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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  Pleased with this vehicle - 2008 Hyundai Santa Fe
  By postoak - December 12 - 9:33 am

  First, mileage. I get about 24 on my daily commute, 16 strictly city, on cruise-control: 25.5 at 75mph, and 33 (!) at 60mph. Acceleration is more than adequate. If you really punch it you get torque- steer, but it isnt necessary to punch it. Its been trouble-free the first year/21,000 miles. The automatic climate system is MUCH better than the one in my Mercedes and the temperature readout much more accurate than my Mercedes.

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  Listen to my words - 2009 Hyundai Genesis
  By Dsplash - December 11 - 11:36 am

  Great Car, much greater than my previous Avalon.. Actually, uncomparable..., im sorry. Genesis deserves my loyalty to its brand. Those who read this comment should rethink about the brand image of Hyundai. Just remember, Toyota and Lexus were once thought of as inferior.

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  Best value - 2008 Hyundai Elantra
  By daniduo - December 10 - 8:33 pm

  Theres only good things to say about this vehicle. I traded in my SANTA FE, and I can tell you Hyundai is getting better and better.

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  Best vehicle for the money - 2006 Hyundai TUCSON
  By D. Ziegler - December 10 - 6:03 pm

  The beginning of the year I had my eye on the small Lexus SUV. I waited until Nov to check it out. Then went to see the Tucson. Within 2 weeks we decided to make an offer to test drive it and ultimately purchased the vehicle. The personnel were by far the most honest and experienced. The process went very smoothly and did not have to wait for any unnecessary time frame. We couldnt have asked for a more uncomplicated and smooth process. Id highly recommend this dealership; and, more importantly, the TUCSON as the absolute best buy for the money. I tell you what, you will change your mind just as I did once you give this SUV a chance. So, check it our for yourself. I highly recommend it.

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  2009 Sonata - great car - 2009 Hyundai Sonata
  By Mike - December 10 - 4:26 pm

  Just got my 09 sonata. 4 cyl with popular eqip. #2. Interior is very classy, Lexus-like. Wood grain is awesome. Dealer said I got the only cocoa metallic in pa. Still on my first tank of gas. Getting 35 on highway @ 65 mph. I did little city driving, but that seems to be around 30 mpg I am a big guy and I fit comfortabally. I test drove a 09 corolla. No comparison. Toyota dealer acted as if I would be doingthem a favor buying their precious Toyota. They seemed shocked I even wanted to test drive it and could not figure out why I needed to take it on the hiway for higher speed driving. This is my 2nd Hyundai, traded a 2003 Santa Fe with 100k on it.

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  I love my new car - 2003 Hyundai Sonata
  By Bob King - December 10 - 2:00 am

  In the past ten years, Ive driven Honda Accords and I like them. This year I just bought Sonata, my and I like it better than the Accords we owned before. After we test driving the Sonata, my wife wanted to buy this car instead of Accord, Carmy, and Passat. After I a few days research, most information I got from Ednunds and NSM auto sites, I made up my mind to buy this car. We paid $18,300 for this 2003 LX (at) with sunroof plus tax

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  A GREAT RIDE - 2003 Hyundai Tiburon
  By gtv6 - December 10 - 2:00 am

  This car is definitely a great ride in all aspects of a sporty coupe. The handling is just awesome! So much torque is assisting the power output of the 2.7 V6 engine thats potent. Looks of this car is just amazing.. I think its one of the best looking sport compacts out there. No wonder this new tiburon made it to the list of 8 Great Rides award given annually by Sport Compact Car magazine. So many options for under 20,000 dollars. Great Styling, Great Performance, and Great Dependability all comes together in this car.

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  Practical, sporty, stylish, and fun - 2002 Hyundai Accent
  By Hyundai WRC - December 10 - 2:00 am

  Why would anyone pay more than 10k for a new car, when the Accent is all you need. Peppy, torquey motor, great handling, sexy exterior style. Its a great car and no worries due to best warranty ever. A very practical logical sensible car. Let others pay double the price to have a honda symbol on a comparable car. Ive had many cars, but I am sold on Hyundais and I intend to be a repeat customer.

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  I Makes a lot of sense - 2003 Hyundai Elantra
  By drakeje - December 10 - 2:00 am

  I love my Elantra! For the price you cannot find a vehicle with so many standard features. I also shopped the Honda Civic and when comparing apples to apples, as far a features were concerned. Plus the Warrenty! It made more sense to get the Elantra. I am getting great gas mileage (38 HWY). After 6 mos realized I do have rear cup holders.

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  Love the 2010 Santa Fe - 2010 Hyundai Santa Fe
  By lioness2001 - December 10 - 1:30 am

  I wanted an SUV and had my eye on the Honda CRV. My husband suggested I check out the Santa Fe and Im glad I did. The cargo room and test drive made me fall in love with this car. Loads of of cargo room and very nimble drive for a mid-sized SUV.