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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  Good car - 2016 Hyundai Sonata
  By cuneosurvivor - October 29 - 8:39 am

  The 2.4L engine is a little noisy but has good power and good fuel economy. The handling and ride is good, and I like the interior and the layout of the dash. We got a nice discount from list price, and the dealership gave a lifetime drivetrain warranty.

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  Leaky car - 2008 Hyundai Elantra
  By Tim - October 27 - 10:04 am

  This car has had a water leak since new and has been to the dealership 7 times for it. After going to a body shop, it was determined that the seam sealer was falling out all over the bottom of the car. Hyundai refuses to replace the now mold smelling, rusting in the trunk, car and closed my case knowing that I will loose too much money if I lemon Law and probably not pursue this.I will never buy another Hyundai and will discourage as many as possible, as I have never in 20 years of new cars seen such poor customer service , and shoddy practices by a manufacturer and a dealership. Buyer beware.

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  too good to be true - 2001 Hyundai Elantra
  By katie - October 26 - 10:29 pm

  I had hoped that the 10 yr/100,000 mile warranty meant that Hyundai was wanted to prove they were making reliable vehicles like Honda or Nissan. Nope. I think they were counting on the average consumer trading in at 3 or 4 years and less than 60,000. The warranty has covered a few things (that should not have gone bad) and not covered other stuff that also should not have gone bad (the rear wheel bearings went bad at 62,000 the sun roof started leaking within 4 years the vehicle eats headlights and even the dealer cannot raise the headlights so that the "low beams" are useful and the "high beams" are still lower than most other vehicles low beams. Im getting an older used Nissan instead

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  Somewhat Disappointed... - 2006 Hyundai Sonata
  By Kori - October 20 - 9:36 pm

  My biggest issue is that gas mileage is much lower than the 20/30 estimate. I dont drive aggressively, and in the past have always gotten higher than the posted estimate. This car gets about 18/24. I wouldnt have bought the car if I had known the reality. Radio sounds terrible--very tinny. Tires are low quality. Interior is average. It does run well, has nice pickup and is certainly is great to look at.

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  should have painted it yellow - 2007 Hyundai Entourage
  By lemon sucker - October 19 - 3:09 pm

  The van looks good and drives nice but dont let that fool you! The fuel economy is no were near what we were told. The brakes are a disaster and needed replacing after only 35000 km rotors and all. The idler failed after 50000 km. Had to be towed for a computer failure. the latches on the side doors fail. if you open the drivers door in the rain, you will not be able to close the gas cap door. There are problems with the wiring in the back door. there are always light on the dash that shouldnt be on , last being a problem with the air bags!! If you dont live next to the dealer ship or want to keep the van past its warranty, dont buy it!

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  "econobox" - 2003 Hyundai Accent
  By gk fs - October 14 - 3:51 pm

  Had the car since 10/03. It has 75k on it now and while its not a fantastic car, it performs ok. Just ok. When it was new, it was very peppy. Now its sluggish and, while it will jump when needed, its not something I try to do often. Handles on a dime to be sure but braking feels mushy even on new brakes. Im on my 3rd tranny. What started as a ticking became gears getting stuck and grinding. 2 door handles broke. Engine loudly taps when cold but goes away. Tape deck broke. Battery brackets snapped. Rigged a way to hold it. Trunk space is ok if the item is wide but not deep or tall. At 61 its a cozy ride. Knee is either on cupholder or autostick. Bumps od switch... Yet to leave me stranded

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  Hate the jerky ride - 2005 Hyundai Santa Fe
  By annette conwau - October 9 - 11:16 pm

  The accelarator is a nightmare...there is a lag time between touching the pedal and the movement of the car. It is VERY difficult to hold at a constant speed if you are driving under 30 miles per hour. The ride is so distracting that it is hard to enjoy any other aspect of the car. The passenger side air bag is almost impossible to activate when someone sits in the seat. In a crash, it would be useless.

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  Cheap to Buy - Expensive to Maintain - 2003 Hyundai Sonata
  By Brazoo - October 8 - 8:15 am

  The Sonata is about $5k less on average to own vs the Honda Accord & Toyota Camry. However I do know about 6 yrs into ownership that in the end I spent much more in repairs on this "cheap car" than going with one of the others. First everything on this car at the garage is "special parts" & expensive. Needs special transmission fluid when flushing, special tires (racing ones found on a Jag)at about $130/tire & already replaced 2 sets. The power radio antenna broke-$300. The power steering line rusted & broke-repair pending. Have 134,000 mi on it presently & gone through 3 sets of brakes & pads an most of driving is wide-open hwy. I suggest buying a better car up front & save $ in long r

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  Never again - 2007 Hyundai Entourage
  By Dennis James - October 6 - 4:40 pm

  We have an 2007 Entourage and wish we could get rid of it, the A/C clunks when you first start the engine, something a $28,000.00 new van should not do. After replacing the A/C twice, Hyundai finally said that was normal in all Entourages, so live with it, and we found that when the Rep from Hyundai in California makes a decision, thats as far as it goes. Great company policy, if I were to lose my job, they would take it back, but have a serious problem with their product and its tough! I have a 2006 KIA(sister company) Sorento with 17,000 more miles on it then the Entourage, and the KIA rides, drives and sounds better then the Hyundai. Did I mention it sounds like a tank when cold.

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  Dont Believe the Hype - 2008 Hyundai Azera
  By toalie - October 1 - 8:11 pm

  After 6000 miles, I have had several problems, mostly electrical. The air bags were broken 1 week after purchase, and my driver seat moves backwards while driving. The finish of the dashboard is separating around the airbag housing. The car drives well, but I fear that it will be falling apart in a few years. After this experience, probably wont buy another Hyundai.