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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  New owner - one week review - 2017 Hyundai TUCSON
  By blues9366@gmail.com - June 21 - 10:51 am

  First off, this is a STRIPPER model. No frills, base model with very few options. BUT.... what all do you need? Power windows and locks? check. Cruise? check. AC? check. Audio system? check. What else do you really need? Im 50 and can remember when all the above was OPTIONAL stuff. Coming from different vehicles, I can say this vehicle works. It isnt super fast. Its a Crossover. Do I really need to sub 6 second 0 - 60 times? No. The audio is simple to use. It even has a TUNING knob. Does it have nav? Nope. but thats a hassle anymore if you have a smart phone. Google Maps is always updated. The Tucson is showing 27 mpg after the first week. Pretty good I think. Not the best, not the worst. And we live in hilly area at base of mountains, so 27 is pretty good in mixed driving. I do miss the power seats of my previous vehicles. Especially as my wife & I change drivers. The seat is not the most comfortable, but hoping as it wears in, will be less aggravation. Its good looking, practical transportation. No more, no less.

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  Solid CUV, excellent value - 2011 Hyundai Santa Fe
  By captathlon - June 21 - 4:12 am

  Ive waited to write a review on our Limited FWD until weve had it for a couple months in order to get over the "I love this vehicle" feeling that we all have when we get a new car. We now have almost 3,000 miles on ours, and we dont necessarily love this vehicle, but we really like it a lot. Were very pleased with the power and fuel mileage, impressed with the design and build quality, and pretty satisfied with the features. There is some suspension noise and the ride can be a bit jarring when going over large bumps or potholes, but overall it has a nice ride. If I had the chance to do it over again, would I still buy a Santa Fe? Absolutely.

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  Not so Happy - 2001 Hyundai Tiburon
  By notsohappy - June 19 - 10:00 am

  Ive had my Tib for a year and a half and am not too happy with it. I have had no mechanical problems, but many annoying minor problems. Ive had the driver side seatbelt replaced for not retracting, both headlights and fog lights have been replaced twice in the past 6 months, windshield wipers actually got stuck together in a rain storm, driver side running panel is warped, paint chips VERY easily, and bird poop eats right through the paint (even when washed off within a few days). Other than that, its fun to drive. But, I am not sure I would buy another.

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  Dont underestimate this car. - 2002 Hyundai Elantra
  By Mulletproof - June 19 - 10:00 am

  How many people have you heard complain about the quality of Hyundai? So had I. But I actually did this thing called "research" on the 2002 GLS. What did my research uncover? That there was no way Id find another car thatd let me walk out the door with all the standard options this car has, plus anti-theft, cruise control, spoiler and an AT for twelve four. Tax, title, registration and plates, people. Not to mention the beefy warrenty AND 24/7 roadside assistance for 5 years. I DEFY you to. It has looks I wouldnt get embarassed over to boot. Sure, it has its drawbacks, but the gains exceed those by a wide margin in this case.

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  Joes Review - 2005 Hyundai Sonata
  By jdsales - June 19 - 9:57 am

  Vehicle while not as finished in the interior as former cars I have owned such as Mercedes and Infiniti is still quite adequate and comfortable. Extremely quite and smooth ride. Performance not equal to higher ends but more than adequate for normal city and highway driving. V6 has good power and can get you out of the way when needed. Exterior is excellent is often mistaken for a Jaguar. Great lines and look. Warranty and service are on a par with my Mercedes and Infiniti experience. Dollar for features its a great value, good looks, handles great and pleasant to drive. Lacks only in interior creature comforts but this is exceeded by the outstanding 10 year 100 mile warranty. $ for $ great

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  Sonata, so far so good - 2016 Hyundai Sonata
  By David Slavo - June 19 - 8:32 am

  I love the ride, the quietness and the way it handles the road. For some reason the blue tooth doesnt support reading or responding to text messages. Love everything else though.

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  Perfect Fit for my family - 2005 Hyundai TUCSON
  By nancy - June 17 - 7:00 am

  Affordable!

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  Bowen - 2005 Hyundai Santa Fe
  By Mary - June 16 - 2:03 pm

  Vehicle drives well, good pickup. Inside roomy and love reclining back seat.

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  3K on my Touring - 2009 Hyundai Elantra Touring
  By hellchild656 - June 13 - 3:10 am

  I have had a 1994 Toyota Camry Used with 235000 miles on it and I have had a Jeep Grand Cherokee Laradeo 2003 used with 66000 miles on it trust me the Jeep was by far the biggest piece of crap in the world. The Toyota well for the older car it was great on fuel but I couldnt ask for a better car.

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  Rare Problem - 2008 Hyundai Santa Fe
  By Cruzian - June 12 - 10:46 pm

  Comfortable to drive, and build quality seems decent overall. So far 48 days in the shop with a head gasket leak. Actually, the factory FORGOT TO INSTALL THE REAR HEAD GASKET so it was a compression leak, but a tiny leak only when hot. I wish the dealer had pulled the heads first instead of trying everything else first. Well see how well it does with a properly assembled engine.