Overview & Reviews

A relative newcomer to the American marketplace, Hyundai is a Korean automaker with a product line that has improved greatly over the past decade. Hyundai cars and SUVs provide a high level of content for an affordable price, and are currently backed by one of the industry's longest warranties.

In 1947, Chung Ju Yung founded the Hyundai Civil Engineering Company. Mere months later, the outfit was bombed in the Korean War. However, the company regained its footing to distinguish itself as one of Korea's leading construction enterprises during the 1950s.

By the late 1960s, Chung had turned his attention to the automobile industry. The Korean government at that time believed that it made more sense to import vehicles than produce them domestically, and had made its opinion known. Still, Chung opted to follow his own convictions, and in 1967, he founded the Hyundai Motor Company.

The company quickly established an alliance with one of the industry's oldest automakers, signing a two-year contract with Ford in 1968 to share assembly technology. Hyundai's first car, the Cortina, was created from that partnership. The manufacturer's first car to be designed and built in Korea was the compact Pony (although the car was based on Japanese technology courtesy of Mitsubishi). The vehicle made its debut in 1974, and the following year Hyundai began exporting it to overseas markets.

Hyundai entered the U.S. market in 1986 with the introduction of its subcompact Excel. The car was an immediate hit, with its supreme affordability being a primary selling point. More than 100,000 Excels were sold stateside in the first seven months. By 1988, Hyundai had begun to produce cars using its own technology. The midsize Sonata was the first fruit borne of this endeavor.

Unfortunately, Hyundai's nascent image was soon tarnished by the poor durability and reliability of its vehicles. Sales tanked. However, rather than abandon the American market in the '90s, Hyundai chose to invest heavily in new product designs and improvements in overall quality and reliability. In 1998, Hyundai also purchased Kia, another Korean automaker, to expand its business and economies of scale.

It all started to pay off by the start of the new millennium, with the 2001 Elantra in particular showing massive improvements in overall quality, reliability and performance. Other models followed suit and the desirability of Hyundai cars increased sharply. Providing an extraordinarily long warranty period didn't hurt either.

Today's lineup is indicative of Hyundai's complete turnaround. Hyundai has a vehicle for nearly every segment, including the economical Accent subcompact, the popular Elantra compact, the midsize Sonata sedan (also available as a hybrid), sporty Genesis and Veloster coupes and a couple of stylish SUVs. Hyundai has also expanded into the entry-level and premium-level luxury sedan markets with its Genesis and Equus sedans. Having gone from being the butt of late-night TV jokes in the 1980s to a well-respected manufacturer of quality vehicles, Hyundai has created a very inspiring rags-to-riches story.

User Reviews:

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  What a wonderful compact! - 2007 Hyundai Accent
  By Gary R - May 16 - 7:56 pm

  Ive owned my Accent SE for a year and now have 25k miles. The car still runs/drives like new. The car has performed flawlessly. It hasnt required one single warranty repair or adjustment. Mileage and performance increased slightly as the engine loosened up with break-in. With 50/50 city/highway, I get 28 when not using winter blend fuel. Luggage capacity is very good with the seats down but rather tight with the seats up. Road noise is average for a compact but the engine does get very buzzy and loud @ 3000+ RPM. Especially when down shifting while climbing a hill. The transmission gear hunts a bit. A little more power would be welcome to match the impressive road holding capabilities!

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  Great car for the price - 2009 Hyundai Sonata
  By Al - May 15 - 1:16 pm

  Handles great on interstate as well as secondary roads. Good acceleration even with the 2.4 (4 cyl). Love the body styling, first foreign car I have purchased. It will not be the last.

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  Great Car - 2006 Hyundai Sonata
  By Al - May 15 - 4:03 am

  I have had this car a little bit more than a year (28000 miles), and have only good things to say about it. Fun to drive, very reliable (only visits to the dealership are for scheduled services), very comfortable. Finding the right position on the drivers seat took me a while, but since then, absolutely no back pain or leg cramps. Sound system is very good. Gas mileage about 30 mpg highway @65 mph. Average runs about 24-25 mpg. Powerful engine. Quiet, smooth drive. In summary, you cant beat this deal. Plenty of car for the money.

