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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  Drove Conn to Florida and loved it. - 2005 Hyundai TUCSON
  By ROBERT A. STATES - September 1 - 12:26 pm

  My experience with Hyundai started with the 2003 Sonata, a great car. After an accident, I had read about the Tucson and fell in love with it. It has been a great car, no problems. squeaks or rattles in about 6,500 miles, and great in snow. I think hit a home run. The service is great, too, and believe it or not, I enjoy having the oil changed at the dealer, and a free car wash.

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  I LOVE THIS SUV!!!! - 2007 Hyundai Veracruz
  By danacandy - September 1 - 7:06 am

  This car is really nice to drive. My husband who is 64" fits comfortably in the middle row, my 3 kids also fit very well, with room to spare(including a car seat). We have really enjoyed taking this car on trips. It has a lot of get up and go power, it rides smooth like a luxury sedan. We have been so happy with this purchase, we will more than likely purchase an upgrade in a few more years. I definitely recommend this SUV!!!

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  Happy with Car - 2009 Hyundai Genesis
  By Wengert - August 31 - 3:59 pm

  I needed a new car, since I drive pretty often in the New York metropolitan area. Found this beauty of a car. the 3.6 L v6 with Technology. I can not find a negative quotient or facet where this car lacks. Its plenty big, plenty strong and comfortable for the long trips down Route 80 and I-95.

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  Nice Car, Bad MPG - 2003 Hyundai Elantra
  By Chen - August 31 - 1:17 pm

  A very good car. I got it as a used one with 35,000 miles. Its comfort but very, very poor mpg in city. ~ 200-250 miles/tank (14.5 gallon). Omg, where is the gas going? but good mpg in highway, ~ 30 mpg.

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  Great small SUV - 2001 Hyundai Santa Fe
  By Hank - August 31 - 9:36 am

  Only one problem since purchase. Crankshaft positioning sensor. Fixed by dealer with no problem within an hour.

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  I wish the experience was better. - 2012 Hyundai Sonata
  By Tony Johnston - August 31 - 6:21 am

  I will never buy a Hyundai Sonata again. From the first month I own the car, it has been in out of the dealer twice a month. The greatest problem has been the engine,currently waiting for a replacement engine, then the tall lights and cant forget the front end problems.

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  I Am Impressed - 2009 Hyundai Elantra
  By isaacandmary - August 30 - 10:15 pm

  My wife and I purchased the Elantra out of desperation because it was the last day of the Clunkers program, most dealers in our area had already stopped accepting trade-ins and our 89 BMW 735i was falling apart We test drove the Jetta, Civic, Sentra and Corolla but purchased the Elantra blindly because we really had no other choice as all dealers inventories were fully depleted. WHAT A PLEASANT SURPRISE THE ELANTRA HAS BEEN! The car is solid. The ride, instrumentation, handling, braking, feel etc. are all terrific. I had and image in my mind of Hyundais being cheap and raggedy, boy was I wrong. We live Chicago, the Pothole Capital of the World and this car easily holds its own.

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  Sorry im late - 2008 Hyundai Elantra
  By becker - August 30 - 5:01 pm

  Should have posted this back in April. This is one of the best vehicles Ive ever owned.. Had over 50 of em... If you are thinking of a new car... Put this at the top of your list. Check the residual value ( surprising ).. Have owned the others, toy, niss, etc. Would recommend this car highly.

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  The Lucky One - 2001 Hyundai Santa Fe
  By john_can - August 30 - 6:02 am

  My dad bought this car back in 01 and I remember the day we traded his old saturn for it. The car has 216,800 miles as of today and finally the transmission is "going" out, which is very good for an automatic. The engine is a bit small for a V6 but the car gets me around and safetly. The airbags are all still operable, other than normal maintanence like oil and the timing belts. This car has been amazing. The AC has been out a while and being in Arlington Texas and having 22 straight days of triple digit heat, it kinda sucks but the big windows rolled down help out a lot. My mileage has gone down a little cause of my transmission, but growing up with this car and now driving it is awesome.

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  Review number 2, found a problem. - 2011 Hyundai Sonata
  By deking - August 30 - 4:03 am

  I love everything about the car except the disply controls on the dashboard. My recommendation, dont attempt to do anything except change radio stations while you are driving. The controls are much too confusing and hard to use for my taste.