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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  Great Car, Great Price - 2009 Hyundai Elantra
  By Sheryl - September 29 - 12:48 am

  Bought 2 weeks ago, 1,500 miles so far, am totally impressed with the quality and value. Great interior features, 2 trip tach, rides smooth, quick acceleration on fwy. onramps, great control compared to what am used to. I shopped and compared Civics, Corollas and others, for months previous to buying, owned Toyotas previously, but this impressed me more than the new Corolla. No complaints at all! Im only 50", and like how I can see the road, compared to a Civic. Very satisfied with it, plus a great warranty. So far the MPG is about 30 city/36 hwy.

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  Just bought it and love it!!! - 2009 Hyundai Azera
  By bmbutler - September 28 - 9:13 pm

  I was actually looking at the new Genesis, but financially the Azera was a better fit for me. I think it is a mistake for Hyundai to discontinue this car because it fits right between the Sonata and Genesis on price point, but oh, well........... Very happy with my choice and Hyundai of New Bern is the best!!! I love this car.

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  Bad electrical system - 2009 Hyundai Genesis
  By hs - September 28 - 7:36 pm

  Started having electrical problems within four months. Battery completely dicharges if vehicle is not used for 72 hours. Dealership has replaced battery numerous times and they can not figure out the problem. Changecd the radio/CD head unit for malfunction.Replaced the central console for malfunction. Seats are too small and stiff. Front passenger seat has very few adjustments. Air conditioning is not adequate for hot weather particularly when using in auto mode. CD functions are limited. CD does not change automatically from one disc to the next. The data stored in the memory, like phone numbers etc., are lost if you disconect the battery.

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  Sell/Trade after 6-7 years - 1999 Hyundai Sonata
  By sarah - September 28 - 6:11 pm

  Was happy with my purchase, even though I had a lot of warranty work done on it during the first 5 years. Beginning in the 7th yr., Ive dished out more money for repairs than I care to remember, every six months or so. Nothing less than $200 each trip to the service dept! Now, for the past 2 yrs., Im paying for repairs every other month, in the neighborhood of $700-900 per visit. Ive owned other Brands that didnt have the problems Im having with this Sonato! It drives like a dream, but these costly repairs are a nightmare. Dont think Ill buy another Hyundai. I normally keep a vehicle 10-12 yrs, before buying a new one, but dont think I can put up with these problems much longer!!

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  Best SUV on road - 2004 Hyundai Santa Fe
  By Mary of St. Louis - September 28 - 3:23 pm

  Cant be beat, best vehicle on road

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  2005 Hyundai--My First SUV - 2005 Hyundai TUCSON
  By Bill Becker - September 28 - 2:20 pm

  The Tucson handles well and has a very short turning radius, which comes in handy in parking lots. It also will fit into those compact car spaces. It accelerates very well and gets up to highway speed quickly. I hae the 4 cylinder, smallest available, front wheel drive, 5 speed manual transmission. Im averaging between 26 and 30 mpg, combined highway/city. This will probably be the last new car I buy and this is the 3rd Hyundai that Ive owned and have absolutely no complaints about the product or the service Ive received from the dealership. They will and do go the extra mile.

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  Amazing!! - 2010 Hyundai Genesis Coupe
  By hyundaigencoupe - September 28 - 6:56 am

  when you first get in it you feel the emotion from the car even when the engine is off. But when the 2.0L (the one i got)engine comes to life it gives me chills, it is so exciting.

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  What an Amazing Car - 2011 Hyundai Sonata
  By Syitalian25 - September 28 - 1:56 am

  I love this car! It has a ton of standard features, handles great, nice power, and best of all is the quality. Inside and out my $22500 car looks like it cost well over $30000. At least a dozen people have mentioned how great this car looks at random places, and thats only in 3 weeks!

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  A catchy title! - 2017 Hyundai Elantra
  By El De - September 27 - 7:39 pm

  We love our Elantra.

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  Only 4 years old and rusting - 2005 Hyundai Tiburon
  By nfinitygrl - September 27 - 5:40 pm

  This was my first new car and Ive completely loved driving it. Its fast, gotten me out of scary highway situations more than once and its never, ever given me mechanical problems. Ive kept up all maintenance diligently as I didnt want to void any of the warranties. The low profile tires are a bit pricey to replace but other than that, upkeep hasnt been bad. The car sits low and that helps increase chances of a cracked windshield, which Ive replaced once. But after having the car for only 4 years, it is rusting in 3 places. Hyundais warranty wont fix it as the 3 year paint warranty expired and the rust hasnt "perforated" the metal completely. Sadly, I will be replacing it :(