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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  My 4th Hyundai - 2016 Tuscon - 2016 Hyundai TUCSON
  By Deborah Clem - November 1 - 9:00 am

  I traded a 2008 Sante Fe for this vehicle. I wanted one that was just a little smaller and had the safety feature of backup camera and hands free talking. This suv has 3 drive modes: regular, eco and sport. It drives great and the seats are very comfortable. I love the automatic day driving lights and the fact that I can open the trunk without unlocking the whole car.

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  Worth Considering: Santa Fe LX - 2003 Hyundai Santa Fe
  By CTarna - November 1 - 2:00 am

  We loved the body style, so we took a look. The 2.7L motor was much better than the 4 cyl, but still underpowered. I hear the new 3.5 is MUCH better. I still used the SUV to tow my motorcycles 300 miles to the track and except for a few steep hills, it held its own. (I even slept in the rear with the middle seats folded down and Im 62" 230 lbs.!) Front leg room was just enough for me, could have been a bit roomier, but this is a mid- sizer. All controls are user friendly (once you figure out the AMB means "ambient" or outside temperature, lol). Bottom line, great value for a good mid-sized 4WD SUV.

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  Great Car with Some Flaws - 2012 Hyundai Sonata
  By bobs66440 - October 31 - 8:27 pm

  With almost 63,000 miles, Im really very happy overall with the car. The only real issues are: 1) A problem with the cloth upholstery. It started to show signs of wear only a few months after purchase. It now looks like a 20 year old car seat. The dealer took photos and sent them on to Hyundai to see what they can do. 2) Since day one, the highway stability has been a little sketchy. Its ok until you are around other vehicles when the wind buffeting can move the car around. Im used to it now but at first it was unsettling. 3) The fuel pump went bad at 62,000 miles which I thought was premature. But the dealer took care of it under warranty, no problem.

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  Still breaking it in - 2008 Hyundai Santa Fe
  By Austin - October 31 - 10:43 am

  So far I have not experienced any of the transmission issues that others are talking about. I have nothing but good things to say about this vehicle. I have custom 2 tone leather seats in it and they are fantastic. Have no issues with any of the instruments or controls. Im averaging about 16.8 mpg (only 400 miles on the vehicle and nothing but city driving, no hwy miles really). The torque and hp is a LITTLE low but all that does is teach me to accelerate without a sense of being in a race all the time. That saves gas anyway so I think its fine. At speed I have no problem getting in and out of traffic. By the way my previous vehicle was a VW Jetta VR6 and this gets better mpg.

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  The sum is more than its parts... - 2008 Hyundai Santa Fe
  By mbanas1 - October 31 - 10:20 am

  Wow, has Hyundai come a long way since the early 90s cheapo cars! Fit and finish of the Santa Fe are top notch, very solid and stable feeling on the road, great 3.3L engine (powerful and Im getting 24.5 mpg avg., mostly hwy), best balance between interior space and exterior dimensions (between a CR-V and Pilot) for a family, and huge value for the price (beneath the CR-V). Almost a perfect "family roadtrip" vehicle that is also nice in the parking lots and side streets. However, if you do a daily commute in heavy traffic you might not appreciate the best parts of this car (its quiet ride, 5-speed automatic, comfortably supportive seats), and you will definitely get worse mpg!

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  A fun car - 2005 Hyundai Elantra
  By Jared - October 27 - 5:58 pm

  When I bought the Elantra I was looking for a fairly sensible yet fun car. I am delighted to say that I found one. It handles smoothly and doesnt slouch on the highway.

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  Reasonable compromise for a Boomer - 2012 Hyundai Sonata Hybrid
  By glh2576 - October 27 - 2:13 pm

  We acquired a 2012 Sonata Hybrid after looking at many options in this price/category. the Sonata is comfortable to drive and ride in, fairly quite and gets OK (but not nearly the EPA MPG) gas mileage. Ive put about 2500 miles on it and it is averaging about 30 MPG in mostly in-town driving which is where it should be using the battery the most so I was expecting better MPG. ANY in-town hill gives it a challenge as it tries to go from battery to motor. Build quality is good so far. Rear seats are comfortable. Highway cruising is good.

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  2005 tuscon gls 4wd 2.7 V6 - 2005 Hyundai TUCSON
  By Rita T. - October 27 - 8:06 am

  This vehicle has been with us for 1 month and there is a problem with it surging. The engine has died several times. It has been with the dealership for almost a week now. No one has bothered to diagnose the problem as of yet. The dealership did not want to give up a loaner in the meantime. we had to contact Hyundai to get the dealership to give a loaner while this one is being serviced. The dealership has only 2 techs. So they are backed up on service. All dealerships in the area are backed up and the wait time is always at least 2 weeks. What do you think? 1 month of ownership, 1400 miles, still in shop after 1 week waiting for repair, dealership making a bad situation worse.

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  Pulls Left !!!!! Hyundai Cant Find a Fix - 2011 Hyundai Sonata
  By l84work - October 26 - 3:19 pm

  I was very excited to purchase my Limited in October, but became extremely frustrated that the car continually pulls to the left. I have had it to the Dealer three times to have it fixed. Not only did they not fix it, Hyundai wont even acknowledge that this is a probem with the new 2011 Models. Google "2011 Hyundai Sonata Pulls Left" BEFORE you buy one.

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  Much prettier than a Camry - 2007 Hyundai Sonata
  By Doug G - October 25 - 8:20 pm

  This car is so much better than the entry level price being charged. Fit and finish are impeccable, controls fall naturally to hand, the ride is almost flawless. Economy is okay but my car isnt broke in yet. Should get better. It would be nice if the manufacturer would put upgrade options on the GLS series in greater numbers. In my opinion the V6 is not necessary.