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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  Glad I got the one with the sun roof - 2010 Hyundai Accent
  By Bill - July 2 - 12:29 am

  I decided to put out the extra money for the top of the line. Larger tires and sunroof. Glad I did. First sunroof Ive ever owned, and its great. Car is fun to drive, great handling, though I wouldnt want to drive it on really rough roads--too bumpy. Two door hatchback is the way to go if you dont have kids.

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  Love My Sonata Named Rubi - 2007 Hyundai Sonata
  By PerfectPioneerCar - July 1 - 10:18 am

  Love my car. Very nice for the money. College student and I needed something larger to haul more people in comfort plus I needed something bigger inside as I am 66". I got 27 mpg in my Honda around town always, best I get in my Sonata is 24 and I cant even touch the gas. 22 is normal, yet okay for this large of a car. Power is good but could stand another gear as sometimes it can be lacking and the difference between 2 and 3 is too great. Cruise could stand improvement too. 78 mph highway and I also only got 28 mpg. The car seems to like premium. Im in love and very happy even though I just complained. The warning sounds in the car are super annoying, hence Rubi, my female named car. :)

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  Winter driving NOT GOOD - 2009 Hyundai Elantra
  By mick - July 1 - 9:23 am

  I love Hyundai. I own 4 (2002, 2003, 2006, 2009)! All have been great. My only complaint is with my latest the 2009 is absolutely terrible on ice and snow. Whatever Hyundai changed for this model makes it extremely dangerous for any winter driving. Please fix this in the future!

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  Will never buy again - 2007 Hyundai Elantra
  By amanda - June 28 - 10:56 pm

  I bought this car in 2007 it has already left me stranded twice. I have had the sensor that runs the whole car replaced twice within the first 12 months the car interior pint started to peel and bubble Hyundai also wanted to make me pay part of the tow when my car quit working on me in the middle of the highway.

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  Steering is a bit stiff - 2010 Hyundai Elantra
  By Terri - June 28 - 7:16 pm

  Car is not bad. Hated to get rid of my Kia which was fully loaded. but I did fine that steering a tad stiff. Anyone else had this person with this car?

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  Excellent Value - 2010 Hyundai Genesis
  By ChipA - June 28 - 4:59 pm

  Was looking to buy a new MB E350 but after test driving both the E350 & Genesis several times, doing alot of research, and for exactly $16k less, traded my 07 MB E350 w/65k miles (our 7th MB) for the 4.6/V-8. Every single aspect of the Genesis, except for the cruise control, exceeds the E350-new or old. The comfort of the seats, cabin noise level, ride, and navi/audio system are standout improvements & were factors that swayed me. My wife has a 10 MB SUV but we prefer the comfort of the Genesis. I drive a lot and hope the integrity, performance, & depreciation of the Genesis stands up to the wear/tear of the miles. Get past the brand issue-appears to be great value in a nice car!

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  Taking it Back - 2010 Hyundai Genesis
  By JRJ - June 27 - 8:29 pm

  I just bought my Genesis today. I was not able to test drive the car I bought since it was in the showroom. On the way home the glare and reflections from the panel above the glove box actually gave me vertigo. When I went online to view the interior pictures, the car pictured does not have the shiny panel. I am taking the car back tomorrow. I dont know if they can swap out the panel for one without the glare or not. I like the car otherwise. Has anyone experienced this problem? I am very disappointed because I love the car otherwise.

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  Pure luxury without the extreme price! - 2010 Hyundai Genesis
  By gameday22 - June 27 - 4:04 pm

  Only had my vehicle for a few days now and so far in comparison to my 2009 Azera Limited the two cars are night and day to each other in every way. I thought my Azera was a great car overall, besides the suspension being very bad on it and chewing up tires every 12k miles (2 sets in 4 months) with proper maintenance. The Genesis feels rock solid over all types of road conditions and soaks up the imperfections gracefully. Mine has the Tech package (04) and the Premium package (02) with a price of $41k less discounts. This car is in a class of cars costing $20-25k more with the impressive list of features on-board. So far a very happy owner, hopefully for many more years! :)

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  Zip, Zap but no Zoom - 2004 Hyundai Elantra
  By Prit - June 25 - 2:22 pm

  Just recently bought it 2nd hand with 82k on it. I loved its light body and they way it moves around city. I drove 2 heavy cars before, 96 Camry and 2000 infiniti both v6. This car is feather light. I love it driving around city where it is more fun. It zips and zaps around corner. Heavy driving is boring with this car, where heavier car excels for it comfort. Good mileage. Younger generation will love this car it feels like i am driving a go cart. Highly recommended it will put smile on your face.

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  Better than E500 - 2009 Hyundai Genesis
  By rmkdj - June 24 - 10:24 pm

  This car beats the 2005 MB E500 I previously had, hands down. Simplicity of controls, power, navigation, stereo, seat comfort, gas mileage without premium gas. Absolutely no problems whatsoever. Dealer is great when I take it in for service, oil change and rotation of tires. You cannot buy a better car. Buy this car, you wont go wrong.