overall all what we liked most about the Coupe SIII as with the previous model is that everyone can have safe fun; it does not take a skilled driver to be entertained.
