'98 Hyundai Coupe F2

[JohnnyF2]

Here's a few photos of my 1998 Hyundai Coupe F2.

I bought this a few years ago as a cheap daily commuter, deciding it might make the trip to work a bit more interesting than a generic hatchback would, but hopefully with decent running costs and good reliability. About right, after over 100k miles the old girl has still never let me down; I've replaced just the consumables and the usual service items. It's still on it's original starter motor, clutch, radiator, etc. Decided to change the exhaust a few years back, replaced with a Janspeed, for a few extra BHP and a slightly better sound.

The Gen 1 Coupe is perhaps a bit of a left-field choice, though I've always had an interest in 80's and 90's Coupes, especially Japanese (and now Korean :-)

This is the F2 version, which Hyundai sold for a year back in 98-99, in order to celebrate their entry into the F2 class of the WRC at the time. These came with a large metal-bound F2 book when new, signed by Kenneth Eriksson no less :-)

Not too many around now, most seem to have rotted away or been chavved-up and wrecked.

Power was OK for a mid-90's N/A 2-litre, but I've made a few mods, the Janspeed exhaust, K&N CAI, plus I've fitted front & rear strut braces and some other stuff, but have decided to keep it fairly standard. It's got OZ alloys on at the moment, but I've still got the original F2 alloys, (which were Team Dynamics DTM), now being used for winter tyres.

It's pretty quick away from a stand-still, (the Gen1 Coupe is even lighter than a GT86 !), but it runs out of breath fairly quickly, the 2.0 litre Beta is a bit of a stroker. On the plus-side, it's nice and torquey low-down though, so great around town, which is still it's main use for me, getting to work.

Anyway, here's the pics...

Edited by JohnnyF2 on Tuesday 2nd October 00:04

[JohnnyF2]

TotalControl said:

Great shots. Any engine upgrades?

Thanks, though I can't take credit for taking the pics, ...unfortunately I'm terrible with a camera! Mel Butler took them, she's into automotive photography, and has also worked for bike magazines and stuff. Wasn't phased at all by having to take pics of a Hyundai ;-)

On the engine side, it's fairly bog standard, just the aforementioned Janspeed exhaust, the K&N Cold Air Intake and some Magnecor plug leads. A popular mod is to fit the intake cam from the 1.8 Lantra engine, which is a direct swap and has a higher lift. (In '99, Hyundai themselves fitted one of these to the F2 Evolution lump). Maybe about 5 to 7 BHP gain. I'm due to change the cambelt again shortly, so whilst everything is in bits I'll maybe fit one of those aswell.

Some lads fit the after-market turbo kits which are popular in Korea and in the US, but for me one of my main priorities is to keep the reliability for day-in, day-out use, so I think I'll stick N/A for now.

Edited by JohnnyF2 on Tuesday 2nd October 00:29

[JohnnyF2]

falkster said:

I was thinking that, they do look much better though.

Yes, it's the F2 Evo rear spoiler, bought from a salvage yard. I had to get it sprayed black, as F2 Evos were only available in dark metallic blue or silver.

The rear spoiler was designed by Peter Stevens. Apparently it generates actual downforce... (rather than just being a largely cosmetic add-on like the standard one).

I also had to replace the spoiler's brake-light, as the original was missing. When checking the part number of the brake light assembly, (it's a Hella part number), I found that this part was also used in several early 90's BMW rear spoilers.... but also used in a great many caravans and camping trailers too. Wonder if drivers of many classic BMW's are aware that BMW gave them a caravan brake light :-)

Edited by JohnnyF2 on Tuesday 2nd October 22:32

[JohnnyF2]

iggysport said:

Always liked them, F2 has gotta be pretty rare now

They made around 1200 F2's. Currently down to 426 according to Howmanyleft, and numbers have halved just in the last 2 years. Though I think it's a great time to own one, as breaker's yards are busting with them, you can easily get anything you need. And there's not much of a stampede for the parts either, as no-one else seems to be bothered about preserving/restoring old Hyundais!

[JohnnyF2]

bertelli_1 said:

I used to built the f2 evo's while i worked at msd. i think your car has an evo rear spoiler fitted?
the record for swapping the camshaft was about 12 minutes!

12 minutes... that's pretty good going... I'll probably take more like 12 hours :-)

So how long did it take you to do the full conversion of one car? (Cam, exhaust, trim, dials, spoilers etc) Can you remember how many got done in a day?

[JohnnyF2]

lewisf182 said:

wow that really does look top notch. Have been starting to think these look rather dated recently but that one has changed my mind, best looking coupe i've ever seen tbh, looks mint!

Cheers Lewis, must admit I let the car deteriorate the last couple of years, it was always parked outside, and used every day for work where it was parked in a pretty rough part of town. One day I realised I hadn't seen another one on the road for about a year, so thought I'd spend a few quid and try to get mine spruced-up a bit. Ended-up getting a bit carried away I think...

[JohnnyF2]

Baryonyx said:

What were the bhp/torque stats for these from the factory?

F2 Evo was 154 BHP / 140 ft-lb. Easy to get a few more though, as the standard air filter arrangement is incredibly restrictive.

[JohnnyF2]

AmitG said:

Great photos and info. What does the interior look like?

Here's a few pics of the interior for you. Inside, it's completely unremitting black.... infact it's the blackest interior I've ever been in, even the headlining is black, a kind of faux black leather!

BTW, in the first picture of the insides of the boot, on the left you can see my "Hyundai Works Rally Team" fleece, (ex team personel, bought when they closed the team down). Perhaps a bit sad I know :-) You can also see the rear strut-brace, had to order that in all the way from South Korea!

Edited by JohnnyF2 on Thursday 4th October 15:05

[JohnnyF2]

pd2 said:

I tried like crazy to get him to buy the F2!! lol

Did the F2 Evo not also come in a solid lightish blue as well? Same colour as this. i'm 99% sure there was an F2 Evo in the showroom in this colour when we got the SE.

Nice car the SE in Cobalt Blue, same reg as my F2 (S-Reg).

The light blue car you pictured is an F2 (not F2 Evo). There were 3 colours available for the first F2... Ebony Black, Silver, or "Hyundai Racing Blue", (which is the light blue in the photo). This colour was exclusive to the F2 only, no other Hyundai of any model was ever offered in that colour. Apparently they didn't sell too many either, so an F2 in that colour is pretty rare these days. I think that is the car you will have seen in the showroom.

When they brought out the F2 Evo the following year, they changed the colour options, dropping black and Hyundai Racing Blue, and offering just silver or Cobalt Blue instead. I thought that was a shame, as I would have always liked an F2 Evo in black.

Apparently this decision was down to a questionnaire given to existing Hyundai Coupe owners in 1998... "What colours would you like the forthcoming F2 Evo to be offered in?"