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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  Watch out Honda & Toyota, Hyundais here - 2003 Hyundai Elantra
  By C SKYWALKER - April 22 - 2:00 am

  What a great little car. I drive this car 130 miles a day minimum. I have close to 50k on it in less than a year and a half and havent had so much as a hick-up. At 65 mph it still has passing gear left. I find it comfortable during my daily drive and certainly enough power. This same car with all the options in a Toyota or Honda would have cost me another $3000 easily.

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  Why I love this car!!!!!!!!!! - 2005 Hyundai XG350
  By Rosanne Davis - April 21 - 9:26 am

  First my XG350L is a 2002 and I love this car!!!!! I have over 100,000 miles on my car with regularly scheduled maintance and my car runs great!!!!

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  2005 Tucson Win.. - 2005 Hyundai TUCSON
  By 2005 Hyundai Tucson - April 20 - 6:10 am

  we bought this last November, this is a great suv for teenager or couple with 2-3 kids. The interior are well design, cruising is good like a car, quite, you feel the safetyness inside of it. better acceleration, brake & control....

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  Excellent All-Around Vehicle - 2008 Hyundai Veracruz
  By RTM - April 20 - 1:26 am

  Purchased Veracruz LTD AWD in February 2009. The vehicle handles exceptionally smooth, is well equipped with many standard features and is a complete joy to drive. The sound system is decent and came equipped with the DVD package. A surprising feature NOT included is a jack for an Ipod. Gas mileage hovers around 20 mpg. Not great but comparable to other vehicles in its class. I would recommend Hyundai as a vehicle brand for people to seriously consider. With the amount of rebates on this particular vehicle, the strength of its warranty and the assurance plan in place, you cannot go wrong.

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  Great car - 2005 Hyundai Elantra
  By Mary - April 19 - 4:10 pm

  I really love my Hyundai. I shopped around for the best car for my money and Hyundai was the best buy. I got 0% financing and 10yr warranty. Cant beat that.

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  My Second Santa Fe - 2007 Hyundai Santa Fe
  By vegasangel - April 19 - 7:07 am

  This is my Second Santa Fe, having owned a 2003 previously. Overall, this is a great vehicle, having really no major issues over the past almost 5 years. Dont know if Ill own another one due to the overall cost of owning the newer models, but Id recommend this vehicle to anybody. I get questions about it all of the time. Im very happy with this vehicle.

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  Decent!!! - 2003 Hyundai Santa Fe
  By KristinB - April 17 - 10:00 am

  I bought my car on April 23rd, 2003, after months of wanting it. I only qualified for a lease, as I was upside down in a crappy Sentra. I absolutely love love love my Sante Fe. I wish I could have gotten a moon roof, though.

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  I LOVE it! - 2003 Hyundai Elantra
  By Ishine4God - April 17 - 10:00 am

  I had no clue when it came to cars-- all I knew was I needed a new one! A friend recommended edmunds and after spending several hours browsing, I came across the Hyundai Elantra. What really stood out to me was the fact that it was being used for their 2- year, long-term road test. Every single entry from each of the drivers was positive! The incredible warranty only confirmed my choice. After 16 months, I STILL love my car! Thank you, Edmunds!! :)

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  Great Compact SUV - 2016 Hyundai TUCSON
  By Bob - April 16 - 5:07 am

  So far I have just over 1,300 miles on the Tucson and am very pleased with its performance. The 1.6L turbo performs very well. The Tucson is extremely quiet at idle and has no vibration. Acceleration and passing on the highway are no problem. The dual clutch transmission takes some getting used to but Ive had no problem with it. Dont expect it to feel like exactly like an automatic, especially at low speeds. The shifts at low speeds become smoother once the transmission adjusts to your driving and you get used to the transmission. I appreciate the smooth ride and find the interior noise to be well controlled (coming from a Mazda3 that was very loud). Handling and steering are impressive also. The drivers seat is also very comfortable. Of the recent cars/SUVs Ive owned this is the only one that felt comfortable from the beginning and didnt give me leg, hip or arm discomfort at some point. The infotainment system and Bluetooth work well and I love the ventilated seats. As of now, Id recommend the Tucson.

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  Best Car Ever - 2007 Hyundai Azera
  By Colin MacLean - April 15 - 4:56 pm

  This is the necest car I have ever owned, without the headaches.