I have around 45,000 miles on mine and I have only had to replace the door lock actuator and window motor. Mine is a 2004.

 

I have a 2008 with 9,000 miles on it and right now I have had no problems with it. They're not cheaply made at all, they'll run fine just as long as you take care of it. A 10 year 100,000 mile warranty screams reliability. It sounds like your uncle doesn't know about how they make Hyundai now compared to 20 years ago.

 

Thanks guys, this is great! Wow I'm pretty sure that the 2004 has a 50,000/5 year warranty, I heard that the last couple years are great but the 2004 model would be garnage (from my uncle). He's the manager of a lexus dealership.

 

I too have heard this from other people, however Hyundai motors has greatly changed and improved their quality of work. They are on the rise, and are by far one of the best car manufacturers around right now. Especially when it comes to the price and quality ratio.

However, as stated earlier, about the "it will run as long as you take care of it".....i believe that goes with EVERY car company out there. If you take care of what you have whether its a cheap clunker to a bugatti veyron, it will last you a good while. Now, some will outlast others, but I dont think you have to worry that much when it comes to Hyundai. You will be okay.

and as far as stats for personal use, i have a 2005 with 76,XXX and still running strong. Havent had to replace a single thing in it yet.

 

2003, 100k miles.

replaced:
alternator ($70 Did it myself)
steering rack ($1000)
hood struts ($20 did myself)
winshield fluid pump ($50 did myself)
gauge cluster went bad (under warranty)
window motor went bad (under warranty)

im probably forgettin some stuff. but considering all the accidents my car has been in, im not supprised.

are they cheaply made? yeah.. everything is held on by plastic screws and clips..
are they unreliable? depends on how well you take care of it.

 

Cheaply made- Yes
Reliable- relatively

 

Very reliable cars. Just don't got an '03 or an '04. You'll have a lot of minor problems haha

 

i have had my 03 for 3 years now...
i had to replace power window motor... 45 bucks...

thats it.....
great car.. i drive the snot out of it and no problems at all..

 

Haha, this thread name tickles my funny bone.

 

boning funny, it tickles.

 

lol first of all when comparing a lexus to anything as far as quality the other is going to look like garbage, and secondly even if they are cheaply made they run great! bought my 05 w/ 37k and rode it to around 80k before i had to do anything, most of the problems with my car were caused by the dodge dealership i bought it from. So that just goes to show you that just because you work at a dealer doesn't mean you know everything.

 

Yes I guess not, I'll show him this thread to prove him wrong

 

I've only had my Tib for 2 weeks so I'm not qualified to relate my personal experience, but I have a friend who has an '03 with over 100k on it and the only problem he's ever had was the paint on his gas cap peeling off. His experience was one of the reasons I looked into the car to begin with.

 

I have a 07 with almost 19,000 on it. The only problem I had was a brake light switch.

 

tell your uncle to change his calendar; its not the eighties anymore; yes, there are some issues with certain items on the car, but overall i would say the tib is a decent car to have as long as you dont get one of the buggy ones

 

It always kills me when people start comparing cars... we are not talking about a Lambo made out of carbon fiber... all cars are made from the same 3 or 4 materials... plastic ( main component of all cars made) metal, fabric ( either man made or natural) and glass....

Lexus does not use some super plastic in their cars.. it's the same stuff used in a Hyundai

Lexus when they first came out was a troublesome and crappy car, and now all of a sudden they are considered one of the best luxury cars on the market.. but are still made of the 4 basic components as any car.

Next time anyone has a bone for a Lexus, maybe you need to go sit in a brand new Buick... I defy you to say the Lexus is better... and then there is always the Hyundai Veracruz which beat out the Lexus SUV over and over in quality tests...

 

Tiburons aren't cheaply made. They are a cheap car. I mean that as to say you get what you pay for. A quality low cost sports coupe. high on style, moderate on everything else. The ONLY thing I had to do to my first 2003 tiburon in the 3 and a half years I had it was buy a new battery and a new tire. That's a pretty good run if you ask me.

