Whoa, so much hype over a misprinted catalog. I went to the showroom in Glenmarie today (not intentional as I was sending my Avante for service) and managed to get a copy of the catalog that Informer has scanned and posted here. There was indeed errors noted in the catalogs but the SA clarified the errors. Furthermore, newer catalogs seems to have the errors ammended.
I guess owners who could not accept the fact that there is no power seat should just cancel their orders and get their refunds as I do not see this is a strong enough case to bring to court. The company has taken remedy action as soon as the errors are realised. If they just pretend like nothing has happened and continue to produce ads that promises a driver powered seat, then it's a different case.
Anyway, I had the opportunity to test drive the Tucson today! Just dropped by to point out some issues that were not done in my earlier service and noticed a blue Tucson parked outside. I asked my SA if I could take it out for a spin and he said ok. Yippee! Haven't tested any cars for a while now and was very curious to see what this new generation of Hyundai is all about (not to mention this car shares similar Theta II engine with the new Sonata, a car I am most interested to own someday).
The Blue Ice was driven to the front and my SA jumps out before inviting me to the "unpowered" driver's seat. Was told this was a basic model specially flown in from overseas for test drives ... yet it had semi leather seats. Great, more confusion on the specs. SA reconfirms that basic 2.0 does NOT have leather seats. Ok .... let's get this beauty moving. Seating position is higher than a sedan, of course but not as high as some other SUVs, I felt. The leather steering has the right amount of thickness to feel marvelous to hold. The greatest improvement I felt immediately is how weighted the steering is now. Compared to the Avante which is so light, u always get the feeling u're oversteering at each corner, the Tucson's steering is easy to turn yet provides good feedback to the driver. I can imagine driving this car with confidence, even around high speed tight corners.
The route we took had some good long stretches that allowed me to floor the throttle. The low end torque is sufficient to make the car lively but when u do some hard acceleration, I feel the 2.0 Theta II is somewhat lacking. The engine note sounds somewhat rough during hard acceleration but it could be that the engine is still relatively new or what my SA said about the Theta II engine is more performance tuned being true. The gear shifts are pretty seamless though and in all honesty if I`m not in any hurry, I think this would be a nice car to drive around. The suspension seems to be more comfort tuned and the car runs though potholes and bumps with ease ... parking at sidewalks as some 4x4 drivers are wont to do would not pose a problem for this car.
Halfway thought the test drive, I switched places with my colleague who tagged along and was seating behind. The rear seats are really comfortable ... so much better than my boss's new Volvo XC60. Legroom and headroom is excellent and if u opt for the high spec 2.0 or 2.4, u get another sunroof behind, making the car cabin feels much more airier. Comfort level in terms of suspension while seating behind is good.
After about 10 minutes of drive, we went back to the showroom ... it was just a short drive but I'm quite satisfied with what I have learnt about the car. I`ll still wait for my Sonata though ... just a matter of preference for sedans.
P.S: Hyundai is already taking orders for the Sonata ... booking fee is RM2k, expected waiting list is 3 months. Launch date due next month.
Bro Kenso,
Did u ask how much is the trade in value of your Avante if you opt to take either the Sonata or Tucson?