Please respond quickly!

New here and looking to buy a 2003 Tibby 6 speed with only 25k on it.  It is a one owner, in fantastic shape and driven easily.  Here is my question:
 
Has ANYONE had a clutch last in a 2003 Tibby for a normal ammount of time?  Is this a possible problem?....or a definately going to happen so shell out $2000 more than what you are paying up front kinda problem? 
 
Im not a hard driver but enjoy a little bit of gas here and there.  Cant see roasting the tires unless I had too and I appreciate more of just the sporty feel to a car.  Is this clutch going to dump on me?  If so, how often and most likely when?
 
Thanks for the quick replies as Im due to sign the day after tomorrow?
 
 

I really want a Tiburon.  However, I talked to a guy the other day that has a 2007 model, and his clutch gave out on it.  I was shocked to hear that it was not covered under warranty and cost him $1,500.00 to have it repaired.  Since when is a clutch a "normal wear item" when the darn car is still new??  I may not buy one after hearing that.  I just can't see myself buying one with an auto tranny.

i bought an 06 with auto/autostick and love it.  i am getting older and feeling too lazy to shift nowadays.lol

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love the gorilla math moonz....lol.  alot of times people end up smoking the flywheel too, thats why it ends up being 1500-1800 bucks. as far as the $150 kit goes, thats aftermarket not O.E.M. parts. OE parts always cost more.  hyundai charges(dealer cost) us 450 for an OE kit minus the flywheel, and flywheels run about $700.  so if you want some backwoods hillbilly to install an autozone "performance" kit fire it up, prolly last you a week. but hey, im to lazy to shift and bought an auto......w/100,000 mile warranty.......... 

Well, the 2003 was a no-go as there was a financing goof when the guy applied me for credit and he sold the car the next morning before I figured out the mistake he made.  I coulda hung the guy as my credit is just fine.
 
However, I ended up buying a brand new 2006 Tiburon SE instead from a different dealer.  I believe it was their last year showroom model and it only had about 80 miles on it.  Im kinda glad it worked out the way it did as I got a great deal on the car and its brand spanking new.  I was shy of the 2007's as Im not impressed with the new changes they have made (gills, wheels and so on) and love the 2006. 
 
Worked out cheaper than the 2007 GT with sun and sound package and I ended up with the SE.  I guess the 03 wasnt what I was supposed to have and Im glad it didnt work out.  Now, time to tint the windows and start considering a little customization.

congrats on the new car!!!! what color did u get?

Thanks for the congrats Vosser.  I ended up getting white.  It wasnt my first color choice but it was the only brand new 2006 on the lot and the deal was just to good to pass up.  I really like the look of the white but its going to be a pain to keep clean considering Im fanatical about it.  Thats really the only thing I dont care for about the color.  Besides, I dont think I have ever seen another one on the road in white so its a little more unique.
 
 

i think the white ones are sharp.  i own a black one, and it does suck keeping it clean.  be careful around the spoiler when you wash it or if you have it buffed.  the paint is thin on the edges, so it will burn through it easy. 

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I have done tons of research about the clutch issues.  Most of the issues on the earlier GK Tibs are caused by a spring in the slave cylinder.  Apparently there has been a lot of luck by removing this spring which causes a mechanically induced slippage of the clutch to facilitate a smoother shift.  After speaking with numerous dealer service mgrs it appears Hyundai has also figured out this problem.  They are stating that Hyundai in many cases is recommending this spring be removed allowing the clutch to engage more quickly reducing the induced slippage.  It actually feels and behaves like a clutch should after removing the spring and does not hurt the car.  More importantly, if done by a dealer its not voiding the warranty.

On the 2005s there were improvements on the clutch parts themselves.  On the 2006s+ a new manufacturer is used to make the clutch and manufacturing itself has been changed.  This is why you dont hear of 2006s and 2007s with these issues unless the car is absolutely abused regularly.  Any car is going to have issues with that kind of treatment.

I have a friend with an 06 and almost 50k without a hitch. Original clutch, no issues and he is not what you call an easy driver. 

moonz.... Forum Rule 2 sez:
 
While debating and discussion is fine, respect your fellow enthusiasts. Being of a diverse background, members are likely to express different opinions, and while opinions may differ from yours, they are just that, opinions; and everyone is entitled to express theirs freely. We will not tolerate rudeness, insulting posts, or personal attacks. Do not flame, bother, bug, disrespect, hound or taunt ANYONE on the forums or through private messaging or chat room. If we feel a thread is getting out of hand we will close or delete it. You can/will lose your posting privileges if you continue this type of behavior.
 
You may disagree with vosser's opinion, but please refrain from the name calling.... argue the issue, don't attack the person.

I don't have a MT, so I may be off base here, but the thing that people remove, I thought, was an orifice that restricts flow of the hydraulic clutch fluid. The spring I think can stay out too, as it only holds the orifice in place, but if you remove the spring and not the little piece with the orifice, you still will have funky clutch activation.
 
I think I can dig up more information on this if you need me to; just let me know.

Doohickie,

You are correct that there is a little black piece that comes out with the spring.  I should have been more clear.  It causes a flow restriction in the fluid (dot 4 brake fluid) enabling the clutch to engage and disengage more slowly thus causing more wear and tear.  There is actually a DIY in the DIY section on NewTiburon.com for anyone who is interested in this mod (appologies if this "link" to another forum is not allowed.)  A garage or dealer should be able to to it for around $40-50 bucks if you are not comfortable doing the work yourself.  However, I suggest putting in your own reseach before attempting any such modification.

Thank you for catching my omittance and moderating counter productive posts.

Iaidoka.

quote:

ORIGINAL: moonz

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What is it that you keep deleting??
You have me curious as to what your doing...
 
                                     WheelBroker1

moonz sent me a PM indicating he is resigning from the forum "as a content provider".
 
It started when he took exception to vosser's sigfile which says, "service advisor at Elhart Dodge, Nissan, Hyundai".  moonz said something like that service advisor wasn't accurate; that vosser is, well, something worse.  So I made Post 12 asking him to refrain from namecalling in accordance with forum rules.  He took exception to that and left.  I tried to send him a PM to discuss it, but he has disabled PMs.  I tried to send him an email, but the email address he provided, moonz@yahoo.com, not a valid email address.
 
I was kind of disturbed when I first read his PM, but since he doesn't want to talk about it, there's not much I can do to try to make things right with him.
 
Moving on...