I bought another 2003 tiburon a year ago and I've had a few other problems but i feel they are mostly the fault of the previous owner. Some weren't though. I had to buy a new alternator, new tire, new battery, new inside and outside door handles for driver side door, new door lock actuator, new window motor, and i think that's about it for a car thats 8 years old and has over 100,000 miles on it, that's not bad. definitely a quality car. You should read online reviews from people that review cars for a living. Sure we own tiburons, but we have a narrow scope of what quality is like across the board...

 

Yes, well I test drove the tiburon, and I know that I like how it rides, so I really dont care about how proffesionals like the car now I care about how long it will last me without having to put more money into it. thank you

 

2006 SE 116000 miles. No problems. Wrecked it badly while it was in shop took the time to do all maintenance to it and it has absolutely nothing wrong with it. engine is as clean as a whistler on the inside and out. no rust no nothing!

 

2003 - 135,000 KMs
Alternator - killed by my aftermarket stereo
Door handle cable
Have a minor issue with my idle climbing up a little bit randomly...

 

bought my 03' tiburon used with 76k miles... im now a lil over 126k miles and all i've had to replace was a cracked radiator, hose for the power steering and recharge my a/c. this car is way better than my 2000 mitsub!tchi eclipse. just make sure before you purchase a used tib to look at this: window motors, sunroof motor, bcm, tie rods & wheel bearings. if everything checks out on that list i gave you then you'll have a good used car

 

Thank you everyone who continues to post their problems, extremly helpful!
Keep em coming!

 

Had an 01 (previous style) Tiburon for six years from ~11k miles till about 85k miles, never did anything to it apart from routine maintenance, plugs/wires, timing belt, wheel bearings, etc... Main reason I got rid of it was massive hail damage and just deciding it was time for something new.

Have had my 08 GT for a little over a year and ~14.5k miles with zero problems. Car is noticeably more solid than the 01 as far as overall build quality, when I first got it I was amazed at little things like how much more solid the doors sounded when they closed lol

As others have said it sounds like your Uncle has the "old" Hyundai mentality and doesn't realize how much they've improved.

 

ur uncle works at a lexus dealer, just buy a damn IS

 

Your Uncle needs to find a new job because he has no clue what he is talking about! The money you pay for what you get works out in your favor. Hyundai is the master at making something really nice for very little money. I'm a service manager at Firestone and I can honestly say I NEVER see Hyundai in for serious issues.

 

just cuz you never see it doesn't mean it doesn't happen.

 

I have a 2003 GT 6spd and I bought it very cheap, knowing it was prone to many small problems. So far I have been able to fix everything myself...but that's just it. DO YOU HAVE THE TIME TO FIX EVERYTHING YOURSELF?

As of now (2 years later), YES I would by it again, just based on looks. Sure is pretty

 

this is the same talk that people had back in the 70s and 80s about Toyota. Everyone said they were crap and today everyone loves toyota for their reliability and they proved to be great cars minus the recent events. There is a reason why the genesis got named 2009 North American Car of the year. People are realizing that they are actually very decent cars...go check their stock (HYMLF) and check their performance over the past 10 years thats the best way to analyze a company's performance

 

Bottom line here is to by the damn car! You will be happy with it!

 

Wow thanks for all the help guys, pretty convincing, think im gonna go ahead and buy it.
Thanks

 

I had a 2003, 4cyl, with about 125,000km on it (when I sold it) and had 0 problems with it. I was right on top of the maintenace though.

Tires, brakes, did the timing belt water pump on schedule, oil changes, air filter, spark plugs and put gas it in. Not even one problem happened with that car (unless you consider a burnt out headlight bulb to be some major reliability issue) and I was kinda sad to sell it but my lady can't drive stick and we had no use for 2 cars.