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 Sonata Hybrid is a major disappointment - 2011 Hyundai Sonata Hybrid
  By bnaiman - October 5 - 1:37 am

  I previously had a Toyota Camry Hybrid that I consistanly got 31 mpg in town. My new Sonata gives me about 22 to 24 mpg. I have had it in 3 times and they always tell me that everything is performing as it should and that I am the only one who has complained. I was also told by a mechanic that I could do just as well with the regular Sonata for les money. I made a terrible mistake in buying this car but for them to tell me that they have not had any complaints is an insult.

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  Nightmare on Wheels - 1999 Hyundai Elantra
  By brian rawson - September 25 - 10:20 pm

  I bought this car almost 3yrs ago for 2500 with 62k mi. From the start it had a bad hub bearing, a few months later the ignition coil went, ive changed brakes at least 2 or 3 times and changed the spark plugs more times than i can count. Every time i turned around something else was going wrong. I did all the maint fluid changes etc and still at 90k the trans started to go. it has 117k on it now and is on its last leg. Dont buy this car, it was my 2nd elantra and i should have learned the first time. I will give it credit for still running after all its problems but hyundais are cheap for a reason theres a reason why you get the 100k warranty, dont expect more than that out of it.

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  Low Expectations to Begin With - 2000 Hyundai Sonata
  By NorthEast - September 25 - 1:05 pm

  Purchased for only $15k, so expectations were low. Few problems first couple years, little by little minor things started to break (visor, carpet clips, plastic covers for seat belts, trunk console hinge, pwr window components, door lock, exterior handle, etc.) With 55,000 miles, tires wore out, front brakes and rotors...not bad at all. At 58,000 miles, rear wheel bearing goes....mech inspected others and they are ok for now. $250 for repair. All and all, not bad in terms of how much I am spending, Im just amazed at how many things have failed on the car. I hear the newer models are made better....cant cost that much to make plastic components thicker to prevent breaking, etc.

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  My last Hyundai...Period! - 2014 Hyundai Sonata
  By golfr013 - September 8 - 9:24 pm

  I purchased a Sonata Hybrid Limited in April of 2013. About a year later, it seemed that an occasional panic stop would cause the car to stop abruptly rather than pulse to a safe stop. After noticing that it seemed to do that each of the few times that I applied the brakes in that manner, I took the car to the dealer, asking them to also check the brakes for a banging noise occurring each time the brakes were applied when coming to a stop sign/light. Many months and service calls later, my VA Lemon Law attorney suggested that I might want to avoid Hyundai or Kia if I ever expected to have my interests considered. I traded in that piece of @)$(*^* as quickly as I could!

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  Yawn - 2003 Hyundai XG350
  By rogerd - September 7 - 2:00 am

  Ho hum. Technically meets the family car needs but falls short in most every area. No real bright spot. But its a good beginning for something to build upon. Reliability and resale will be fair at best.

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  Poor Quality - 2009 Hyundai Sonata
  By Disapointed - September 7 - 12:43 am

  I purchased the 09 Sonata GLS Manual with the intent to save money, not be inconvenienced every month. During the 8 months I have owned the vehicle it has died multiple times, starting at 1205 miles. The problem was traced to a faulty O2 sensor, but has had a skip and hesitation ever since. When I insisted the issue be solved, the lead mechanic said it was normal and they all do that. At 12000 miles the vehicle was blowing clutch slave cylinders every 2-300 miles, which required removal of the transmission to get to. After the fourth one was replaced and the vehicle being in the shop for an accumulated 58 days, I sought legal help because Hyundai would not return my calls. Cant recommend it

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  Will never buy Hyundai again - 2007 Hyundai TUCSON
  By ralpho74 - September 5 - 1:07 pm

  I am a used car dealer. Bought this Tucson for my wife for fuel economy and it was a nice suv. Engine already making ticking noise with 40,000 miles. Went to Hyundai, they refused to fix. Said it was normal wear and tear. A Hyundai tech stated it needed a head job and that it should be covered under warranty.After talking to the service dept director, he refused to service it since it had been in an accident. Even though still a clean title with 40,000 miles, it wasnt covered under warranty. The accident was on the side doors. Nothing to do with engine. Reviews online state a lot of people with the same problem. Going back to Chevy. No more Hyundai. 100,000 miles warranty? NOT!

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  Save your money - 2005 Hyundai Elantra
  By Unhappy - August 19 - 12:58 am

  This car is a nightmare!I have driven it 37000 miles and so far I have had 3 headlights replaced, the car is rusting out and paint is peeling off. Clutch and transmission both went last night with no warning. Dealership said "sorry its out of warrenty". So much for Americas best warrenty.

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  Dangerous!! - 2016 Hyundai TUCSON
  By JO - August 17 - 10:10 am

  The transmission is unreliable. Have about 3600 miles on my new car and I never know when it wont go into gear! Tried to go into reverse this morning and the car would not move when I stepped on the gas...dangerous! Have had it to the dealer twice about the transmission and they have a canned speal that says it performs like other cars of this year and model (in other words, ALL of them are flawed). Internet says they are working on a software update and Nissan dealer (who services it in my area since there is no Hyundai service dept. available) hinted a software fix is coming. Hope it comes soon and before I get hit or ram into another vehicle due to the flaw in the transmission! My advice: dont but a Hyundai Tuscon until they address this issue!!!!

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  Genesis coupe buyers BEWARE - 2010 Hyundai Genesis Coupe
  By jorgep - August 2 - 10:56 am

  Got car brand new with 30 miles in odometer, @ 1500 miles dealer replaced tranny under warranty because of grinding gears on 2nd and 3rd gear, after several trips to the dealer tranny still grinds, tried to talked to consumer affairs and so far no responce, do your research before buying this car, this is not an isolated problem many customers complaining with the SAME issue and Hyundai so far have not find a fix for the problem. This is from the 2010 brochure: Triple-cone synchronizers on first through third gears help ensure smooth and durable shifting, whether youÂ’re headed up or down through the gears." Smooth??? No way it is smooth, my 2001 honda civic sounds better than this car, durable??? my tranny lasted only 1500 miles. This is just for them to sell you the car, then once you get it they will ingnore you