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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  fabric of cloth seats are awlfull - 2008 Hyundai Elantra
  By Danny McCuiston - March 18 - 9:29 pm

  We just bought the car, we like the dealership every one there was helpful,now for the only bad thing about the car that weve found is the fabric on the seats, if you drop one drop of clear clean water on the seats it looks like a big dirty stain. We took it back for them to get the spots out 80% came out and we are afraid to try anymore cleaning,we cover the seats and arm rest with towels and that is embarrassing. If you have children the seats would be ruined with in a week. I hope Hyundai will improve the inside quality,if they do I will probably buy another one next year from the same dealer. A newer one but for now we will just be ashamed of the seats.

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  Nice but viberates - 2010 Hyundai Accent
  By Dan - March 18 - 8:16 pm

  I like it feels nice to drive, comfort, average 33mph do more hwy. as much as 38. The problem I have it has a vibration more noticeable at 58 or above, took it in to get checked they didnt know what it was, said another one had that also, was checking into it, bummer to feel that on a new car

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  Not my first pick - 2002 Hyundai Elantra
  By Kate - March 18 - 7:52 pm

  This car was ok at first. Nothing fancy although its always been terribly uncomfortable on your back. The leather seats are hard and have never softened up. Now at 75K miles all four struts need to be replaced and there is a weird humming from the rear end. It leaks water going through the car wash - always has. Some rust on the rear wheel well, thought it would have held up better than that, but maybe because of the salty winter roads. Have replaced all the brake pads and tires, to be expected. The clear coat is chipped up pretty bad on the hood from gravel? I waxed it (black) and every pit showed up white from the wax. Oh and the hatchback struts? wont keep the hatch open anymore-Annoying

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  A very economical, fun little vehicle! - 1996 Hyundai Elantra
  By Kalikiano - March 18 - 3:54 pm

  Bought my 1996 white Elantra GLS wagon from an Arizona dealer. It had 118,000 miles on it and was in excellent overall condition (well maintained by a NASA engineer) at the time. I have been quite pleased with this vehicle. Fuel economy excellent (30+ mpg) and reliability solid. Only problem I had was with the check engine light coming on, but adjustment at the local Hyundai dealer resolved that and the car passed California emissions tests quite easily. The cars great fun, handles well, and extremely practical for passenger or cargo use. A few squeaks due to age, but they just add personality to what has proven to be a very satisfactory purchase. Id buy another Hyundai in future!

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  A happy owner - 2009 Hyundai Genesis
  By Mike - March 18 - 10:16 am

  After owning 2 Elantras and 3 Sonatas and having no reliability problems and next to none other problems with Hyundai cars I got a Genesis 3.8L w/Premium Pkg. Build quality and comfort exceed anything Ive ever owned and Ive owned Lincoln an Mercedes. Performance, considering the 3.8 is hauling around a 2 ton vehicle, is nothing short of amazing! All surfaces inside have that certain luxury quality look and feel. All exterior panels fit evenly and the doors, trunk and hood close with authority. Everything works as intended and expected. In town gas mileage can be no so hot at 16-17 at the highest, but on a run back from Omaha one day I got 29 which was a pleasant surprise.

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  Great 1st New Car - 2002 Hyundai Elantra
  By GRC - March 18 - 8:20 am

  I totally love this car. I drove from Mass to Florida and back to Mass with this car full of stuff. I have about 79,000 miles on it now. Still runs great. I had good luck with dealers in Mass and in Florida. I get regular oil changes and tires when needed. Brought this car brand new. Great 1st car for me. Do you see how much the 2010 Honda Accord Crosstour looks like the Elantra GT.

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  Very reliable, annoying however... - 2006 Hyundai Sonata
  By Tommy - March 18 - 12:17 am

  Put 100,000 miles on it. Havent had ANY mechanical problems, even after not changing the oil for up to 8-9000 miles at a time. Performed regular maintenance (brake pads, oil, filters, etc) and has never broke down once. The center console is terrible!!!! Too much to list here about it, but for instance.. The cup holders... well is really just one big cup holder, and if you have only one drink in there, it will definitely slide and spill into the gear selector. It is now hard to shift gears from the amount of times this has happened. Grey interior is now brown from dirt, even though I keep it clean. Headlights are impossible to replace by yourself without daylight and lots of patience.

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  Catalytic Converter - Horrible - 2001 Hyundai Accent
  By Tony Burns - March 16 - 10:46 pm

  Overall my car was a fun and reliable car with very few issues. Last year I could not pass the emission test and the problems began. The check engine light would not go off and the codes said that the engine was under load even in low idle. The there was also a code for a new converter. On most vehicles the converter is under the car and may cost a couple hundred dollars. The converter on this vehicle is attached to the exhaust manifold and cost over a thousand dollars. I would have loved to keep the car but I was so upset with the outrageous price and location of the converter that I had to let it go. Good car, bad converter location!

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  NICE luxurious car - 2009 Hyundai Genesis
  By gohuskies77 - March 16 - 5:11 pm

  When my husband told me that he wanted a luxury sedan, I was worried about the cost. We test drove many cars and really liked the Audi A4. As we continued to look, we stopped at the Hyundai dealer to see what they had in the line of luxury sedans and were shocked to find the Genesis. A gorgeous car at such a low price!! One test drive and we were sold...done deal! We have already put 12,000 miles on it and have ZERO regrets. I do recommend re-badging this car. I found some neat "winged" Genesis badges on Ebay (very much like the Bently badge), pulled the Hyundai badge off the rear and replaced with the new, and added a badge to the front hood. Makes the car look more elegant.

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  Unhappy Owner - 2008 Hyundai Azera
  By Mike - March 16 - 2:11 pm

  I bought this car used Aug 09. Had 28k miles on it. It has developed a quite load ticking in the engine. Worse on cold days but can be heard always. Tried twice to get dealer to fix under warranty. They refused. Said until something breaks theres nothing they can do. What good is a warranty if they wont honer it. I actually am starting to hate this car. Its has a noisy, jittery ride. I just have a feeling in another 20k it will be a hunk of junk. I will get rid of it somehow this summer when it warms up and the ticking sound is not a obvious.