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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  2006 Hyundai Sonata LX V6 FWD Plush Ride not Firm - 2006 Hyundai Sonata
  By mogulprinceton - September 25 - 5:57 pm

  Lets make something clear the 2006-2010 Hyundai Sonatas are not sports cars, its more of a luxury car. It has a very smooth plush ride but the suspension is the worst. Its not a good car to cut corners fast in at all. A lot of body roll. It seems as if when taking off from a red light to a green light at full throttle the front wheels cant really handle the power the engine is giving off so it makes the wheels burn rubber on the pavement which I hate. The ESC kicks in very quick when on wet or slippy roads. I was driving and turned a left at a 15 degree angle at 20mph and the ESC did its job even though I didnt need it to save me at that time. It should have daytime running lights.

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  1stCar - 2003 Hyundai Elantra
  By gijoemc - September 14 - 5:20 pm

  This is my first car, and I bought it almost 2 years ago with about 133,000 miles on it. It is a great car and was a great value. I have had only 1 major problem with it: my alternator belt broke last winter when it got to about -10ºF out, but I still managed to drive it the other half of the way to school (with no power steering). That was the only thing that has broke on this car to my knowledge and now its at the 149,000 mile mark. Also it has a bullet hole in it, so this cars a trooper. Aaaannd, a minor difference, but Id say this is a girl car but not a girly car. Like how boats are always referred to as feminine, thats this car.

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  Real life fuel consumption far lower than EPA ratings - 2013 Hyundai Elantra
  By marc_bar - September 10 - 6:48 pm

  There are a lot to like on the new Elantra 2013 but fuel consumption is certainly not one. Ive always paid attention to the gas mileage I would get on my cars compared to the EPA ratings and Ive always notice close proximity among them. In my new Elantra 2013 however, the actual gas mileage on a combined 70% street / 30% highway can not get above 23 mpg. It is way too far from the claimed 29/39/33 EPA ratings. To my disappointment though, the fuel consumption I am getting seems to be pretty much in line with the Consumer Reports testing experiencing 20mpg on city driving.

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  Horrible drivers seat! - 2013 Hyundai Accent
  By ccraig90 - August 31 - 12:04 pm

  My 2013 Accent has the most uncomfortable drivers seat I have had in 45 years. My husband has the 2008 Accent with lumbar support and I have no problem driving his. After only 30 minutes of driving mine I have a backache and headache. I have tried numerous fixes (pillows, lumbar screens, towels) and nothing has helped. I contacted Hyundai and I got a case number and was told to call my dealer. His recomendation was to but a new $1000 seat or trade up to an Elantra. (is he crazy?). This is our 7th Hyundai and we loved them. Why were the seats redesigned without the lumbar support? And why doesnt Hyundai offer me any suggestions?

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  worse car i have ever bought - 2007 Hyundai Elantra
  By ruddym - August 29 - 8:28 am

  I got my 2007 Elantra 5 years ago and it was new when I bought it. there is now miles on the car the car is falling apart. like the rack & pinion, the clock spring. i would never buy anothe hyundai elantra again!!!!!!!!!

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  First 2013 review! 44mpg highway @ 80mph - 2013 Hyundai Accent
  By slow_jim - August 28 - 9:31 am

  We test drove the Honda Fit and Kia Soul but neither got anywhere near the mpg of the Accent. I have a 40mi all-highway daily commute so I wanted something that was economical and comfortable. I typically do around 75-80 and use cruise control often. The Fit was buzzy on the highway (4000rpm) and materials quality was extremely cheap. The Kia was VERY quiet and comfortable on the highway but we just didnt need that much space. My wife has a 2010 Insight which is essentially a wagon, so for road trips or large loads we take her car. The Accents 6th gear helps immensely with gas mileage. With cruise control set to 80mph and eco mode ON, I am averaging 44mpg hwy at a quiet 2500rpm. Very happy

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  Nice Car.. Could use some improvments - 2012 Hyundai Elantra
  By lorisue02 - August 20 - 1:10 pm

  I bought this car in April new and now almost have 17,000 miles on it. I drive a lot and for the most part I love the car. Recently the steering wheel started to peal in a certain spot and the dealership installed a new one with no questions. The backseat has heated seats but when you put on air/heat there are no vents in the back which makes it uncomfortable if you have people in the back since it has to be too hot/ cold in the front so it blows to the back.. The cruise control is really sensitive if I hit a little bump on the highway it flips it right off (which might just be a safety precaution).

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  A pleasent surprize! To be sure... - 2000 Hyundai Elantra
  By user560870 - August 17 - 12:57 am

  This is a great car! Payed 1k for it about a month ago, it sat for a year w/174k. Yes, it needs some work but its a runner and will make a perfect "beater". Cars in this condition that have sat and have been taken off the road running are NOT for everbody. I am a mechanic and will do most of my own repairs. I will put 500 miles on this car every week. I expect after I finish the laundry list of things to do to get about 250k or so out of it. I have seen the reviews on this site and some are rather harsh and dont understand that things fail and must be maintained. NO CAR stays running w/o investment. If a car is neglected it will disapoint the owner. It is only a machine, designed by a human!

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  some issues and sounds - 2012 Hyundai Elantra
  By ensankk - August 13 - 11:10 pm

  i got this 2012 elantra brand new. since the first time caught my eye , nice exterior and interior design..the right window pasanger side make noise, driver seat is peeling off (5250)miles on it. every morning when i start it the lifters sound like old car but the dealer say its ok ...well i asume that is fine ...who knows???. i onw this car since february 2012 its very nice presentation compare with the ugly honda civic and corolla ...but sometimes i think its too delicated and doesnt run x ever like toyota or honda . im afraid to close the doors cause if i close hard seem like im gonna destroyed hahahaha. and the other hand i own before a strong gmc sierra but gas prices kill me

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  Equus - Beware of unfulfilled promises!!!!! - 2013 Hyundai Equus
  By equusowner - August 13 - 2:43 pm

  I looked at several cars prior to my purchase of an Equus. The dealers kept telling me how reliable the Equus was and emphasized their "valet service". Overall I have been happy with the performance of the car. As summer wore on I noticed that the interior of the car would get to 82 degrees on a hot summer day with the a/c at maximum settings. I contacted Equus and they set up an appointment with Alexandria Hyundai. As a part of their valet service they are supposed to pick up the car at my location and deliver a "luxury" loaner car, either an Equus or Genesis. Alexandria Hyundai has cancelled 3 times because they have only "1 luxury loaner car". When I commented that this was the third time that this had happened I was told that it was because the person that had the loaner car out was not satisfied with his service so they were still working on his car!!!!!! What a joke. I again contacted Equus customer assistance and they schedule an appointment with Fairfax Hyundai. Once again they were to provide a Genesis as a replacement car. They showed up an hour late and brought with them a Hyundai Sonata. If Equus and wants to play with the big boys (Mercedes, Lexus, BMW, Infiniti) they should put up or shut up. We were considering purchasing a Genesis as our second car but based upon the unkept promises of Equus I guess we wont be spending any more of our money on a Hyundai. Do yourself a favor, spend the extra bucks and get a car that has some support behind it - not just a lot of hot air.