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Hyundai TiburonModel year report

2003 Hyundai Tiburon Problems

Complaints
328filed with NHTSA
Median mileage
44,000miles, 263 complaints with mileage
Recalls
9campaigns on record
Trend
FallingComplaints filed in the last 3 full calendar years are at least 25% lower than in the 3 years before.
NHTSA crash rating
—overall rating starts with 2011 models
EPA fuel economy
22 mpgcombined, 2.0L 4-cyl FWD · 19 city / 27 hwy

Sources: NHTSA records for the 2003 Hyundai Tiburon (complaints, recalls, investigations), EPA fuel economy. Report an error

What owners report

Owners of this model year most often write about the manual-transmission clutch, which complaints describe as slipping, juddering or failing at unusually low mileage, with dealers frequently attributing the wear to driving habits and declining warranty coverage. A second cluster involves the air bag warning light staying on, and a third involves body-control-module faults that leave turn signals or other electrical items stuck on or dead. Reports come in from a few thousand miles up to well past 100,000, so condition and service history matter more than age alone.

  1. Transmission and drivetrain

    Clutch slippage and early clutch/flywheel failure (manual)

    • 159 complaints (48%)
    • median 30,812 mi at 3.1 yrs old (134 state mileage)
    • 2 mention a crash, fire or injury
    • owner-quoted repair $1,911 (median of 41 quotes)
    • filed 2003–2012

    Owners of manual-transmission cars describe the clutch slipping under acceleration, shuddering or grabbing harshly, a burning smell in stop-and-go traffic, and occasionally losing a gear or being unable to shift. Many say the clutch and flywheel were replaced once or repeatedly at low mileage, and that the dealer attributed the wear to driving style and treated it as a non-warranty wear item. Complaints also mention the clutch pedal going to the floor and difficulty engaging reverse. Most reports fall between roughly 5,000 and 75,000 miles, with many below 45,000.

    4 related service bulletins

    What to check: On a test drive, accelerate in a tall gear and feel for slip or shudder, and check for a burning smell after slow traffic driving. Ask for receipts showing whether the clutch, flywheel and master cylinder have been replaced and when.

    2 excerpts from owner complaints in NHTSA records

    “At about 3 months or 7,000 the clutch went out on the car requiring a new clutch. We continued to have problems & replaced the clutch again at the beginning of 2005. Now the clutch goes completely to the floor and the car still moves. I will take it back to the dealer again for diagnostic. But I do believe there is a problem with the clutch or transmission.”

    NHTSA complaint #10140847, filed 2005-10, 7,000 miles

    “Clutch started to slip while driving at low rpms at 39000 miles. Then progressively got worse to where it would slip in 6th gear. I had to replace my clutch with a new one that all in all cost me 1700 dollars. I replaced the clutch, throwout bearing, and flywheel. I do have the old parts if you would need them.”

    NHTSA complaint #10152513, filed 2006-03, 39,000 miles
  2. Air bags

    Air bag warning light stays on / deployment concerns

    • 68 complaints (21%)
    • median 64,000 mi at 4.9 yrs old (57 state mileage)
    • 24 mention a crash, fire or injury
    • owner-quoted repair $450 (median of 8 quotes)
    • filed 2003–2019

    Complaints describe the air bag warning light coming on and staying lit while driving, sometimes after starting the car and sometimes together with a seat belt chime. Several owners report dealers pointing to the front seat belt buckle wiring, seat-back wiring and sensors, or a body-control-module fault, and repairs that did not last. A few complaints describe an air bag deploying without a crash or only one bag deploying in an impact; these are individual accounts, not a pattern the data can confirm. Scattered from about 12,000 to 170,000 miles, with several reports in the 60,000-100,000 mile range.

    Recall 03V321000Recall 03V290000Recall 02V290000

    What to check: Turn the key to start and confirm the air bag light goes out after the bulb check; a light that stays on is worth diagnosing before purchase. Ask whether seat belt buckle wiring work or any air bag recall service has been done, and check the VIN against open recalls.

    2 excerpts from owner complaints in NHTSA records

    “The seat belt wiring appears to be faulty which was suppose to be fixed in 2003 when I brought my car into the Hyundai dealership in bloomington, mn for this recall. The seat belt keeps dinging when I'm buckled up and driving, I noticed the air bag light also came on and hasn't come off since the seat belt dinging started. I can stop the dinging from the seat belt by moving the seat belt piece around which is located between my seat and center council. …”

    NHTSA complaint #10321396, filed 2010-03, 70,000 miles

    “2003 Tiburon : my lights started going on and off on their own and indicator lights on and off erratically. Air bag light stayed on I went off the road at 100k and airbag did not deploy also having alternator problems melting fan switch and attaching harness rear wiper failed, trunk release fail, both door locks failed cant lock my car anymore. Alot of safety issues that seem to be really common all related to bcm computer and electrical wiring cheap and dangerous. …”

    NHTSA complaint #10399461, filed 2011-05, 94,000 miles
  3. Electrical system

    Turn signals stay on or stop working (body control module)

    • 23 complaints (7%)
    • median 90,000 mi at 7.3 yrs old (19 state mileage)
    • 3 mention a crash, fire or injury
    • owner-quoted repair $1,000 (median of 7 quotes)
    • filed 2005–2017

    Owners report that a turn signal keeps flashing after the turn is completed, sometimes with the ignition off and key removed, and that it cannot be switched off. Complaints describe bulbs and fuses replaced without effect, diagnosis pointing to the body control module, and quoted part costs that led some owners to pull the fuse and drive without signals or hazards. Others mention headlights, washer pumps, door locks and remote keyless entry behaving erratically around the same time. Typically reported between about 55,000 and 110,000 miles.

