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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  Couldnt be happier! Perfect sedan - 2015 Hyundai Sonata
  By ksmith18 - February 1 - 4:23 pm

  Coming from a 2012 Hyundai Elantra Limited, I couldnt be more thrilled with the Sonata! Purchased in July 2014 and I nearly have ten thousand miles on it. This car is absolutely gorgeous. Very comfortable, especially for long drives or sitting in traffic. The audio system is awesome with the Pandora connect and the XM radio. The heating system is great, and the heated and cooled seats are the best! Heated steering wheel has been a plus in this cold New England winters! Plenty of room throughout the whole car, including the trunk. I get countless compliments on this car, and people always tells me it looks like Im driving a BMW. Very stylish and dependable. LOVE this car!

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  Cheap car - 2010 Hyundai Elantra Touring
  By mike11778 - February 1 - 9:37 am

  A very cheap car, leather on steering wheel peals off, dealer will change, carpet floor is pulling away, dealer fixed it, it does this again, very noisy (low profile tires), every small rock is like a pain, floor mats (Touring OEM !!!!) already having holes at the gas pedal. I am looking to get rid of it and buy a VW or similar. No engine problems so far, but driving is crappy, got pain in fingers from extensive driving due to vibrating car.

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  Pretty tight little SUV - 2006 Hyundai TUCSON
  By JHicks - February 1 - 7:23 am

  I purchased this vehicle used. With only 25k miles on it, I still have 2 years factory warranty on it. Pretty sweet! It drives great, has nice standard equipment, comfortable, and spacious enough for a family of 4 and a dog. After reading reviews of this car getting around 16 mpg, I was worried about that. But, I seem to be averaging 21 and am thrilled. It is a cute little SUV and hopefully it will last me for many years to come.

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  Awesome Awesome Car - 2009 Hyundai Genesis
  By chuck - January 30 - 11:53 pm

  I traded in my CLK for this car. I was looking at the BMW 550, Lexus LS640, and the Mercedes. After the test drive in this car, I was sold and bought it on the spot. Performance is in between the Lexus (soft) and BMW, just right for me. Lexicon audio system is also pretty awesome. Like the person earlier, I enjoy telling my friends and coworkers that I traded in my MB for a Hyundai.

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  Time to move on, with no problems - 2005 Hyundai Santa Fe
  By Matt - January 30 - 8:13 pm

  I bought this vehicle with 17k mi on it. It now has 137k mi. I have only had one major issue. The throttle position sensor went out. After I found a mechanic who could identify the problem, it only too an hour to fix and the cost was minimal. The factory tires lasted 100k mi. Another problem that was really a non issue, is that when I let the gas get too low the check engine light lit up after i filled it up and stayed on till i used half that tank of gas. I averaged about 20 mpg on all highway miles. It still runs great, just time to move on.

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  Great car at a great price - 2005 Hyundai Tiburon
  By Judi - January 29 - 8:33 am

  The comfort, handling, styling and reliability are excellent. It also gives you enough room so that you dont feel like a sardine unlike its closest competitor. It will haul an amazing amount or cargo. Service dept. has far surpassed my expectation at responsiveness, courtesey and efficiency during routine visits. Its a quality vehicle and a quality company.

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  happy camper - 2010 Hyundai Sonata
  By american mike - January 28 - 11:23 am

  great car for the price,paid 18k cash but was able to barter in many upgrades in power options and protection package etc... have 500 miles on it and very pleased so far. I was very skeptical about hyundai,dont be!even with gm employee discounts and rebates they beat malibus price and I like the sonata better. built in u.s.a. hurray!

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  my new car - 2006 Hyundai Sonata
  By abby - January 28 - 4:46 am

  i love the way it drives its so smooth

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  dont buy this car! - 2006 Hyundai Sonata
  By 56man - January 28 - 12:06 am

  Please keep on getting those tired old Camrys & Accords; because I really like having the best looking car in the neighborhood. I really feel smug about all those extra features that I have and they dont. Took my boss for a ride and he said "my 04 BMW 535 doesnt even have some of this stuff" ha! So keep on buying those other cars and IÂ’ll keep on looking like the smartest guy in the neighborhood. Oh yeah, makes me look like I got bucks too. (DonÂ’t tell people how little it cost!!!)

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  Rear Heater Vents Blow Cold Air Only - 2013 Hyundai Santa Fe
  By mholder37 - January 27 - 5:03 pm

  My hubby bought this car in October. Overall we like it, but there have already been some issues. It took two visits to repair the driver in-seat heaters (finally they put in a new heating unit). After two visits the rear vents still dont work. Once or twice weve got them to blow mildly warm air but it couldnt be called heat - and we live in Minnesota. The backseat passengers feet freeze. And, finally, the radio display locks up while playing from an iPod. I am planning on purchasing a car for myself soon - and the lack of warmth in the back of the vehicle is a deal breaker for me.