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2005 Hyundai Tucson

San Francisco: Hyundai has come a long ways from the day that its first Excel sedans appeared on our shores. The Korea-based automaker now offers a full line of vehicles ranging from economy and near luxury cars to SUVs and minivans. Its newest offering is the Tucson compact SUV.

Its designed to go up against competitors like the Ford Escape, Mazda Tribute, Toyota RAV4 and Honda CR-V. Styling of Tucson, unlike the larger and unique-looking Hyundai Santa Fe, is more mainstream. Translation – you have to look at the emblems to determine the make and model.

The Tucson comes in three trim levels, GL, GLS and LX.  A 2.0-liter, inline, four-cylinder engine, also used in the Hyundai Elantra and Tiburon, is available only in the base GL with a 5-speed manual transmission and a 4-speed automatic. This DOHC, 16-valve engine is rated at 140-horsepower at 6000 rpm and 136 lb-ft of torque at 4500 rpm. The GLS and LX versions are powered by a 2.7-liter, DOHC, 24-valve V6 that produces 173-horsepower at 6000 rpm and 178 lb ft at 4000 rpm. Here only a 4-speed automatic with Shiftronic is available. 

Both the four cylinder and V6 versions are available in front- or four-wheel drive. The latter features a Borg Warner torque management system that monitors wheel traction, among other things. Normally, 99-percent of the engine power goes to the front wheels, but if slippage is detected, up to 50 percent of the power can be sent automatically to the rear wheels. You can lock the drivetrain in the 50-50 mode via a dashboard button if extra traction is needed.

The V6-equipped GLS I tested had more than adequate power for passing and hill climbing, though you could hear that is was working when you put-the-pedal-to-the metal. The 4-cylinder, especially with the automatic, might be on the weak side especially when loaded or when towing.

Properly equipped, the four-cylinder Tucson has a tow rating of 1500 pounds while this upped to 2000 pounds with the V6. The fuel tank holds 15.3 gallons on the GL and 17.2 gallons on the GLS and LX.

Prices for the Tucson start at $18,094 for the base GL, $20,644 for the GLS and $21,894 for the LX. Even the GL comes well equipped including standard air conditioning, cruise control,

AM/FM/CD audio system, power windows/door locks/power heated outside mirrors, tilt steering wheel and remote keyless entry. For a budget priced SUV, the Tucson includes lots of standard safety equipment that isn’t offered even as options on higher priced SUVs. This includes electronic stability and traction control, anti-lock brakes, front side airbags and side curtain airbags even on the GL. The option list is quite short. If you want a moonroof you will have to step up to the V6 powered Tucsons and leather upholstery is available only on the LX where it is standard fare.

For a five-passenger vehicle, interior room for people and their stuff is very good. More of the latter is available with the 60/40 folding rear seat that flips forward with ease to create a flat cargo floor. Entry and exiting is quite good and you sit high in the Tucson as expected in an SUV. Controls are easy to use and while the speedometer is quite large, the other gauges including the tachometer are on the smallish side. The interior is quite attractive though some of the materials look a bit cheap, but then you remember the Tucson’s low cost objective. Ride was very good, the road noise was quite acceptable, but the power rack-and-pinion steering had a light 1980’s feel. The shifts of the automatic were well timed, smooth and virtually invisible. Braking is very good.

Unlike its earlier days, Hyundai has boosted its image with high quality and quite reliable vehicles as shown by very impressive results in J.D. Power and Associates surveys. Then there is the best-in-the-industry 10-year/100,000-mile powertrain warranty. Even so, Hyundai’s still depreciate more rapidly than competitors, but not an important factor if you plan to drive the Tucson to use up that 10 year / 100,000 mile warranty.  By Bill Siuru  © AutoWire.Net - San Francisco

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Byline:  Syndicated content provided by Tony Leopardo © AutoWire.Net
Column Name:  Hyundai has boosted its image
Topic:  The 2005 Hyundai Tucson
Word Count:    743
Photo Caption:   The 2005 Hyundai Tucson
Photo Credits:   Hyundai Internet Media
Series #:   2005 - 16

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