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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  WoW! What a Vehicle - 2005 Hyundai TUCSON
  By Jim Gray - March 3 - 2:00 pm

  I have owned Jeeps, Geos, Sidekicks, Dodge Power Wagons, and Subarus...all were 4WD. None have the style, and "4WD" Technology that a Tucson has. I had a Elantra GT that I traded in (loved the GT, but missed that (4WD) thrill of just going out & having fun in the snow. Just had our big snow & did it prove itself. It scooted up and down all the hills here in Pennsylvania and it felt like I wasnt even really trying it out. Im thinking about some staight up winter treads; no telling the potential the Tucson would have if you put much better "FEET" under it (aggressive winter treads in winter & my All Seasons back on in the summer). Go buy one, youll love it and hope for snow

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  Great Value - 2005 Hyundai Sonata
  By Pastor B - March 2 - 4:23 am

  After shopping around for a few weeks & a lot of haggling (which I hate) I was able to purchase my Sonata for the Edmunds TMV of $19,015. The car is very comfortable and Im getting 18 mpg city & 26 mpg hwy @ 75-80 mph. The downside. There is too much plastic used. The "chrome" is coming off the interior front passenger plastic door handle. Dealer has ordered a new one. CD player wouldnt eject, or play. Shut the engine off & disc ejected. Alarm went off while driving through a parking lot. I guess the computer corrected those problems as they have not reocurred & are working properly. Having to hold it under 55 mph for the 1st 1200 m. Excess road noise.

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  Goodbye Elantra..... Hello Tucson! - 2005 Hyundai TUCSON
  By 4TH-Hyundai Owner - March 1 - 9:00 am

  Having traded in my 02 Elantra GT Hatch for the Tucson, I was amazed at what Hyundai had done with their newest SUV! I love the additional performance I get from the 2.7 V-6, as opposed to my previous 2.0 4-Banger. The interior is laid out so "User- Friendly", and pleasant to look at. Everything is right where you need it! I thoroughly enjoy the height increase, that I get going from a sedan to a SUV. I can actually see the traffic ahead now. The ease of the seats folding down, including the front passengers seat back, was a big seller for me. The added bonus of 10 airbags, ABS/TCS/ESP, was the main reason I purchased. Not to mention that my insurance went down $25 from the Elantra.

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  Great car but... - 2012 Hyundai Veloster
  By bykdude - March 1 - 12:25 am

  Ive had this little guy since April this year (about 6K mileage) and for the most part has met expectations. Very comfy ride and maneuverability. Depending upon highway surface, you may experience some side to side drifting. Just hang onto the steering wheel. Dont know if its the tires or not. Like most other reviews, the one exception is the power perfomance factor. All I can say is if you want power, get a V8 cause this little guy is a dog; if you want mileage get this car. Im averaging roughly 37 mpg but I do mostly highway driving. All in all a good buy but consider giving up some mpg for a little more power if thats important.

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  Still happy - 2008 Hyundai Elantra
  By Diane R - February 28 - 11:13 pm

  I traded in my 2003 Ford Windstar that was getting around 17 miles a gallon for this car. I still like approaching it in a parking lot and still think it is pretty cute. I got a 5 speed because I had one as a kid and was going through a mid-life thing! The gas mileage is a steady 29-31 depending where I drive. I still really like it overall. My husband keeps asking me if I still like it and it has been 8 months. I am not sure when he thinks I will say no. But I hope never!

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  You got to have one of these! - 2005 Hyundai TUCSON
  By Denise - February 27 - 10:30 am

  It drives nice, easy to handle. Smooth ride. Weve traveled to Florida to Kentucky. Heated leather seats are very comfortable. A lot of room in the whole car, passenger area in back comfortable and plenty of room for arm near the window. Back seats are easy to adjust. Its a wonderful car and I hightly recommend it! I would buy second one...I came out of a Honda CRV and didnt think I would buy anything else...but I did!

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  all the toys - 2004 Hyundai XG350
  By irv - February 27 - 2:00 am

  my xg350l is a 2003 not a 2004. i purchased it in december of 2002 and have 12000 enjoyable miles on it . the fuel economy is great average 24 mpg. i think of my 350 as the poor mans lincoln. hope that hyundai considers using the 350 platform for the hybrid rather than the elantra. irv.

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  I love it - 2004 Hyundai Santa Fe
  By lucki - February 27 - 2:00 am

  Best buy for the money

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  Car is so cool - 2003 Hyundai Tiburon
  By DJDEIKER - February 25 - 10:00 am

  So far I love this car I am hoping they come out with a lot of body and performance parts for it, just to make it even more fun

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  Used to HATE Hyundai - 2003 Hyundai Tiburon
  By ProfRyan - February 25 - 10:00 am

  I took the car for a test drive and i was very sceptical. First i love the exterior styling, one of the hottest looking cars out there. Second i was impressed with the interior material quality. Not overly busy with chinsey crap. Material feels sturdy and stable. I drive alot and hate being in traffic with a manual transmission so i opted for the Sportronic automatic transmission. This option is so much fun. It gives me the ability to shift manually when i choose to do so. I think the single factor that caused me to purchase this car is the price.