Too Much, Too Soon
by Jim Currie (26 Jan 00)

Not many manufacturers would be bold enough to tinker with a Coupé introduced just three years ago, and so successful that it outsells Fiat's own version in Italy.

So, the marketing people at Hyundai deserve either medals for bravery or a gentle spell of counselling by earnest people wearing white coats.

They have given the car a real makeover, from new snout to resculpted tail, but at least this looks fine. The familiar bonnet bulges and waistline love handles remain, but on a test drive in Majorca other alterations didn't work quite so well.

Although not listed in the lengthy document detailing the changes, the suspension has been subjected to a softening-up process. The Porsche-tuned system (remember it in the dismal Seat Ibiza of the '80s?) takes away the original version's sporting feel, and replaces it with the type of ride which has stopped the otherwise excellent Mazda MX-5 from being anything other than a cute pretender.

On the Mediterranean island's steep climbs, twisty downhill runs and hair-raising switches of camber just when you don't need them, the Hyundai managed to cling on reasonably well, but the original car would have shrugged all of this off as though it didn't matter. Turn on the rain, and what was still a fairly pleasant outing could have become a white-knuckle ride.

And although the performance figures still indicate 111bhp from the 1.6 litre and a healthy 137 bhp if you opt for the two-litre power pack, a new exhaust system has removed just enough of the "bite" from the car as to make the throttle response almost dull by comparison.

I suspect the new exhaust has been packed with the cotton wool of anti-emission gubbins which will make for a smooth passage through the car's first MOT test, but has given it an almost asthmatic character. No doubt quite a few new owners will be found earnestly studying the Mongoose catalogue after their first high speed runs.

Elsewhere the updating process has worked very well. The acres of black vinyl on the dashboard have gone. Okay, there's still a lot of plastic real estate up there, but somehow the new grey finish doesn't look so gloomy.

Minor controls, the gear lever and door panels have also been subjected to some cosmetic surgery, and the overall effect of this is pleasing enough. Prices remain attractive at £13,999 for the 1.6i, rising to £17,399 if your budget will run to the 2.0 SE.

Verdict: an excellent sporting car has been tinkered with too soon.

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