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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  Hyundai Genesis - 2009 Hyundai Genesis
  By vjk6666 - January 26 - 5:40 am

  Ride is busy.. reflecting a stiffer suspension than the Azera. Rear seats do not fold. No passenger seat memory. Rear leg room limited for a 115 in wheelbase. Interior is nicely finished. Cassette tape player not included.

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  Good car - 2010 Hyundai Genesis Coupe
  By wthornton - January 24 - 11:49 pm

  Better than the Tiburon only problems pin holes in tran cooler other wise no problems ,fun to drive plan on keeping it. Grew up driving mopar muscle , then supras and now this.

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  Good daily commuter - 2002 Hyundai Accent
  By Chrisndogs - January 23 - 11:34 am

  Bought this vehicle when gas prices were going up and I didnt feel like feeding the SUV anymore. It was purchased from a dealership and had previously been a rental car. Ive now owned it for 2 years and have put about 20K mi on it (roughly 60% city, 40% highway). I have done all the suggested scheduled maintenance, and I can honestly say that the car has been reliable. While its not thrilling to drive, it makes a great city commuter car for someone on a tight budget.

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  Rain Not - 2004 Hyundai Sonata
  By Nogo - January 23 - 10:00 am

  The car is well worth the money thats paid for it because of all of the extra options that are includede with it, along with its 100,000 mile warrantee.

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  First Time Hyundai Santa Fe Owner - 2010 Hyundai Santa Fe
  By Richard_in_VA - January 23 - 5:16 am

  We recently purchased a 2010 Santa Fe GLS with Nav. Generally, we are pleased with the car. The fit and finish is very good and the car is rich in features. Its a very pleasant car; competent but not excellent. I have some concerns over how well the car will age - time will tell. One thing I am disappointed over is the gas mileage; we are averaging about 21 mpg in mixed driving. We had hoped for a bit better considering our GLS is the four cylinder version.

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  First Time Buyer - 2005 Hyundai TUCSON
  By FirstHyundaiBuyer - January 22 - 2:20 pm

  The Hyundai Tucson is a great buy for typical commuter driving. Lots of standard features especially safety. Mileage could be better but it is taller than a sedan and with wider tires and I prefer to sit higher up. If you have a typical 30 minute commute, go Hyundai! No problems to speak of. Car is well built.

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  Stiff and loud - 2010 Hyundai TUCSON
  By Larry G. - January 21 - 11:10 pm

  This car for the $27k msrp is suprisingly loud and uncomfortable. You can feel every crack in the road and the ride feels as if the car had no suspension. You have to pretty much yell to be heard by your passengers on decent quality concrete pavement.

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  Not really pleased - 2010 Hyundai Santa Fe
  By tjpswoosh - January 21 - 9:13 am

  Bought the Santa Fe after quite a bit of research. Cant tow even close the half of the listed weight, listed a 19 gallon gas tank, can only put 17 in bone dry. Already have a leak that needs to be repaired on the timing cover. Was told it is an issue they are having with the 3.3 engines. Lots of bang for the buck but not happy with there already being mechanical issues.

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  I am satisfied - 2006 Hyundai Elantra
  By Mary S - January 20 - 3:03 pm

  This is my first brand new car, but Im not really excited about it. This car is just basic transportation, in a decent looking frame. I spend almost 2 hours a day in my car and the Elantra is reasonably comfortable. I am averaging 27 mpg...I thought it would be a bit better. Anyway, I chose the maroon color and I get many compliments on the color. I was also impressed with the many standard features. Its still new so I hope it continues running well!!!

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  2016 Genesis - 2016 Hyundai Genesis
  By John edwards - January 17 - 9:28 am

  Nice car, feel I may have overpaid for a "Hyundai". Lots of bells and whistles. Nondescript design as I have lost it in a parking lot and confused it for Chyrsler 200.