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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  My Second Hyundai - 2009 Hyundai Sonata
  By Hyaguar05 - September 1 - 9:13 am

  I love this car, this is my second Sonata I also have a 2005. I think everything about this car is great, except the way they designed the air conditioning vents. I think because of angle of the vents on the dashboard, you have to almost close the vents all the way downward before you feel the air.

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  Blulink Remote Starter Problem - 2012 Hyundai Sonata Hybrid
  By alejandromg85 - September 1 - 5:21 am

  When using the remote starter to warm the car in the winter the car doesnt warm up cause it always start in hybrid mode. As everybody knows the heater works with the hot water of the engine, if the engine doesnt start the water never warms up. I let the dealer know and they didnt do anything about it. So, a 30.000 dollars car cant keep you warm in the winter =S

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  Fun to drive vehicle - 2006 Hyundai TUCSON
  By jpiecuch - September 1 - 5:10 am

  After driving a Ford truck, I can tell you this vehicle is much more fun to drive. It handles great and will do everything we will need it to do. Parking in tight spots is no longer a pain. Engine power is sufficient and ride is what you would expect from an SUV, although is better than most others I have been in. I highly recommend this vehicle.

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  Great Design - 2006 Hyundai TUCSON
  By Great Design - August 31 - 1:40 pm

  A very fun suv to drive. Short lenght took some getting use to. 6 inches longer would be perfect, but would it still be a compact or midsize. Really havent took a road trip to check mpg but city has been very disapointing at only 16/17 mpg?? Shifting sometimes feels lazy and you get the feeling its guzzing gas? Right arm rest could be designed 4/6 inches longer even in the upper position. Overall this is an excellent value for the money. Jury is still out if I should have paid the extra cash and bought the Honda or the Rava. My auto mechanic for past 25 yrs. suggested the Santa Fe or Tucson since he never gets them in his shop.

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  THE GREAT SEARCH IS OVER - HYUNDAI ACCENT WINS - 2016 Hyundai Accent
  By Leah Nikaidoh - August 31 - 11:35 am

  Hi all. Okay I REALLY dont write reviews because I usually think they are biased, but here I go. This is the first time Ive done a serious effort in test driving cars before buying one. Prior to this, I only leased or bought VWs - however, my last one (a beautiful 2012 GTI that was red and had plaid interior) required 3 MAJOR repairs in six months, so I had to bid her a fond farewell. So, my uncle and I did test drives (separately) of the following cars: Hyundai Elantra GT, Hyundai Accent hatch back, Mazda 3 hatchback, high end Toyota Prius, and Kia Soul. I narrowed search down to the Mazda and the Accent. The Mazda had more bells and whistles, but the Accent was a lot less expensive and the biggest selling point was the 5 year bumper to bumper warranty. I actually upgraded to the 10 year warranty for only $1800 (which is partially refundable if I dont keep the car). The mileage on both cars were about the same - if I wanted leather seats I would have had to spend more money and get the Mazda or the Hyundai Elantra. I definitely wanted a hatchback and the Accents cargo space seemed a lot bigger than the Mazda. The interior gadgets are minimal - while I miss my hands free calling, I dont miss it enough to spend another $5-8K. So, Id recommend you consider this car - my purchase price was great and I have to honestly say that the car dealership has been terrific.

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  Love it so far - 2011 Hyundai Sonata
  By Eric - August 30 - 7:23 am

  Its great looks combined with its outstanding performance is unmatched at this price level. Getting numerous head turns and is extremely fun to drive. One note: At just 200 miles the airbag light has come on. Have an appointment to have it looked at tomorrow, will update my review if needed.

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  Hybrid Sonata - 2011 Hyundai Sonata Hybrid
  By hasbro_t - August 29 - 12:49 am

  I wanted to wait a few months to rate this car and have driven it for 3 months now so still early but here are my findings. Hyundai quoted 35 city and 45 hwy mpg. I havent done any extensive hwy driving but city is about 25 mpg. I assume that is less than if I bought the standard gas model. I live in the desert of So Cal and since owning this car, I have run the A/C nearly all the time I have driven it. I have noted a better MPG when not using the A/C. There are some quirks, like at a stop light, if the engine kick on to charge the battery while the A/C is on, there is a slight jolt forward. I have looked into my rearview twice to see if I was rear-ended, lol.

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  Rental Santa Fe Made Me a Believer - 2018 Hyundai Santa Fe
  By UtahRed - August 28 - 6:29 pm

  I have rented this suv for a week since my car is in the shop. I currently have a KIA Sorento. I test drove a 2015 Santa Fe before purchasing my Sorento. The issues I had with the 2015 have all been addressed in the 2018 Santa Fe Im renting now. And I would have to highly recommend it. It has good acceleration, the visibility is much better than my KIA. Its more sporty looking. It sits up higher thanks to a "pumping" lever. The headrest is much more comfortable. I can see out the back window. The interior isnt as nice as my Sorento but its got all the bells and whistles.

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  Great Value - 2006 Hyundai Sonata
  By Vince - August 28 - 8:23 am

  Im glad I brought this car instead of the Camry, saved a lot of money and love the profromance.

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  A Great Deal - 2003 Hyundai Santa Fe
  By J.Davie - August 28 - 2:00 am

  This is a great vehicle, and I dare to say the best buy currently on the market. It handles in a very agile manner, and has adequate power.