As we’ve previously reported, Hyundai is planning to revive the Tiburon coupe, at least in concept if not name, as a low-cost sibling to its new Genesis Coupe. Hyundai Motor America’s acting CEO, John Krafcik, said that the new coupe will be a cheaper, fuel efficient, stylish sibling to the more overtly performance-oriented Genesis.
“It will have a lower price point, kind of eco-sport positioning, where it is not going to be all about performance,” Krafcik told Autoweek. “It is going to be very fuel efficient. It is going to be stylish, a real nice complement to the Genesis coupe.”
Hyundai was supposed to unveil the new coupe at the Frankfurt Motor Show in 2009, but the car was a no-show. Hyundai has said that the production car will be based on the Veloster concept shown earlier, and should retain as much as 80 percent of the styling, as well as feature a unique style concept that will be new to the segment.
The new Tiburon will share the front-wheel-drive platform used in the Accent and Elantra, which means it will likely also get a 1.6-liter 140 horsepower four-cylinder engine. Hyundai also says to expect at least 40 miles per gallon, which would make this the most fuel efficient car yet from the Korean automaker.
Expect pricing to start around $15,000, about $3,000 less than the 2008 Tiburon’s base price.
It’s likely that the Tiburon name will be dropped in favor of something new, though no badge has been suggested. The two-door was sold as the Hyundai Coupe in Europe.
