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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  Impressed - 2008 Hyundai Santa Fe
  By Ken - April 6 - 9:16 pm

  Switched over from a Passat. Looked at numerous other midsize SUVs. Santa Fe was the best for our needs at the right price. No more paying for Premium gas. Halleluyah! I was concerned about the reputation of Hyundai. Not any more. This car is really a great ride and the exterior design is outstanding. Handling is great as is roominess/cargo space. Too bad Hyundais leasing deals are awful. I am confident this car would outproduce the Murano and CRV if Hyundai had favorable lease terms.

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  Noticed a lot of same problems. - 2002 Hyundai XG350
  By JAKS - April 6 - 4:03 pm

  I was reading some of the reviews and noticed same problems. Anyway our XG350 gave us a couple of problems. First one was the Alternator, coolant hose was bad, radio keeps shutting off on its own, moon roof doesnt work, tiptronic isnt good at all shifts way to late, transmission is starting to go bad, car feels like it has no control (handling), shocks starting to make noise but its sounds like it might be the bushings not the shocks. Hope it is shocks and not bushings by the way my mom drives this car and it has max 20,000 miles and its an 02. Other than that the car is pretty fast for a Hyundai. But I wouldnt recommend this car to anyone. It doesnt look nice and quality isnt that great.

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  Watch out for Hyundia! - 2016 Hyundai Genesis
  By Nick - April 5 - 5:35 pm

  If you like Hyundia cars, beware of their practice of not pointing out how some of the features work. If you want remote start, understand that the only way to get it is through their Bluelink System". When you buy the car they give you 90 days of Bluelink for free. After that it cost over $300.00 a year to keep all of the functions active. There is the basic Bluelink connection, which reports on car status and tells Hyundia if the car is in an accident. Next there is your remote start capabilities and a couple of other functions you can do. Last there is the voice active navigation system. If you want the remote capabilities you pay $99.00 plus tax per year and if you want it to work then you have to pay another $99.00 plus tax per year for the basic package. The turn by turn voice activated navigation adds another $81.00 plus tax per year. I bought my Genesis in October and in November I was notified that there is an update to the on-board navigation system for $219.00 plus tax. I highly recommend that you read all of the fine print before you purchase any Hyundia.

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  More than competitors - 2006 Hyundai Azera
  By Patricia - April 5 - 6:16 am

  This is a cheap Lexus ES330. I already owned ES330 2004. I cant find defects compare to ES330. Cheaper but better than Camry or Passat. Good equipment make me comfortable when I driving. If you want to choose Azera, be sure to choose Limited with full option.

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  My first non-American...2 months in - 2007 Hyundai Sonata
  By brainmist - April 4 - 10:46 am

  After 20 years spent almost exclusively behind the wheels of Fords and other mainstream American autos, I hit my limit on providing endless vehicular life-support: it was time for something new. After a bit of research, I decided the Sonata best suited my limited budget and high annual miles. On paper/screen, it looked great..but would it meet expectations? In some ways, yes. This is a heck of a car for the price, with lots of features standard, and some nice additions in the plus package (like the auto-lights, trip computer, etc). But shockingly, my new 2007 4-cyl gets measurably worse fuel efficiency than my 1999 or 1993 6 cyl Tauruses. So much for that stereotype! economic

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  Incredibly impressed - 2014 Hyundai Santa Fe
  By nymatt - April 4 - 7:00 am

  We added this to our 2013 Sonata after the other midsize SUV we lease was bought back by another manufacturer as a lemon. We are incredibly impressed with all of the features in this car. It looks great, rides nicely, if a bit firm, has tons of room for 2 car seats and all the stuff that little kids come with and great technology. I admit that the panoramic sunroof was one of the biggest selling features. If you havent seen it - you must - it beats all other competitors. The only demerits I give are on the telescoping steering wheel - wish it came back a little more and the rear view camera - the lines do not move when you turn the wheel - which is weird as the Sonata does.

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  2007 Santa Fe - 2007 Hyundai Santa Fe
  By Paul - April 4 - 6:43 am

  Only owm the car for 2 weeks and love it. Was not looking for a Hyundai until I spotted it on the dealers lot. Once I drove it, I had to own it. Got a great deal and so far am happy with the purchase, a lot of classy vehicle for the money. Love the performance, ride, and interior. Great leather seats.

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  Little Blue Bug - 2017 Hyundai Elantra
  By J Sobel - April 3 - 8:54 pm

  I went from a Camry Sedan to my Elantra. Very happy with all aspects of the car- quiet, great mileage.

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  A Hyundai Believer! - 2007 Hyundai Veracruz
  By indianadrive - April 3 - 7:24 pm

  Love our Veracruz! We bought our 07 Veracruz limited used in 08 with 2k miles. We now have 113k miles and still love the comfort, drive, and mileage (22mpg combined). Other than a couple recall notices early in our ownership, the only problem we have had was a head gasket line leak, which allowed oil into the alternator, leaving us stranded. Since that problem was resolved, our Veracruz has been trouble free again, with only normal maintenance. It is still very comfortable for long trips and still has a quiet cabin. When it is time to purchase another vehicle, we will most likely buy Hyundai again, as we have been pleased with the quality and value compared to competitors.

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  Love the car - 2006 Hyundai Tiburon
  By 06tiburon - April 3 - 12:46 pm

  I bought my tiburon new only had 45 miles on it and I loved everything about it. I want to say that it is a safe car. I was recently in a accident. July 6th. I hit 4 trees going over 100 mph. Not sure why I was doing that fast. My memory of the crash is gone and before the crash so I cant say what I was doing. But I dont have any broken bones or any serious injuries. I see pictures of the car after the crash and I say I am lucky to be alive. I think the car had a lot to do with it. Thanks Hyundai for building such a safe car!