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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  Wish every car was like this - 2003 Hyundai Sonata
  By bigtex71 - March 28 - 12:58 am

  This week my 2003 will see its 260,000 mile, and I will say goodbye to it after 11 years of loving this thing. Im a big tall guy and never felt cramped driving this car. In its first few years it had acceleration that rocked. And even today as I drove it to the wash, I am amazed how smooth it runs, with very little maintenance over the years. The few problems Ive had were it seems to get misaligned quicker than normal, and last year my AC finally went completely out. But its the best car Ive ever owned

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  Best Bang for your buck - 2014 Hyundai Equus
  By klassickruiser - March 17 - 1:51 pm

  I bought the 2014 Equus Signature, black with tan interior, just a great car. I shopped the Mercedes S550, BMW 750 and the Lexus 460 before making my decision on this purchase. Realistically there is no comparison, this car rocks the competition. The interior of the Equus is awesome, the seats are exceptionally comfortable, the controls are nicely positioned and the stereo is tremendous. The interior amenities are as they should be in a car of this class. The fit and finish is comparable to the cars costing $40K more. The performance is similar to both the S550 and the BMW 750 in acceleration, the ride is more closely related to the S550. I would highly recommend to anyone looking for a car

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  Unexpected Find - 2013 Hyundai Azera
  By chazjonathan - March 10 - 11:06 am

  Was in the market for a Cadillac, we test drove and was very disappointed in the ride of the vehicle. Owned several Hyundais in the past and currently own two. None of the cars we owned ever given us any major problems. We to car lot to look at Santa Fes, Tucsons, and Sonatas when we discovered the Azera. I have always thought that the Azeras were priced in the same category as the Genesis. Long story short love the look, style, and comfort of this vehicle. And it made my wife smile which was the number one reason I Love it..

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  Best car I ever owned - 2004 Hyundai Elantra
  By ackr13 - February 25 - 4:17 pm

  I bought my Hyundai new in April 2004. I now have 123,000 miles on and could not be more pleased. Besides replacing tires and brakes( front rotors one time) the only repairs have been Timing belt, water pump, belts, tune-up with plugs & plug wires and front struts all done at 100,000 miles. Runs as good as new with very little rattle. I did replace the hatch lid struts 2 years ago.I average 24MPH in city driving, 32 on a trip. Love this car. I will run it till it dies. I traded my wifes 2006 Elantra GT in on a 2012 Santa Fe. Dont regret it a bit. Another great vehicle.

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  Best car Ive owned. - 2008 Hyundai Sonata
  By sdemaris - February 23 - 12:18 pm

  I bought this car used with 34,000 miles back in 2009. It has been nothing but solid for me for over 4 years of driving it. The maintenance I had was minimal. The alternator went out on me last summer which was 500 bucks to fix but I was told by the mechanic that this is a typical problem with newer cars when they get close to 100,000 miles. Other than that Ive had no other problems with it other than typical maintenance. Im currently at 90,000 miles on it and plan on keeping it for a few more years. The paint quality is not the best on the outside but all in all still rides like a dream on the highway. Fun car to drive too.

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  Fantastic Car - 2013 Hyundai Accent
  By jconn1 - February 8 - 1:04 pm

  Ive had 3 Toyotas, and have had a new 2013 Hyundai Accent Hatchback for over 2 months. I simply love it. Quality, reliability and styling match or exceed my previous cars. Interior is very quiet, car is a blast to drive, and the styling is awesome. I like small cars because of their handling and ease of parking. I could afford a mid or full-size car, but why would I want one? This car fits what I need and want, and is tops in its class on virtually all measures. You cannot go wrong buying one. Youll love it.

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  Economy car - 2007 Hyundai Accent
  By solivanh1 - January 13 - 9:09 pm

  I found the Hyundai accent fun to drive and easy to handle.

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  Love this car!! - 2003 Hyundai Sonata
  By ladymelan81 - January 12 - 2:36 pm

  I bought this car when it was 2 years old and had 90,000 miles on it. It never failed me in a serious way. I felt I was selling a family member when I let her go, then she was totaled 6 days after I sold her :( She was at 190,000 miles at that point and was showing transmission issues. Liked it so much Im selling the car I bought, for the same year Sonata again.

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  Love my 2013 - 2013 Hyundai Elantra
  By ed32 - January 2 - 10:54 pm

  I got this car back in august of 2012. I absolutely love it. The only problems Ive had is with my tires. My car seems to be a road hazard magnet (I had 4 nails in 3 tires at one point) It took the service department a long time to figure out why my tire pressure kept getting low but the day they did figure it out it was covered under the tire plan that I got when I first purchased the car. I have the Fuel Reimbursement so I have to qualms with that! Overall I drive 25-30 miles to and from work every day and im getting gas just about every week and a half.

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  We could not be more happy with our choice - 2012 Hyundai Azera
  By bucca1 - December 7 - 10:37 am

  We have been thoroughly please with our Azera. I have not had a car that I love to drive like this one. We love just going for rides. This thing is fast!! and if we want to take it easy on freeway on 300 mile trips we get 30 to 32 mpg. Our overall average is 22 with city, freeway, going easy and punching for fun moments. Seats are way way comfortable. My wife loves how the passenger seats automatically adjusts to any height or position she wants. I am 6 3" and she is 5 4". our other car when she is in passenger seat sits way below me. Like below I could go on. We simply could not be more pleased.