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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  First time Hyundai Owner - 2009 Hyundai Elantra Touring
  By Treetop - November 7 - 2:16 am

  It is my first time to own a Hyundai car but so far after having driven 3k miles, I am more than convinced that I made a right choice. ET (Elantra Touring) has more features than any other cars in its class for less $$$. Better gas mileage than my previous 2.0 Mazda Protege 2002 and city/highway combined getting average 30 mpg. My 2 kids have more than enough space in the back. Good cargo space and well thought out dashboard design. I just had a trip of 400 miles but didnt even feel fatigue. USB connection (I dont even have iPOD) gives me more than I need, that 8GB flash drive can store plenty songs that I can control from my steering wheel.

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  Poor Gas Mileage so far - 2010 Hyundai Santa Fe
  By Big Bruno - November 6 - 11:23 pm

  Greetings, I knew my new SUV is fine with the exception of the gas mileage. Im getting about 16-17 MPG driving in the suburbs. Everyone tells me the mileage will get better after 3,000 miles. I have about 1,500 so far. I sure hope so.

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  Value Buster - 2006 Hyundai Azera
  By Richard Thomas - November 5 - 11:13 am

  Went from Infiniti to Hyundai Azera. Lots of room, smooth ride, comfortable seats, great stereo and awesome brakes! Dont like to overspend on anything. Didnt with the Azera!

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  Best bang for the buck - 2008 Hyundai Veracruz
  By ACD - November 5 - 11:13 am

  Started out at the 2008 CAS and compared all 7 passenger cars. Narrowed it down to Saturn Outlook and the Veracruz, Saturn lost. So far 9800 miles and not a single problem other than two broken seat belt clips from a clumsy kid. Handles snow great, even through 2 drifts. I have nothing bad to say about it, only thing that is annoying is the XM radio switches back to preview channel when you switch to AM/FM. MPG on highway tops 25 MPG, but winter has it down to 17.3 overall. Summer 19 MPG. Its my favorite car. My daily driver is a Toyota Camry Hybrid, so I get to have fun once in a while and drive this instead.

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  2013 Santa Fe 2.0T - 2013 Hyundai Santa Fe
  By rhiannon2 - November 5 - 5:55 am

  We purchased our Santa Fe in Jan 2013 and have had many issues with it. The steering is terrible and apparently nothing can be done. We have had 2 alignments already but it has not helped how the vehicle wanders and pulls.We had to have transmission replaced at 4,800 km and there was a recall on the back up sensors that could short out and cause a fire. At 5,200 km it is experiencing stalling and rough running issues as well as check gas cap light. Not impressed with hyundai refusing to pay for towing over 100 km since we do live in rural Alberta and closest dealership is over 100 km away.I have been left stranded by this so called new vehicle.I have lost confidence and now afraid to drive .

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  mr - 2005 Hyundai TUCSON
  By paul bartels - November 4 - 6:00 pm

  Ride and handling are ok. Dont like the way trans shifts. Its too slow shifting, wastes gas doing so. You can get better performance by shifting manually. Brake pedal feels too soft.

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  my experience. - 2003 Hyundai Elantra
  By bob henley - November 4 - 10:00 am

  a good price. r.p.m. at highspeeds 80- 90 mph are alittle high.

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  awesome value for the price - 2003 Hyundai Elantra
  By coreyb. - November 4 - 10:00 am

  i traded in a 2000 chevy tracker for my elantra. let me tell you ,after driving a car that you hate for 2 years its nice to drive one that you like. the car has a smooth ride, great pick up, and good fuel economy. drove to D.C. and back from Va. beach off of 1 tank of gas. thinking about bying the missus one for xmas. i like the $300 car payment the best.

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  First time in 35 years I am not driving - 2007 Hyundai Sonata
  By Jack Jefferson - November 4 - 2:20 am

  I was ready to purchase a new Ford Fusion and on a whim I drove a new Sonata. It was smoother and more refined than the Fusion. The 17 inch 55 ratio tires made the car ride rough so I bought a set of 16" 60 ratio tires and wheels, then sold the 17s back to the dealer for more than I paid for the 16s. The ride is greatly improved. It is stupid to install low ratio tires on a nice car and expect to get a good ride. I had firm foam put in the drivers seat. The car has been flawless, No problems!!

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  How did I do? - 2003 Hyundai Sonata
  By On the Road - November 4 - 2:00 am

  2003 Hyundai Sonata Base Model with the V6 Auto upgrade with the moonroof. I think the Edmunds TMC pricing is a bit low, though. Kelleys and NADA prices show the price as higher. Dealer invoice was $16360 for this car. I managed to get it for $16,100 without the rebate. I chose the special financing, instead. Im surely no expert at buying a new car and wonder how the experts here may think I did on the price? $16,100 out the door (no taxes because I will title it in my state).3 or 4 dealers in my entire state; they wont deal; bought car in adjoining state. So far, 2 days, I love the car & the ride. Thanks for any input.