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:

• 

  Love This Car - 2004 Hyundai Elantra
  By Kris K - May 17 - 2:21 pm

  I bought my 04 Hyundai "used" as a lease vehicle previously. This is the most reliable car I have ever owned. I like all of the standard features that on other models would cost extra. I have had to replace the radiator at about 90K, replaced the back brakes and rotors at about 100K, and have needed to replace headlights about every 6 months. The biggest inconvenience has been replacing the headlights, but this pales in comparison to the overall reliability of the car. I recently totaled this car (not due to the car!) . One thing that concerns me is that the airbag did not deploy in my head on collision. But I like this car so much that I am looking for another Elantra to replace it.

• 

  Great car - 2007 Hyundai Sonata
  By ric - May 17 - 2:13 pm

  Great handling and performance, big trunk, $6k less than Honda or Camry, have 40k miles, tires to be replaced soon, brake pads good for another 10k, seats leather good quality, mileage 20 in town 30 highway fast driving engine computer/02sensors/mixture control have problems-carry obdii reader to reset engine codes, best car in 60 yrs.

• 

  Fun small car, but loud! - 2001 Hyundai Accent
  By reddotblackdot - May 15 - 4:49 pm

  I purchased this car used in 2005, and therefore all the warranties on it were void. it had 30,000 miles. It now has 92,000 and the transmission blew out. It is a $2,000 repair as the whole transmission needs to be replaced. That is almost the worth of the whole car so I am just going to buy another car. It is not a bad car, it is small and that is what i like. It is also quite zippy, i think, however it costs me $22 to fill up and i have to fill it up about every week and a half. I have a 20 min. ride to work from where i live. So you do the math. It is a good used car but i wouldnt pay too much for it.

• 

  Solid Transportation But - 2002 Hyundai Sonata
  By BigJim - May 15 - 1:49 am

  I now have 94K miles and the car has provided 100% reliable transportation. Most reliable car Ive ever owned. BUT - the electric antenna never worked right from day one, the clock goes on and off and I cant turn the radio off. It keeps coming on at random times. Love the car, it drives wonderfully, very comfortable, no repairs except oil and tires. Good mileage. Still looks shiny and new. The Rick Case purchasing experience was horrible (very manipulative) and their service dept isnt any better. They charged me $460 to do back breaks but only did one and charged me for both. Found a work light hanging from my car when I got home! Ill buy another Sonata soon but not from them.

• 

  Love our Hyundai - 2005 Hyundai Elantra
  By David - May 14 - 2:54 pm

  I love our 2005 Hyundai. We bought it because it was the best bang for the buck and weve had 0 problems with it even after owning it for 3 years now. The only thing Ive done with the car is get the brake pads fixed. Ive had to buy a new battery, but thats about it. I could not be happier with the car. It is true that the door handles and some other of the interior knobs might feel cheap but thats not important to me. They dont break, its just Ive read that things like that might make a difference for some people.

• 

  My first car! - 2004 Hyundai Sonata
  By Deputy Tut - May 14 - 1:10 pm

  This is my first car and i love it! But i have a few problems. The caps for the fogs lights come off real easily. I have a check engine light on for a cylinder 3 misfire. The emergency brake barely works, the headlights dont last long. The power steer is shot. The power antenna doesnt work. But it is an extremely reliable car. I plan to own it for a long time. I would recommend this car to anybody.

• 

  Hasnt cost me a cent in repairs - 2002 Hyundai Sonata
  By Pearl - May 13 - 11:58 pm

  Ive owned this car for 8 years and other than oil changes and brakes, it hasnt cost me a cent. There was only one minor steering problem a few years ago, which was covered under warranty. It still rides like new. I would keep this car forever, but Im ready to try out a Hyundai Santa Fe. Hands down, best car Ive ever owned, and Ive owned quite a few over the years.

• 

  Fun to drive, pretty and good on gas - 2007 Hyundai Elantra
  By KC - May 13 - 8:45 pm

  My car is great. I had 2 door handles on the same side of car break in the first yr, but warranty cvd it. Must have been a bad batch! This car sips gas, I get 30 mpg regularly. Ive driven over 50,000 miles on it (20,000 on it when we bought it used in 2008) & enjoyed every minute of it. We used to rent cars to go visit family - no more. Ours is more comfy and has XM too! Paint does scratch faster, body has a few bumps (8 yo son=damage!) but its really a great buy. The trunk is HUGE & thats why I purchased it. I carry lots of equipment for work. I can keep it in this car, AND go get a few groceries too! Really, its an amazing trunk! Wish the carpet wasnt tan, but it cleans up pretty well.

• 

  No problems - 2007 Hyundai Sonata
  By None - May 13 - 5:47 pm

  Like very much, very reliable so far. Cheap to maintain at independent garage [former Hyundai dealership mechanics run garage]. Have only done oil changes, and recommended Hyundai maintenance. Much better car than a Camry.

• 

  A Good Car - 2007 Hyundai Elantra
  By rusl - May 13 - 11:32 am

  I have had this car for almost three years now and have got 51,000 miles on it. I average around 34 highway and 26 city. The only problems so far were the air conditioning vents breaking and the dealership replaced those immediately. Hyundai has been really good standing behind their warranty. The only real problem that I have is the car uses oil. It uses about 3/4 quart every 5000 miles.