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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  Santa Fe LX w/3.5 and 4WD - 2005 Hyundai Santa Fe
  By Bill - December 31 - 1:26 am

  My Santa Fe LX has been great. This is my second SUV and I couldnt love it more. I do wish the gas mileage was a bit better, I get 18mpg city and 21 highway. I drive in the Rocky Mountains winter and summer and love the control, power and traction of the Santa Fe. I wish I had the automatic head light control, but I can live without it. I would love to have On Star and a Satellite radio.

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  This is not a good stepdown for a SUV - 2009 Hyundai Elantra Touring
  By SUV step down? - December 30 - 7:16 pm

  This is not a step down vehicle from a SUV or minivan as i was told and as i reviewed for several reasons. Do not get me wrong It is a good vehicle but it is not a step down vehicle as there are several flaws for it to be that. See below. also the hatch area is flimsy at best and do suggest getting a heavy floor mat as a jug of milk that hit the side actually dented the built in felt mat. Towing capacity is less then smaller cars I was looking at and so is usable space. No roof rack or attachments to put your own.all in all dont get a touring get the base model pick your own trim level. Get to another vehicle if you need any storage space over what a trunk will hold. This is disappointment.

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  Great car, great price! - 2011 Hyundai Sonata
  By Trevor Sullivan - December 30 - 7:00 pm

  As a repeat customer of Hyundai, I have to say that I am extremely pleased with my 2011 Sonata! I just traded in my 2006 Sonata GLS v6 for a 2011 Limited Edition, and am happy as can be! The interior design is modern and inviting, yet not overdone; it has an overall blu-ish theme to it, including the primary gauges, and the backlight for the radio controls. The performance is great, with tight / sporty steering, a sporty / quick-shifting transmission, and an sufficient 200HP 4-cyl. The exterior sports very modern, sexy lines, and at first glance appears similar to the Hyundai Genesis (which is why it first caught my eye).

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  Satisfaction - 2017 Hyundai Sonata
  By Sary Tauv - December 29 - 1:14 pm

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  GPS 2005 era - 2009 Hyundai Genesis
  By Ken - December 29 - 5:13 am

  I have owned this Car for about 2 weeks and what a pleasure to drive. This Car I like very much but have only driven it 600 miles. It seems to equal everything my BMW 540i did. My first tank of gas averaged 27.4 mpg now that I like. Of course its not a V-8 but we have to give a little somewhere.

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  Her name was Sandy - 2002 Hyundai Santa Fe
  By Bill K - December 29 - 5:03 am

  We owned our Santa Fe for 6yrs. Bought in 2010 for $6000. Had 104,000 miles on it. Sold it May 2016 for $4000, and had 140,000 on it. The only things we replaced on it were the brakes, tires, and ignition switch. Loved plowing through the Wisconsin winters. She was getting a little sluggish before we sold it, but was one of the best vehicles we ever owned. Back in 2013 we bought a 2007 Santa Fe and sold it a year later. We thought it would be like our 02 but couldnt hold a candle to it. Recently purchased a 2012 Chevy Captiva. Hope we have the same luck as we did with Sandy.

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  Great until you break - 2005 Hyundai Santa Fe
  By thrddgreeburns - December 28 - 8:06 pm

  The Santa Fe is a woderful vehicle until you want to break; mainly when its raining, snowing or youre going down a hill. It keeps on going when you want to stop. Im surprised I havent gotten into an accident yet (knock on wood). When I told the mechanic at Sussman, he said that it was a safety feature and I shouldnt worry about it. How can I not worry about potentially running into another car is beyond me. Other than that, the SUV rides really well. I was skeptical because of their rep. in the past but theyve made a believer out of me. Hyundai is a good vehicle thats great on gas. Thanks for listening.

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  Well Balanced - Perfect for Me - 2008 Hyundai Elantra
  By rgrande9 - December 28 - 2:23 pm

  Edmunds and Consumer Reports cover all the great things about this car. We test drove late model Corollas, Civics, etc.-rebates on the Hyundais were too enticing. Though I liked the Sonatas ride, I found the smaller Elantra handled better yet still felt roomy. Its well-appointed with touches that feel like a much more expensive car including the premium audio w/XM. I like the solid sporty feel of the Civic, but as Ive gotten older, I appreciate the higher entry position and comfortable ride of the Elantra (more like American sedans). The SE handled and rode noticably better than the GLS and the better fuel economy was a major deciding factor over the Sonata even with the smaller rebate.

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  A good value - 2008 Hyundai Santa Fe
  By Uncle Gonzo - December 27 - 1:46 pm

  We looked pretty closely at 2 other vehicles in this class before buying the Santa Fe. The Subaru Forester didnt offer a V6 and was not as visually appealing. Still with just a 4 cylinder and the options we wanted, it was about $2000 more than the Santa Fe. We liked how the Toyota Rav4 looks, and liked how the V6 handled. But to get the same options as our SE Santa Fe, we would have had to get a Limited Rav4. That was almost $6000 more. Since this was tied with the Rav4 for consumer satisfaction in Consumer Reports, it seemed a no brainer to get this.

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  My Sonata - 2018 Hyundai Sonata
  By Richard Peters - December 27 - 9:53 am

  Still getting used to the car, but so far its great. A good value for the money, and it has a great warranty.