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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  mine - 2004 Hyundai Santa Fe
  By Mike Flynn - October 24 - 10:00 am

  No problems, had owned Hyundai xg350 and this is good car

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  I love it!!!!! - 2004 Hyundai Santa Fe
  By Ides - October 24 - 10:00 am

  After many hours of searching for the replacement for our 98 Windstar mini- van. We decided that the best option was a smaller sized SUV. We have 2 children but no longer needed the room for car seats/strollers/etc... The Santa Fe was the perfect fit. I drive over 80 miles a day during the week...and probably another 80 combined on Sat & Sun...so I need something reliable and comfortable to drive. Im thrilled with my choice!!

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  So far so good with very few problems - 2009 Hyundai Santa Fe
  By sweep - October 23 - 11:16 pm

  Purchased the base model for two weeks with 500 miles now. The gas mileage is about 19 in local and 21 on highway. Really like the design, interior and exterior. The engine is very quite, just not as powerful as what I think about a V6 engine. Overall experience is great. There are two places that make me give a 9 instead of 10. 1. When I try to get out of the front driver seat, my right knee often gets scratched with the sound output, which hurts. 2. The trunk door is hard to pull back down.

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  Best car Ive ever had! - 2011 Hyundai Sonata
  By kelley9 - October 23 - 5:04 pm

  Ive had my 2011 Sonata Turbo since February and I love it. I could not be happier with the performance, features, look of the car and the great customer service that Hyundai had offered since I leased my car. In addition, the warranty and unlimited roadside service is the icing on the cake. I would recommend the Sonata - or any Hyundai to all of my friends and family. I leased my car from Temecula Hyundai - no pressure, great customer service, great follow up - if you live in the San Diego area I would recommend visiting them if you are in the market for a new car.

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  Hyundai Believer Now! - 2010 Hyundai TUCSON
  By Breal - October 23 - 2:56 pm

  I wanted to post a quick review of how this car handles in the mountains. My wife and I recently purchased this vehicle in Denver and drove it up to our home in the Vail area. That is an elevation gain of over 5,000 ft so there are plenty of hills! The Tucson handled the hills amazingly. We have owned several 4 cylinder Subarus and the Tucson is so much faster on the hills and the transmission is flawless. I was skeptical about hyundai, but I am now a believer. The car is so stylish and so well appointed that I dont know how you could consider any other vehicle in this price range. It also has a lot more room than you would expect looking at it from the outside. Amazing car!

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  good for first car out of college - 2007 Hyundai Sonata
  By Erica - October 23 - 1:55 pm

  I bought this car when it was 2 years old. It had 30,000 miles on it. when I use standard leather cleaner on it the brown comes off the leather. The paint job could be better. It rusts easily. I have had a stop lamp switch replaced twice on it. Both sun visor have busted and needed to be replaced. at 116,000 miles the crank shaft busted into 2 parts and needed to be replaced. This car goes through tires very quickly. The way the tires sit on the car makes them wear down. Overall not the best car to buy. I think this company makes low quality cars. I will try to go with a Ford or Toyota next time.

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  Really like the new Elantra - 2017 Hyundai Elantra
  By VS - October 23 - 12:57 pm

  The Elantra is probably the best bang for the buck as far as bells and whistles are involved. We got ours for 19k out the door. The infotainment system is great. Sleek styling and easy to use. The 6-speed auto transmission shifts smoothly and on time. Gives you 40 MPGs on the highway. The ride is comfortable with a little wind noise. Plenty of room in the back, as opposed to the Corollas. This is a great family sedan.

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  Great Car! - 2002 Hyundai Santa Fe
  By dgj - October 23 - 6:46 am

  Overall, I love this car. I bought it brand new and was initially concerned about reliability. However, that has turned out to be unfounded. I have 89,000 miles on it after 4 years and have not had any major problems. The car runs smooth. No rattles (surprising for the price range). I had one recurring problem with the air conditioner. Thought it might be a factory problem but think it could have been a dealership problem instead. It kept freezing up. Took them forever to fix that. Then kept getting leaks. I kept telling them but, what do I know, Im a girl! I think the freezing of lines caused them to dry-rot, causing leaks. They finally fixed it!

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  Luxury without guilt - 2006 Hyundai Azera
  By Dennis - October 23 - 6:46 am

  I can afford almost any normal car. I saw the 350 at an auto show a year ago and was prepaired to buy one in August. The dealer had several on the lot but made sure I knew a whole new version was coming out in the Fall, which was nice. I waited-actually until 12/13 for the first one to come in. The Azera was 50%+ better in all respects than the 350. Without the closeout discounts it costs $5000+ more than the 350, but worth it: performance features, size, looks. My co-workers (Lexus, BMW, Mercedes types) sneered when I said I was getting a Hyundai, But have shut-up as soon as they saw the Azera in person. I paid 5% less than sticker and think the car is grat AND a bargain.

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  Disappointed - 2005 Hyundai TUCSON
  By jones1009 - October 22 - 10:56 pm

  Purchased the vehicle two months ago and have put on 10K miles. We are disappointed greatly in the advertised mpg, should avg 26, we currently get under 20 100% highway which is a decrease from mpg at 5K. We also recently test drove a 4 cyl Mazda 3 and found that it had more pick up and smoother transmission than the Tucson. For others comparing SUVs to this vehicle, you may prefer this to a larger SUV, but overall I am disappointed in the engine performance and handling. Does have some nice interior features and shorter length is good for parking in crowded lots. Based on other feedback and reviews, I believe there is an inconsistency in the manufacturing of this vehicle.