The Daewoo Tacuma is a compact people-mover or multipurpose vehicle (MPV), built either as a five-door station wagon or minivan with a front-engine, front-wheel-drive layout. The Italian Pininfarina S.p.A. automotive designing firm drew the design concept for it, while Daewoo developed it under project code U100 based on the J100 Nubira.
Tacuma takes the name Rezzo in Korea or its rebadged nameplate, Chevrolet Vivant in some export markets. The Korean market enjoys a 7-seat variant, while the standard Tacuma wagon sits five passengers. What it boasts of, however, is its luggage capacity which could handle up to a maximum of 1,425L with rear seats folded and 1,847L with rear seats removed.
It shares the same Family I and Family II engines with Nubira and Leganza. Both models came ahead of the Tacuma, which Daewoo produced from 2000 to 2008. It stayed in the Australian marketplace only until 2004.
Powertrain & Equipment
The Tacuma came in a variety of inline-four petrol and LPG engines, ranging from a 1.6-litre Family I to a 2.0-litre Family II LPG variant, paired with either a 4-speed ZF 4HP16 automatic or a 5-speed manual gearbox. There was a sole Tacuma model in Australia. It was powered by a 2.0-litre Holden-GM Family II DOHC inline-four petrol engine, but it came both in manual and automatic versions. It had a maximum power output of 94 kW and peak torque of 183 Nm. Its specs and features are detailed below:
- Tacuma wagon, Base model, manual – 5-door/5-seat configuration; GM-derived 5-speed manual gearbox; standard equipment included air-conditioning, airbags/dual front, adjustable steering wheel/tilt and telescopic, RC central locking, cloth trim, folding and removable rear seats, front fog lights, engine immobilizer, power mirrors, power steering, power windows, radio CD with six speakers, roof racks, and front seatbelts with pretensioners and load limiters
- Tacuma wagon, Base model automatic – same as the other model but utilized a 4-speed ZF 4HP16 automatic transmission, which had three modes (Economy, Power, Hold) and adaptive fuzzy logic shift control.
A MacPherson strut handles the front suspension, while a torsion beam rear axle with compound links handle the rear. It has ventilated disc front brakes and drum rear brakes.
In 2002, Daewoo released a Limited Edition model, using the same engine and drivetrain and was also available in both manual gearbox and automatic versions. It added CD with 6-CD stacker and leather upholstery to the base equipment. A 2003 update introduced a restyled grille and heated door mirrors.
Complaints & Recalls
People who have owned a Tacuma commended its spacious interior, good visibility and seat height, and decent ride and handling. At the same time, they found fault in its sub-par interior, sluggish engine, and tentative or indecisive automatic transmission.
There were three recalls for the Tacuma. Some of the problems involved cracks in the brake pipes, leaking hydraulic fluid, and low-quality interior plastic material. However, dealerships offered cheap servicing, so secondhand Tacuma's would likely have a good servicing record.
Safety
There are no available ANCAP safety ratings for the Tacuma. In the Used Car Safety Rating list in 2010, however, both Daewoo’s Espero and Tacuma ranked as the most unsafe for mid-size or medium-size cars. To compare this in the compact or small cars category, the safest was the Chrysler Neon while the least safe was the Subaru Impreza.
It must be noted that UCSR ratings are not comparable to ANCAP ratings. For instance, ANCAP rated the 1998 Subaru Liberty with five stars, but UCSR gave its secondhand cousin a 3-star rating.
So while your Tacuma gets a low vote of confidence in the used car industry, you can still get a good value for it in the used car parts and accessories market. To ask us how to send an email to hello@carpart.com.au today!
-JMSL