    3 related service bulletins

    What to check: With the engine running, cycle both turn signals and the hazards and confirm they cancel normally; then switch off and check nothing stays lit. Ask whether the body control module or wiring harness has been replaced and whether any electrical repairs were done for this symptom.

    2 excerpts from owner complaints in NHTSA records

    “The right hand turn signal on my 2003 Hyundai tubiron turns on by its self and it can not be shut off. I had several close calls with cars that thought I was turning and pulled out in front of me. I reported this to Hyundai corporate customer service department. Their solution was to remove the fuse and now I do not have any turn signals or hazard flashers. After doing some research there are alot of people having the same issue with this model. I believe this is a major safety issue.”

    NHTSA complaint #10396803, filed 2011-04, 96,000 miles

    “I recently purchased a 2003 Hyundai Tiburon gt v6 in april of 2008. The car looked like it was in great condition and did not have any mechanical problems. I was driving down the road one day when I put on my turn signal to change lanes. After I had changed lanes I noticed that my turn signal was permanantly on. Upon encountering this problem I took my car to bob king Hyundai in winston-salem. They told me that it was internal problems with the bcm and that it would cost $1100 just for the part, plus labor. …”

    NHTSA complaint #10249100, filed 2008-11, 103,000 miles

Buying note. On a manual car, the clutch and flywheel history is the single most important thing to verify, so get receipts and budget for a replacement if none exist. Also check the air bag light, turn signal behavior and seat belt buckle wiring, and run the VIN for open recalls before agreeing on a price.

Summary written with AI from a sample of 60 NHTSA complaints for this model year (picked at random, with complaints that state a mileage and recent ones taken first), then checked automatically against the source records. Where a problem shows a complaint count, every complaint for this model year was matched with fixed keyword rules (written with AI and tested against the sample), and the mileage, age and repair figures are calculated from those complaints; owners' figures are as stated, not verified. Other counts refer to the sample. The excerpts come from NHTSA's public complaint records and are unverified; capitalisation is normalised, NHTSA staff notes are removed, and shortened text ends with “…”. Something wrong? Request a correction.

NHTSA recorded 328 consumer complaints for the 2003 Hyundai Tiburon. 263 of the complaints include a mileage, and 55% of those were filed for vehicles with under 50,000 miles; the median is 44,000 miles. Of all complaints, 33 involved a crash, 7 a fire, 21 an injury, 1 a death, according to the filers. NHTSA lists 9 recall campaigns and 47 technical service bulletins for this model year.

Not compared (before 2008). Model years 2008–2023 of the same vehicle that have at least 25 complaints are compared, and a model needs at least 3 of them.

Which parts are reported most

Complaints can name more than one part, so the counts add up to more than the total. Select a part to see its complaints, recalls and bulletins.

Also reported: Engine cooling (8), Other or unknown (7), Steering (7), Tires (7), Engine (4), Equipment (4), Latches, locks and linkages (4), Vehicle speed control (3), Wheels (3).

Example complaints

Transmission and drivetrain: “2003 Hyundai Tiburon gt 2.7 l, I replaced the clutch and flywheel at 75,000 miles. Im now at 88,000 miles and the clutch is out again! I release the clutch all the way out and when I attempt to accelerate the RPM's go up and very slowly it accelerates. This is a $1800 repair and twice within 13,000 miles in unacceptable!”

NHTSA complaint #10318765, filed 2010-03, 82,000 miles

Air bags: “The airbag in my car is on permanently. I researched the problem and found that there was a recall for this. It is caused by a wiring problem with the driver side seatbelt buckle under the seat.I was told that my VIN is not included in the recall. I replaced the seatbelt buckle and within a month the airbag light was back on.”

NHTSA complaint #11206498, filed 2019-05, 30,000 miles

Electrical system: “I was driving to my brother place when a wire started to smoke and cought on fire from under the steering wheel it was smokey where I could not see from the smoke and I hit a parked car front windshield shattered and my airbag did not exposed at all. It was on a city street no one got hurt just the car”

NHTSA complaint #11271576, filed 2019-10, 135,125 miles

Seat belts: “I have never received any recall notices at my address, by phone email, not even face to face with the dealer when I took the car to the dealership. I stumbled across this by accident trying to find online how to fix my electronic key, that was friday, february, 28, 2014. From 2002 to now, no mail, except to extend my warranty. They could reach me then. …”

NHTSA complaint #10567027, filed 2014-03, 8,000 miles

Mileage when problems were reported

55% of the 263 complaints with a mileage were filed for vehicles with under 50,000 miles; the middle half falls between 21,000 and 73,526 miles.