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  Nice car but.. - 2011 Hyundai Santa Fe
  By solarfried - May 13 - 10:34 pm

  Drove the car for 3 weeks. Noisy you hear every bump on the road and feel most of them. The 4 cylinder cannot decide which gear to accelerate in. When you press accelerator a bit (not floor it) or floor it it it takes a second or two to decide to go. The handling at speed is a bit less than precise and the car can be all over the lane if its windy. Had the previous model with a v6 and it was much better. If you want one, I higly recommend, take in on the xpressway with radio off and listen to the noise. No two Santa Fes ride the same. You might find one that is actually quiet. This one was one noisy car. The tire noise was obtrusive. The road noise got transmitted into the vehi

• 

  Best Buy Ever! - 2002 Hyundai XG350
  By Duncan - May 10 - 11:03 pm

  Ive owned 4 Hyundais. I currently also have a 2007 Azera. I bought this one as a left over in early 2003. In 142,000 miles, Ive put $200 into it for non-maintenance repairs. The reliability has been unbelievable. All Ive replaced are tires, brakes, and the battery. And I service the tranny, cooling system and oil regularly. The last time it had a full tune up, it was still in South Korea! The body is still good (paint just starting to weather), the interior has held up fine. The electronics have been good. The cruise control occasionally goes into a funk (it wont resume properly), but its straightened itself out every time. If it died today, it would still be the best car value ever.

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  My 2003 LX - 2003 Hyundai Santa Fe
  By Marksorano - May 10 - 10:00 am

  Rides well though gas mileage is not good.

• 

  Relatively Reliable and Good Car - 2005 Hyundai Elantra
  By HurriCane - May 9 - 1:12 am

  I have 47K miles with the GLS five- speed manual transmission hatchback, and I havent had any problem with the clutch or engine. Both have been maintained on a regular basis, usually a few hundred miles over every 3000. However, I did have to get the rear brakes replaced at 30K. But this because I was a little abusive with the parking brake while driving. Immaturity I guess. Everything else has been great, but the tape deck needed to be replaced with a more digital deck because of an electrical short at 45K miles. Overall, you gotta be realistic that this isnt going to drive like any type of high end roadster, however I have been impressed with the handling and gas mileage 28-35 usually.

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  Beautiful vehicle and fun to drive - 2004 Hyundai Tiburon
  By Vedli - May 8 - 10:00 am

  I am a dealer and have purchased all types of vehicles. When I bought this one I was just thinking about dollar signs and how quick it would be to sell to a racer boy. Although when I drove it back it had amazing pick up and stuck to the road with a lot of control. I have read some of the other posts and find it funny, this is a very fast car if you are skilled enough to shift it fast enough. The shifting is very smooth, HP is great, interior and exterior looks fabulous. The front end looks I dont really like although easily fixed with the right body kit. I come from a diverse family of vehicles from the G35 to the Pontiac GTO and by far this one is another keeper in my book.

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  Looks great, but... - 2012 Hyundai Sonata
  By themightyinf - May 8 - 12:56 am

  Bold lines. Great styling. This car will catch your eye, and hold it. Great value, and a great size. But all is not how its seems. Listed as a full size sedan, however... its not. Seems better suited as a mid-size. The 2.4 l four cylinder is great for saving gas, but forgets that its supposed to make the car move at times. Its got a better rear end than a Mustang GT... more modern anyway. But warning... the ride is rough as an old woodie rollercoaster! How nice would this be if the rear wheels pushed instead of dragged the car down! Still, this car is better than what you will find in most places (cough cough, chevy cruze, cough cough)...

• 

  Loved it until now - 2001 Hyundai Elantra
  By catcheme - May 7 - 12:59 pm

  Bought mine in 2004 used, leather sunroof awesome looking, dependable during college (traveled 100 miles daily) and during home health runs, about two months ago transmission would stick then backfire, fanbelt broke yesterday mechanic said "get rid of it before it blows up, its only made to last 100k miles". Now at 147k, love it but have to let it go, did have to frequently change headlights (not cheap ones either) and replaced the thermostat 3 times, the trunk leaks also, everything else great. I am going to miss it, great gas mileage, good size. costs too much to replace engine and tranny, oh and my paint job is starting to peel off on the edges (factory) cd player never worked for me.