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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  GREAT CAR! - 2004 Hyundai XG350
  By Sal1f - November 18 - 10:00 am

  The overall features are great. The only option which is not available is a navagation package. This should be offered in the 2005 model. The car offers much for your investment. If you didnt know you were in a Hundai you would think its a much higher end vehicle. (BMW etc)

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  SONATA02 - 2004 Hyundai Sonata
  By TSUEGUY1 - November 18 - 10:00 am

  i ACUTUALLY BOUGHT A 2002 SONATA & I LOVE IT. IT HAS STYLE AND CLASS. IT RIDES SMOOTH AND HAS A LOT OF TOYS (OPTIONS). iT IS FUN TO DRIVE WITH THE SHIFTRONIC, LIKE HAVING THE BEST OF BOTH THE AUTOMATIC AND THE MANUAL STICK WORLD. I WOULD RECOMMEND ANYBODY TO BY ONE. THE COMMERCIAL SAYS IT ALL....DRIVING IS BELEIVING.

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  Excellent so far - 2003 Hyundai Elantra
  By Woodburn Tom - November 18 - 10:00 am

  Needed good basic economical transportation. Looked at Civics, Toyotas, Jettas, Saturns, Focus and Cavaliers. Have a Civic I passed along to my son. Have a Toyota I passed along to my daughter. Wife drives and Accord. Price, test drive and the warrenty convinced me to take a chance. Have about 7000 miles on it and it is EXCELLENT. Not one issue to date. Getting about 32 mpg with the air on most of the time. Good torque pulls better than the Civic but does not corner as well. If this thing continues to hold up it is a steal deal.

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  Good things come in small packages - 2007 Hyundai TUCSON
  By bigbuckslarry - November 17 - 5:10 pm

  We have a two car garage but there is not enough room for everything else such as bikes, snowblower, lawnmower, other tools, and just moving around. I am 63" tall weighing in at 250+ lbs and have back trouble. Any sugestions for my next car ? Escalade: too big for the garage. Element: too clunky of a drive. Rav4: too long with the tire on back. CR/V: also too long (but at least they put the tire away). Tuscon: Eureka !! It is a SUV for my back and yet it is small enough for the garage. I got the LTD which is luxurious enough. This car has a tremendous amount of elbow room. Bravo Hyundai.

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  Great Car - 1997 Hyundai Accent
  By Cyrus - November 17 - 2:00 am

  no problems with 100000 miles on it

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  Its a car, nothing special - 2011 Hyundai Sonata
  By Ken - November 16 - 10:00 am

  Bought the car for the wife and the title is basically her comment. The performance is OK, but not exceptional and it gets worse on bad roads - seems to be engineered for smooth rides on smooth roads.

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  Pleased with Hyundai Santa Fe - 2003 Hyundai Santa Fe
  By kilaban - November 16 - 6:46 am

  After 50,000 miles were still very pleased with our 2003 Hyundai Santa Fe. Aside from some rough shifting that required some transmission-related computer updates, weve had no real trouble. Gas mileage is lower than expected, but the overall build quality inside and out were still pleased with. No squeaks, rattles, or strange noises, and the road noise is low.

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  Accent - 2000 Hyundai Accent
  By hwdan1 - November 16 - 2:00 am

  Good car for the money

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  love it - 2007 Hyundai Veracruz
  By Nickie - November 16 - 1:40 am

  We purchased one of the first ones sold love it, minus the paint on exterior is thin chips easy, few interior flaws, weather stripping bad otherwise I truly love it.

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  Great Car - 2006 Hyundai Sonata
  By Tipton4 - November 16 - 12:13 am

  Very happy with my new Sonata, looked at Accord chose Sonata for its price, warranty and great salespeople. Saved about $5,000 even with purchasing 10 yr bumper to bumper warranty. Car rides and drives smooth, good gas mileage. No complaints.