I think Hyundai is on target with this sports coupe. If it can keep the projected price to the mid $20's and keep weight to about 3000-3200lbs, than Hyundai will have a bonafide RWD competitor to other sports coupes. The next couple of years will be interesting if your following Hyundai.

It's a nice looking car but the rear quarter windows ruin the lines. RWD turbo 4 coupe = win.

215 horsepower 2.0L turbocharged 4-cylinder.... why is this exciting? Why would you buy this over the more power 6 cyl version?

Answers, I want answers!!

cause not everybody's stupid, that's why.
People will like having a RWD coupe that will also have a decent MPG. 215hp and some decent torque (it's a turbo, so it will have) and that's enough for a car to put a smile on your face without creating a crater in your pocket.
V6 will be the choice for tuners/wanabee racers, and a v8 will probably be offered in a couple of years.

If they keep the styling close to this when it gets into production, I'll definitly be keen on replacing my Tiburon with it.

Hope the MPG on that new engine has some good numbers though. I agree about the back quarter window... but anything to help that blindspot will be a blessing.

@Sabby:

The turbo 4 would also be a strong candidate for tuning and its stock form would provide decent MPG with performance. (akin to the 200hp 4.0L V6 in the Mustang). That would actually be my first choice if I were to purchase this car

4cyl vs. 6cyl... think weight. Handling will be changed since you'd be gaining another 1/2 of the weight again by adding two more cylinders (more understeer). Might not be obvious depending on how heavy the body is, but it'll be there. Could be compensated by a different handling package between the two engine types.

Hard to say if you'd gain in fuel efficiency either since you're pulling a certain weight with both engines. Whichever engine is less stressed might turn out to be the most efficient. Could be the V6.

I hope they don't screw up the styling and leave it really close to the SEMA photos. Obviously it will loose the hood and other C/F treatments, but it's still sexy.

My Integra has been waiting to be replaced for a while, and most likely will be with this car.

That Turbo4 should be able to easily hit 300 with a bit of tuning a new turbo under the hood. If it's the same as the one coming in the Lancer RalliArt it should be good for 300ish to the wheels on the stock block. That alone would make it a viable option to the V6 which would be hard to mod outside of the normal I/H/E combo's.

Sabby: 215 horsepower 2.0L turbocharged 4-cylinder.... why is this exciting? Why would you buy this over the more power 6 cyl version? Answers, I want answers!!

1. Probably MRSP's for $5k less than the V-6.

2. Can probably easily be tuned (modified) to make more power and torque than the V-6 for $2,000, though it wouldn't have the low-end punch of a 3.8L V-6.

3. It will be lighter and have have better weight distribution than the (probably) 3.8 V-6 from the Azera.

V6 will be the choice for tuners/wanabee racers - bear

This statement alone shows you know nothing about imports. You should keep your comments to the Ford pick'em up! posts...

Noya has a point over-boosting the 4 will be easier tune. Bolt-ons and aftermarket ECU should be good for over 300HP. However a set of head spacers and supercharge could get the V6 well over 400HP but pricey. Still rather see a V8 though. Let see how much it gets nerfed for production.

I'm not a hyundai fan or even an import fan for that matter. But I LOVE this car! And I belive it will sell like hotcakes here. And well, hotcakes sell pretty damn good here in the states lol. The turbo 4 is def a good idea, and it'll be ungodly easy to tune to around 300. Very similiar to the 4G63. I'm def on board to buy this hot hyundai!

Lets hope they get the chassis tuning right, Koreans are notorious for soft rides and landslides of body roll... and for love of all that's good in motorism, NO SOLID REAR AXLES! (yea I'm bashing Ford, not Hyundai)

@ Noya

No matter what you do, a V6 has a better potential for tuning than a 4cylinder... more is better (cause, you know, it is not illegal to turbo-charge a V6, as Porsche and some others demonstrate)

@SVT:

The V6 can definitely be boosted as well but it will be traveling in uncharted waters. That V6 hasn't been around that long and I haven't been able to find anyone with a boosted Azera (the only car the engine is in now) online... Risk and reliability aside, you'd probably be looking at $5K-$10K to get full custom TT or SC setup done on a V6, which would put the cost a bit above what most people would want to spend on a Hyundai.

@SVT

Porshe has never mad anything with a V6 engine in it. It's a flat six.

@ no one

If the 4 cylinder goes for under 20g's I'll be putting a deposit down on one. I've been wanting a small, fun, and fuel efficient rwd coupe for awhile. My current rx7 gets 14mpg... :o( . I refuse to buy another fwd car, so I'm glad rwd is getting popular again. I'd get the 4 cylinder b/c it's lighter and cheaper. I don't need all the luxury they'd force you to buy with a v6. I want it cheap.

@SVT

Porshe has never made anything with a V6 engine in it. It's a flat six.

@ no one

If the 4 cylinder goes for under 20g's I'll be putting a deposit down on one. I've been wanting a small, fun, and fuel efficient rwd coupe for awhile. My current rx7 gets 14mpg... :o( . I refuse to buy another fwd car, so I'm glad rwd is getting popular again. I'd get the 4 cylinder b/c it's lighter and cheaper. I don't need all the luxury they'd force you to buy with a v6. I want it cheap.

