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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  Very reliable - 1995 Hyundai Elantra
  By Reliable - October 25 - 5:00 pm

  Never thought Id drive a Hyundai. Wife bought new before we married. Been the most reliable car Ive owned in 25 yrs, including Hondas, etc. Only major issue has been replacing the front wheel bearings 3 times (twice under warrenty). Has the usual list of TSBs issues on the transmission but it has not broken. Besides the hard shifting and occasional engine hesitations, been a great car.

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  Best Bet for a get-a-bout - 2001 Hyundai Elantra
  By mrs613 - October 25 - 10:00 am

  This car is a champ! Quality is amazing for the price. Did fantastic in a drivers side t-bone crash...no injuries (except my anger of a 4 month old car being hit!) Gas mileage over 30mpg running the a/c. I have hauled bedroom furniture, an adult with a broken leg and been on serious shopping excursions...all seperate occassions, yet plenty of extra room.

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  my tibby - 2003 Hyundai Tiburon
  By eyedrivealot - October 22 - 5:56 am

  I have had this car since it was new. I have 174,000 miles on it currently. I have had no transmission issues or engine issues. Have gone thru two water pumps. Two timing belts, one set of rotors and 3 sets of tires. I would say their ac has issues. I had the car in four times and finally at 130,000 miles the regional manager oked them to replace the whole ac system in my car free of charge. I think their paint could be better but I did get a great deal and the car has served me very faithfully. I drive all over the state, thru snow, rain and hot temperate weather. This car has done it all. I am finally letting it go as a baby doesnt fit all that great in it. I will miss my tiburon.

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  FABULOUS!!! - 2007 Hyundai Veracruz
  By Italnskyboy - October 22 - 1:30 am

  OK, So I wanted something nice, good looking, a little spicy and wouldnt be embarassed to bring to a 5 star restaurant. Kinda like my search for a new boyfriend. Anyway, the VERACRUZ is the one to beat! I got the SE with the Premium Package, and by package I mean options... I love the inside and out! I also needed to pull a boat and it does with ease, not a tire squeek at the ramp. (boat is 2800lbs.) The ride is very smooth and quiet. I do mostly highway driving and get 18mpg. Although I do about 80, to get the advertised 26mpg, you have to do like 65-70, not! I have places to be and people to see. Overall, awesome vehicle, worth the look!

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  Great value - 2002 Hyundai Elantra
  By Hynundai Fan - October 21 - 3:54 pm

  I bought this car as a compromise between practicality (no more station wagon) and fun. I found the car to have more safety features (ABS, side air bags, TCS) and luxury items (leather seating, remote control mirrors) than any other similar vehicle. Can be stuffed full of cargo for trips, pulls 1000 lb motorcycle/trailer, lots of pep (never felt sluggish except when passing at high speeds - fully loaded - which I shouldnt be doing anyway). No repairs in three years. Great warranty, roadside asst plan.

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  Too Much Trouble - 2002 Hyundai XG350
  By DeeE - October 21 - 10:00 am

  I bought this car becasue it had a good rating and it was much less expensive than a Toyota Camray or a Honda Accord and was very well equipped for the money. It has a quiet and very smooth ride at the expense of handling. I have had nothing but serious pronblems with the car including replacing the transmission twice! The tires lasted less than 35K miles and the front brakes and rotors had to be replaced at 55K miles. The rotors were warped and the dealer would not turn them on warranty. It cost $815 to have the timing belt and serpentine belt replaced which must be done at 60K miles to keep the warranty. I had to replace the battery after 2 years and 1 month!

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  Enjoying my second Sonata with reservations - 2017 Hyundai Sonata
  By Boomer Driver - October 20 - 6:22 am

  The 2017 Sonata Sport 2.0T replaces my 2014 Sonata Limited 2.0T. The car is mostly unchanged with a few exceptions. The 2017 Sport 2.0T lacks some of the Limited 2.0T features including the automatic rear view mirror, blind spot warning, push button start, moon roof, and ventilated AC seats. I really dont miss most of these options but it is frustrating that the 2017 Sport 2.0T lacking the features of the 2014 Limited 2.0T is actually priced about the same as the 2014! I have also noticed that the 2017 is noisy and the turbo lags more than my 2014. On the other hand, the 2017 Sport Turbo 2.0 handles better and the steering is more resistant that the 2014, probably because the 2017 is sport tuned and the 2017 supports Apple CarPlay which is a big plus for me! (No need for buying the expensive navigation system.) One thing that may be a issue for some drivers is that the steering resistance cannot be altered as it could be in the 2014. Despite the concerns that I have stated I am overall satisfied with my Hyundai Sonata Sport 2.0T but the Sonata is no longer the great value that it has been in the past.

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  Great inexpensive car - 2004 Hyundai Accent
  By Howie - October 17 - 5:57 pm

  Got my 04 Accent 5spd at used dealership tent sale a couple months ago. It had 4975 miles total and I got it for $6500 plus tax...around $7200 OTD! How can you beat that for a car that was practically NEW w/a great warranty? I ride my motorcycle 90% of the time out here in CA but needed an inxpensive reliable car for errands, taking the dog to the park..etc. This car so far has been excellent...no frills....am/fm cassette only but has A/C. Good on gas and drives really nice for a little car. 5spd is actually kinda peppy. Can ride 80mph w/out much problem. Styling is nice. Buy one used...they can be had for MUCH under msrp....almost 1/2 with low miles. Very happy w/the Accent!

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  Poor tires and Poor tire warranty - 2003 Hyundai Elantra
  By Elantra - October 17 - 5:24 pm

  The Michelin tires are very poor that came with this vehicle. Any nail or flat will require an automatic replacement of the tire. The warranty on the tires is meaningless. Generally the vehicle is good although I did have to replace the odometer and the stereo. The headlight replacement on the driverÂ’s side is very cumbersome even for the dealer. The dealer never seems able to align the lights correctly. I have had no trouble with major electrical, powertrain or engine. I have also had to replace a number of headlights a little too quickly, from my view.

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  No rear heat - 2013 Hyundai Santa Fe
  By cater2u - October 14 - 4:29 am

  I love this SUV....but there is an engineering flaw with the rear seat heating. The seats are heated, but the vents will only blow cold air from under the front seats. The manual even says that the heat is reduced in the rear, and to keep the rear side vents closed in the winter. You can get heat from the side vents, but cold air is always blowing on your toes. For a $37,000 SUV with every option, this should not happen. The dealer told me there was nothing they could do to fix it. My mileage in ECO Mode is 21 combined using winter gas. It should get better using summer gas. Hatchback is hard to open and is not assised very much. No power option or inside release. No memory seats.