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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  NOT BAD HYUNDAI, NOT BAD AT ALL!!! - 2001 Hyundai Accent
  By TYLER - October 11 - 2:00 am

  I LOVE MY LITTLE HYUNDAI ACCENT!IT IS FUN TO DRIVE,ESPECIALLY ON THE BACK ROADS. THE ENGINE POWER IS MORE THAN ENOUGH TO SCOOT AROUND THE LOW 2,280 POUNDS OF A CAR.I BOUGHT THE CAR USED FROM MY UNCLES DEALERSHIP IN MARYLAND,AND EVERY THING SO FAR HAS BEEN GREAT! FIRST GEAR IS DESIGNED PERFECTLY TO PULL YOU INTO TRAFFIC QUICKLY, BUT NOT EXACTLY EASILY.IT TOOK SOME GETTIN USED TO BUT IVE GOT IT DOWN.IT REALLY SUPRISED ME THAT A 105 HP ENGINE DID SO WELL.IT IS VERY FUN TO DRIVE,AND I WOULD HIGHLY RECCOMEND ONE!!!

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  Smiling - 2007 Hyundai Santa Fe
  By hppd432 - October 10 - 11:10 pm

  Test drove many vehicles and educated myself on line. Have owned Hyundai in the past and was very satisfied. Purchased it for 4,200.00 off sticker and love it!!!!!

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  A good car at first - 1998 Hyundai Accent
  By pebbles - October 9 - 2:00 am

  A good car at first, but then started to have major problems after 3 1/2 years of having it. The transmission went out. Right now I am looking to get a more reliable vehicle. My advice to whoever buys this car is to buy the new ones that is "1999 and up with the warranty of 100,000 miles for 10 years, whichever comes first. Do not buy this car that does not have that warranty because you will be in the same sort of situation I am currently in.

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  2017Hyundai Elantra - 2017 Hyundai Elantra
  By Doug Babst - October 8 - 3:24 pm

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  Bad Transmission and Hyundai Corporate silent - 2016 Hyundai TUCSON
  By RLD - October 8 - 9:56 am

  This DCT transmission in the Tucson Ltd. 1.6 Turbo is an accident waiting to happen. My wife got stuck while trying to enter 4 lane divided highway. The car stalled while trying to enter traffic and luckily cars were able to avoid her. I put the car in reverse on a hot day and it wouldnt move. We owned the car only two weeks when all this went on. The dealer has the car now and hasnt been able to diagnose or fix. We heard there is no fix available. Dont by this this car.

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  One up from a skateboard - 2016 Hyundai Accent
  By Mike Gender - October 8 - 2:49 am

  I traded my 2006 Hyundai Accent for this 2016 Hyundai Accent and unfortunately the 2006 is a better car; better in quality, gas mileage, and comfort. The 2016 doesnt even come with a spare tire, nor tools to change it. You have to call roadside assistance, wait an hour, because the car dont come with a spare, they tow you to a repair facility. The car has a economy switch that you can push on to get better fuel economy, but it gets better fuel economy, with the switch off. My 2006 got better mph (34 mph) the 2016 (32 mph) The inside of the trunk and the lid is only primered, like they just gave up. The seats are hard and uncomfortable. The car is probably the worst manufactured car ever made.

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  Michael owner - 2002 Hyundai Sonata
  By michael affatati - October 8 - 2:00 am

  This auto is out standing and the dealer we dealt with was the best we have ever used. Our exp. was so good that we whent back and bought a second auto and we buy 2-3 autos every 2yr. we are one happy camper!!!

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  Very Happy - 2004 Hyundai Santa Fe
  By paulakeeling - October 7 - 10:23 pm

  I will buy with hyundai again. I have been very happy with my purchase.

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  I Love My Sonata - 2006 Hyundai Sonata
  By Connie - October 7 - 3:16 am

  I love the car.

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  GREAT CAR - 2002 Hyundai Sonata
  By PAUL F - October 7 - 2:00 am

  THERE MANY THINGS I CAN SAY ABOUT THIS CAR BUT IM EXTREMLY LIMITED. HYUNDAI HAS COME ALONG WAY SINCE THE 80S AND I THINK THEYVE PUSHED WAY AHEAD OF ALL THE COMPETITION AND HAVE ONE HECK OF A NICE QUALITY VEHICLE TO SELL. EVERYTHING FROM THE COMFORT, STYLE AND CONVIENIENCE ARE ONLY SOME OF THE BEST FEATURES. I THINK IF YOUR IN THE MARKET FOR AN ALTIMA OR ACCORD YOU SHOULD DEFFINETLY CHACK THIS OUT FIRST!