11%0–1019%10–2525%25–5021%50–7514%75–1007%100–1503%150+
Share of complaints by mileage when the problem was reported, in thousands of miles (263 complaints with mileage). Red bars: under 50,000 miles. Bucket widths differ. Median: 44,000 miles.

Complaints by year filed

Trend: falling. Complaints filed in the last 3 full calendar years are at least 25% lower than in the 3 years before.

’02’0557’08’11’14’17’22
Complaints by year the complaint was filed with NHTSA. Red bars: the last 3 full calendar years used for the trend. The current year (2026) is partial.

Fuel economy and running cost

EPA ratings for each 2003 Hyundai Tiburon version. Annual fuel cost is the EPA's estimate at its current fuel prices for 15,000 miles a year (55% city driving).

VersionEngineTransmissionCityHwyComb.Fuel / yr
Tiburon FWD2.0L 4-cyl4-speed automatic202723$2,900
Tiburon FWD2.0L 4-cyl5-speed manual202823$2,900
Tiburon FWD2.0L 4-cyl6-speed manual192722$3,050
Tiburon FWD2.7L 6-cyl4-speed automatic172420$3,350
Tiburon FWD2.7L 6-cyl5-speed manual172420$3,350
Tiburon FWD2.7L 6-cyl6-speed manual162419$3,550

Source: U.S. EPA and Department of Energy, fueleconomy.gov. Ratings are for comparing vehicles; real-world mileage varies with driving and conditions.

Recalls and investigations

See all 9 recalls for the 2003 Hyundai Tiburon → · Check a VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls

Technical service bulletins

TSBs are manufacturer notes to dealers about known repair procedures. They are not recalls and do not by themselves mean a vehicle has a fault. 47 on record; the latest 10 are shown.

See all 47 bulletins →

Other model years of the Hyundai Tiburon

YearComplaintsMedian miRecallsCrash ★MPGScore (50 = typical)Trend
20081932,0001—20—Falling
20074239,0001—20Not compared (before 2008)Rising
20066432,0001—20Not compared (before 2008)Falling
20054353,0001—20Not compared (before 2008)Falling
20048241,0300—20Not compared (before 2008)Stable
200332844,0009—22Not compared (before 2008)Falling
20013663,0001—24Not compared (before 2008)Falling
20005869,0181—24Not compared (before 2008)Falling
19992689,0003—23Not compared (before 2008)Stable
19982677,0001—23Not compared (before 2008)Stable
199736103,0004—22Not compared (before 2008)Stable

All Hyundai Tiburon model years · Best and worst years by complaints

Frequently asked questions

What are the most common problems with the 2003 Hyundai Tiburon?

Owners of this model year most often write about the manual-transmission clutch, which complaints describe as slipping, juddering or failing at unusually low mileage, with dealers frequently attributing the wear to driving habits and declining warranty coverage. The issues reported most often: Clutch slippage and early clutch/flywheel failure (manual); Air bag warning light stays on / deployment concerns; Turn signals stay on or stop working (body control module).

How many NHTSA complaints does the 2003 Hyundai Tiburon have?

NHTSA recorded 328 consumer complaints for the 2003 Hyundai Tiburon as of Oct 30, 2026. Complaints are unverified consumer reports and may be duplicated or inaccurate.

What part of the 2003 Hyundai Tiburon is reported most often?

Transmission and drivetrain is named most often, in 164 complaints (50% of the total), followed by air bags with 71.

Has the 2003 Hyundai Tiburon been recalled?

NHTSA lists 9 recall campaigns for this model year. To check a specific vehicle, enter its VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls.

What gas mileage does the 2003 Hyundai Tiburon get?

The EPA rates the 2003 Hyundai Tiburon (Tiburon, 2.0L 4-cyl) at 22 mpg combined, 19 city and 27 highway, with an estimated annual fuel cost of $3,050 at 15,000 miles a year. Other engine and drive versions are rated differently.

At what mileage are problems with the 2003 Hyundai Tiburon reported?

Among the 263 complaints that include a mileage, the median is 44,000 miles and the middle half falls between 21,000 and 73,526 miles; 55% were filed for vehicles with under 50,000 miles.

About this data. Data from NHTSA (ODI) complaints, recalls, TSBs and investigations, updated Oct 30, 2026. Complaints are unverified consumer reports and may be duplicated or inaccurate. Fuel economy is from the EPA and DOE (fueleconomy.gov).

Complaint counts come from NHTSA’s public complaint database; we count each complaint once. The source records for this vehicle are on nhtsa.gov. Scores and trends are our own summaries of that data, described in the methodology. This page is not legal, safety or repair advice: for a specific vehicle, check its VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls and ask a qualified mechanic. See an error? Tell us.