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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  high style for less cost - 2003 Hyundai Tiburon
  By Chinafly - April 11 - 10:00 am

  Its been the best choice I had made when shopping for a bargain price sports coupe. I am especially amazed by the design of the car that gets the looks from passerby and asking if its an european sports car that they are looking at. Great Job to the Designers.

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  1-Year Update - 2002 Hyundai Elantra
  By W Whicker - April 11 - 10:00 am

  Now have 13k on the GT and its still like new in every way. No mechanical (or any) problems so far. Its a great car at a great price. The hatch is good for hauling lots of stuff. Great fuel economy (25-26 mpg). Its a great value new or used!

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  Lov it - 2003 Hyundai Santa Fe
  By SantaFe Lover - April 11 - 10:00 am

  Sante Fe is an excellent choice. Test drove the Rav 4 and Vue and considered the CRV, but was most impressed by the Santa Fe. Nearly everything is standard, and has excellent warrenty

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  Love my new Santa Fe - 2003 Hyundai Santa Fe
  By Teleman - April 11 - 10:00 am

  Purchased the 2wd 3.5 Gls liked the extra power,so far so good drives very smooth. A lot faster than the old van, need to watch my speed! Seems like a great car.

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  Nice Bang for the Buck - 2003 Hyundai Elantra
  By Bearasaur - April 11 - 10:00 am

  This is a very attractive car that looks like those costing way out of its price catagory. It is a very comfortable car, nice to drive on trips or just around town. Very roomy, for both front and rear seat passengers and great trunk space. A very nice small family car. Super warranty - good piece of mind and a car your are proud to pull up in. It just looks good and you will like the way you look and feel inside.

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  Great Car For the Money - 2006 Hyundai Sonata
  By Jason - April 11 - 2:30 am

  I bought this car after many months of Research. I looked at the obvious candidates, Honda Accord, Toyota Camry, and Nissan Altima. All the cars were good, but the Sonata had something the others could not match, Value for the Money. The car runs strong and has PLENTY of get up and go (0 to 60 in the 7 second range). I have had the car now almost a year and in that time only a few very minor things have gone wrong. First the Windshield Washer pump went out, no biggie. And Second some of the black out tape around the doors on the passenger side came off and has had to be replaced 2 times now. Other than this NOTHING else has gone wrong with the car. I would HIGHLY recommend this car.

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  great suv - 2008 Hyundai Santa Fe
  By ro - April 10 - 4:13 am

  I bought this suv because it road so smooth and quiet which makes the 605 Watt stereo sound even better. With 10 speakers and suround sound if you put in a cd and turn it up too loud you might lose your lunch. It has a lot of other Nice features too.

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  Buy it - 2013 Hyundai Sonata
  By Elwood P Dowd - April 8 - 2:52 am

  Bought it new in 13 and after 90,000 its still a great car. Replaced the brakes all around and put on tires, other than that have done nothing to it. Gas mileage has been excellent 20s around town and mid to upper 30s on the road. Have gotten over a little over 40 once but consistently 35+ MPG if you will keep it under 80. Good acceleration and rides very well. The sound system is just ok but overall this is a great car!

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  Nice ride - 2005 Hyundai TUCSON
  By Judy Goetz - April 7 - 7:16 pm

  This is the 4th Hyundai product I have owned since 1999. They just get better every year. I know I am safe driving the Hyundai.

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  Everything great but - 2011 Hyundai Sonata
  By James13069 - April 7 - 4:40 pm

  I purchased my sonata this month early June. everything went great. great pricing for the car you get.