This car is definitely on my short list for test drives. I can't really decide yet which I would prefer, the V6 or a turbo4. Gas mileage will be practically identical given the similar weight, drivetrain and power (assuming a modded 300hp turbo4). Also my foot.

I think the deciding factors will be weight, options, and modding costs. The turbo4 will probably save around 50 lbs, and keeping the options to "driver essentials" will save some more. If modding the turbo4 costs more than a few thousand it may not be worth the hassle, however. Ditch the spare, get a set of run-flats and order the V6 :-)

Thanks for all the answers!!! It does look like a nice, sporty, affordable car. I'm sure it'd do well...

Would I buy one, no. If I was given one, I wouldn't turn it down.

I saw pictures of the production version of this car a while back. I'm surprised you guys haven't seen them yet. It was a picture of a silver one sitting next to a silver mustang. The one they showed in SEMA is the same except for aftermarket type bumpers, hood and sides skirts. The production version looks better without all that stuff on.

@Tr:

Those pics were posted here last month. Here you go:

http://www.thetorquereport.com/2007/11/allnew_hyundai_rwd_coupe_is_no.html#more

and here

http://www.thetorquereport.com/2007/11/spy_photos_of_hyundais_allnew.html#more

215 HP is a good start, especially if the car stays under 3000 lbs. Around 2800 would be preferable. An ecu re-flash, K&N drop in filter, and 3" exhaust would probably net some decent gains with a proper tune.

I hope it doesn't weight 3,400 pounds...

If so, I won't buy one.

I hope it doesn't weigh 3,400 pounds...

If so, I won't buy one.

I wish it would weight 2800 pounds, but from looks alone I really
doubt it. My guess is it will weight 3000 to 3200 pounds, and I'm being pretty optimistic. But remmember if the turbo four is mated with a good transmition and all other components are well tuned, the car should still be fun to drive. Sometimes it's not just the power but how well the car's components put that power to the ground.

Who cares, it's a hyundai a piece of crap. Car sucks and for that mid 25k range i'd rather get a used bmw or something, but if i had to get this car i would get the 6cyl. Anyways what is the 0-60 on this car?

@CAR:

Good luck with that used BMW not being a piece of crap. I have personally seen 2 7series and 3 3 series cars in the shop for extended periods of time, and one of the 7 series being a lemon due to the iDrive thing being dead 3 times while he was driving on the highway. And these were all 2-3 year old cars. My wife's Sonata hasn't been in the shop once in the 1 1/2 years we've had it. Another friend of mine drives a Tiburon and it too hasn't been in the shop for repairs in the 4 years he's had it.

Ask any BMW tech how reliable a Bimmer is and if they're honest, they'll tell you they aren't any more reliable than a Chevy.

Hyundai reliability has risen to or above the levels of Toyota and Honda in the past years.

Some simple math would say this car should run anywhere from 5.4-5.8 0-60 for the V6. The Turbo4 should be somewhere in the range of 6.2-6.5

215hp from a boosted 4 is pretty low actually. Let's hope that the car has a low combustion ratio for some serious adjustments. After all Mazda can get 260 out of a DI turbo 4. It's too bad they didn't use the 2.4 turbo from the caliber srt-4.

300hp and >250tq will be kinda good, but not really that impressive. My 5 year old 3.5L VQ35DE puts out 287hp and 274tq with an admittedly bad intake plenum design.

they are going to need to watch the weight on it. They get anywhere near 3400 lbs and they aren't going to have enough power to compete.

hahahaha

there is no way this car will take off, with the likes of nissan skyline (r34/r35) Siliva (s15 200sx) and the Mistibishi Lancer (Evo) and Mazda Rx8 & 6 Turbo this is going to fail

in my opinion.... if the price was kept low enough perhaps it might work.. but then you can always get a "run out model" of the cars above which IMO will be better

@Hitoriko:

I want some of what you're smoking.

The Skyline and Lancer Evo are in a completely different class of cars and do not really compare with this car.

The Mazda 6 turbo is a plasticy family sedan with a turbo option, not a RWD coupe. Similar speeds doesn't mean cars compete in sales. The Rx8 may be killed off soon due to lack luster sales, which is why the Rx7 hasn't seen the light of day, yet you think the Genesis coupe will be hindered by them? Don't even get me started on the interior quality of the Mazda/Fords you listed above.

I don't think any of the cars you listed above can even be found for prices less than what this Hyundai is supposed to be priced at without having a ton of miles and wear.

The price will be kept low enough as they've already said the $25K range for the V6 and $21K range for the turbo 4.

In your thinking, this car will never sell because Chevy also just released a new Vette and Dodge released the new Viper. Or better yet, the new Lancer will never sell because Ferrari and Lamborghini are releasing newer models soon. Hyundai better watch out cause Bentley has a new luxo 4 door coming out.

Me, I don't care because I don't like Hyundai cars.

@ Paul: Who cares? Your loss! Hyundai makes incredibly reliable and well-enginered vehicles out there... I bet you have a mullet and 87 Camaro too right?