1^st November, 2000

Tacuma – compact MPV with big ideas

The Compact Multi Purpose Vehicle segment is growing rapidly, and Daewoo believes its new Tacuma will become a key player in that segment.

Developed as Project U100, and taking just three short years from conception to reality, Tacuma is aimed at young and growing families who want the versatility of a traditional people mover but would rather avoid the feeling of driving a mini-bus.

Deliberately combining the practicality of a multi purpose vehicle with the comfort and sophistication of an executive sedan, the Tacuma will impress its drivers by offering a quiet yet solid ride, characteristics that are not typical of this type of vehicle.

Initially conceived in Korea, Tacuma is based on its own unique platform and has benefited from the experience of project partners of the calibre of Porsche, Pininfarina and Italdesign.

Produced at Daewoo’s state-of–the-art plant at Kunsan, it is slated at 100,000 units/year with at least 30 percent of this volume dedicated to the world markets.

Van practicality, sedan comfort
The briefing was simple: reach an harmonious integration of the demands of a mini-van with the style and comfort of a modern sedan.

Created by Pininfarina to stand out from the crowd, Tacuma bears the trade-mark Daewoo chromed grille but also features very original shapes such as the dramatic upsweep of the rearmost windows and the interesting curves of the tail-lights. The result is a series of bold styling statements that is sure to catch the attention.

The line of the short bonnet continues for the whole length of the car before developing into a half-oval towards the rear windows. Another styling mark placed lower down the rear side panel accentuates the car’s athletic stance, while the styling of the rear is dominated by the high-set and vertical tail-light assembly.

The dynamic elliptical curve of the side glass is highlighted by flowing body lines that add a sophisticated and athletic look. This minivan has the dynamic and sporty styling that ensures it stands out in the crowd.

With Tacuma Daewoo has utilised its well-proven ability to combine different skills in order to reduce time to market.This fast-track approach to Industrialisation, already adopted for Lanos, Nubira and Leganza, has once again proven itself to be a success.

Making the most of compact dimensions
Under the expert hand of Giugiaro’s Italdesign, the interior of the Tacuma remains faithful to the basic design briefing and combines style with practicality. Despite its compact overall dimensions the Tacuma will easily carry five adults and have plenty of room for their luggage.

This results from the vehicle’s significant height (1,580 mm) as well as width (1,755mm), allowing passengers to comfortably sit upright and make the best possible use of the volume available.

Five individual seats, all ergonomically designed for maximum comfort fit the practical mould of the interior. The multi-adjustable driver’s seat features a fold-down armrest, while all three rear seats can be individually folded down for a fully modular use of available space, or removed to offer the greatest possible loading volume.

With all seats in place Tacuma offers 347 litres of loading volume, increasing to 1,425 litres with all three seats tumbled forward. The total volume increases to a massive 1,847 litres with rear seats removed.

The centre rear seats slide forward by 120 mm to increase shoulder room for passengers using the outboard seats. When folded flat, the back of the centre seat incorporates a small work desk or a picnic table.

As well as a generous boot, there are storage drawers under the front seats, in the floor area of the rear passenger compartment as well as in the side panels in the boot. A large glove box, sunglass holder, generous door and seat-back pockets as well as aircraft style fold-down tables on the back of the front seats contribute to the practicality of the cabin.

Driver comfort is a priority: the steering column and seat are adjustable for height, to allow for the best possible driving position.A new design for the large dashboard and the typical ergonomic positioning of all controls contributes to safety as well as comfort. The tasteful interior uses subdued and stylish fabrics and quality materials that contribute to a luxurious feeling.

An Aussie under the hood
Tacuma is powered by a 2.0 litre DOHC petrol engine developed by GM Holden in Melbourne. Delivering 94 kW @ 5600 rpm and 183 Nm @ 4000 rpm, it is mounted transversely and drives the front wheels through a GM derived 5 speed manual gearbox, using a single dry plate clutch.

Also found in both the Leganza and the Nubira range, this version has a slightly higher torque output than Nubira to reflect Tacuma’s load-carrying role.

The engine management system comes courtesy of Delphi and runs on a 16 bit processor to ensure precise and timely management of all engine parameters. It has an electronic distribution system with knock sensors and a prime pulse device to enrich the mixture for better cold starts.

An automatic 4 speed electronically controlled transmission by ZF is available as an option. It features Economy, Power and Hold Modes as well as an adaptive "fuzzy logic" shift control system.

Chassis, steering and brakes
Tacuma offers fully independent suspension with McPherson struts at the front and a torsion bar with compound link arrangement at the rear.

Porsche of Germany, as one of the development partners in the project, contributed to the fine-tuning of suspension components and conceived a suspension system that offers the best possible combination of ride and handling characteristics.

Moulded urethane has replaced the usual rubber used for coil spring mounts resulting in a vast improvement in noise and vibration, while Nitrogen charged shock absorbers all-round contribute to a comfortable ride.

The rack and pinion steering is precise and turning radius is surprisingly tight at 5.26 metres, making Tacuma remarkably manoeuvrable in city traffic.

The braking system features 10 inch ventilated discs at the front and 9 inch drums at the rear, with optional ABS manufactured by Delphi and featuring a 4 Channel/4 Sensor set-up as well as an electronic brake force distribution feature that monitors load and road surface conditions, as well as cornering angles, to determine optimal braking power to be distributed to each wheel.

Pricing
Tacuma is launched at $ 23,990, with the optional automatic transmission priced at $1,950. An optional Value Pack including ABS and alloy wheels is priced at $ 1,950.