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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  False Mileage Estimates - 2006 Hyundai TUCSON
  By MsB - July 17 - 12:16 am

  This is a fun, fun car to drive, but no matter how conservative I am, if I am driving on the highway at or just below the speed limit, this vehicle has not averaged more than 20.8 mpg. This is extremely disapointing. It was one of the reasons I went with this model. The Tucson was rated at 20 city and 26 hwy - I really thought I could average at least 22 mpg - it makes me wonder what else was misrepresented...

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  Good Commuter/Long Trip Car - 2009 Hyundai Sonata
  By Hope it lasts - July 16 - 9:53 am

  Not one to buy on price by cant ignore the value of the Sonata. Mind you will lose it on resale so not quite the bargain it seems. Interior is best in class for me. Materials not quite as good as Accord but layout way better. Seats fairly comfortable, quiet ride. 249hp plenty for me - I dont understand the need for 270+ in a fwd family car. Fortunately seem to not have the suspension noise problem (and roads are horrible here right now) and tranny shifts OK. Chassis simply not as sophisticated and composed as Accord or Mazda6. Seems chassis itself is not stout enough and the flex leads to some unsteadiness at speed despite stiff suspension. So far so good - hope it lasts!

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  Best bang for the buck - 2001 Hyundai Tiburon
  By dlk33 - July 15 - 2:00 am

  I purchased the 2001 Cobalt Blue with leather. I had a few minor problems which were fixed quickly by the dealership. I love my Tibby! Ive put a magnaflow muffler on it, took off the resinator, added a k&n air filter. Im getting it tinted and eventually hope to improve the horsepower. You cant beat the warranty! Im not worried about the low resale value because I plan on keeping mine for a long time. If youre thinking about buying one, give it a test drive. I dont think youll be disappointed. Even with automatic its a fun car to drive.

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  I Like My New Elantra GT - 2005 Hyundai Elantra
  By MJ - July 9 - 8:10 pm

  Just got this vehicle. I really like it so far. It works great to haul the kids around in and looks sporty. I wish the MP3 player was still standard - I had to buy my own at $200. So far so good and the warranty is a great piece of mind.

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  Next Lexus? - 2016 Hyundai Genesis
  By Gary Jamison - July 8 - 4:28 am

  Overall great car but ride not as serene as my Lexus. Reliability not as good as Lexus. Other Genisis owners have felt trade in values not as high as expected, especially when shopping for new model Genisis. I am waiting for 2017 G80 and G90 before deciding.

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  More than I expected - 2006 Hyundai Elantra
  By Nancy - July 7 - 2:33 pm

  I recently purchased a 2006 Elantra GLS and I have to admit when I test drove it, I wasnt expecting much. What a surprise. This car has some muscle after all! Pickup is great. Comfort? Definitely. Plus, a smooth quiet ride. My only complaint was that the molding around the back door came loose, but is easily fixed by the dealer.

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  elantra review - 2017 Hyundai Elantra
  By JOHN HOLLOWAY - July 7 - 12:59 am

  radio / infotainment center overkill.... keep it simple . less distracted driving with simpler / few choices .

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  th only bad thing - 2002 Hyundai Elantra
  By Tara - July 6 - 11:43 am

  i live in nyc the only bad thing about this car is the rims i usually get 2 flats a month for going over the pot holes they do not realy hold up other then that i love my car

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  So far ,so good - 2006 Hyundai Accent
  By Mark M - July 4 - 4:05 pm

  So far, so good. The Mileage is better than I expected. EPA rates the manual @ 32/35. I have been getting 35.79 average mpg after the first 2500 miles. This is with a 30city/70hwy commute. This is driving 65/70 on the hwy. Purchased this vehicle for a daily 130 mile round trip commute. I could only afford to spent a set amount. I asked my mechanic about choosing a vehicle. Asked him about a brand new Accent, or a one year old Corolla. He said buy the Hyundai. This came as a shock initially. But he has family memebers with Hyundai vehicles with similar commutes. Frankly I really expected to be led to the Corolla, having reservations about Hyundais reputation from the past.

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  Great SUV - 2008 Hyundai Veracruz
  By Dan - July 4 - 1:00 am

  Having never bought a foreign brand, i was very hesitant. We drove the Veracruz Limited, along with several other brands. I must admit that the car impressed us from the start. We drive several thousand miles per year, have made trips of up to 800 miles in one day. The car continues to impress us. This is absolutely the most vehicle for the money. Drove domestics for 30 years. Last vehicle was an Expedition Eddie Bauer. While smaller, this vehicles quality is every bit as good as the Ford.