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:

• 

  Poor Gas Mileage - 2009 Hyundai Santa Fe
  By HyundaiOwner - April 18 - 4:00 pm

  Pretty satisfied with the vehicle with the exception of the poor fuel mileage. Combined mileage below 19 most of the time. Barely over 19 on all highway trip.

• 

  Great savings but its been troublesome - 2001 Hyundai Sonata
  By SgtGary - April 9 - 9:06 pm

  A beautiful and fun car with a pretty good design and the warranty - awesome. But Ive used the warranty way too many times. Its been in the shop no less than 10 times: replaced sensors 3 times, replaced dead battery twice, fixed airbag sensors twice, fixed window motors three times, and of course they found a multitude of problems during the 30K mileage tune-up. I like this car, but I wish it was more reliable!

• 

  Not good on gas - 2013 Hyundai Sonata
  By yhterodriguez - April 9 - 2:42 am

  The car is great . I rented an older Sonata and feel in love and decided to purchase my own. I live in NYC, which means if deals with heavy traffic. I average about 23mpg. I am really disappointed with that. Might as well get an SUV, with more space and use up the same amount of gas.

• 

  Consumers Choice - 2003 Hyundai Elantra
  By Baltimore Jeff - April 8 - 4:52 pm

  I did loads of research before buying this car as a cheap, reliable commuter. Looked at Civic, Corolla and other imports. For the money, I could buy new with a better warranty and more features with the Elantra than I could ever get with any of the others. GT 5spd hatchback with all the options. With the backseat down I can fit in a loveseat with the hatchclosed. I used this car as an installer for interior window treatments. I once got 32 boxed 2" wood blinds into the back with the hatch down. Could not believe it! I am 63" 255lbs and I have no problem getting in and out, or with an adult sitting behind me when I drive. The size of this car is deceptive. So far, very happy!

• 

  Good for a while... - 1997 Hyundai Elantra
  By Abner11 - April 7 - 4:08 pm

  Bought the car used in January 2003 with 36,750 for mileage. Had no problems at all for the first year - plus, and I drive A LOT. In August 2004 I had to replace the pulse generator and oil temperature sensor because the check engine light was coming on and the car was racing a little bit off the line. Cost about $400 at the dealership. Then came Christmas 2004 and all hell broke loose. Brought it to the dealer because A) the engine started racing again and B) the exhaust was awfully throaty. Dealership told me I needed a new transmission, a new front pipe and a new manifold because the existing exhaust pieces were rusted. Also, oil pan rusted through and let go, and head gasket blew.

• 

  Good car but not a great one - 2002 Hyundai Santa Fe
  By Luigi - April 7 - 2:03 am

  The interior comfort and the ride is very good for a low priced mid-size Crossover/SUV. Ample power. Good traction. Decent cargo space, although the rear seat fold-down configuration is burdensome compared to other makes. Reliability is fair. I had to replace parts on this car that I never had to replace on any of my Nissan vehicles (Ive had 9 of them!). And my dealers service is mediocre compared to Nissan. There really is a difference in quality, and I think Nissan is worth the extra money. Considering a Rogue, Murano, or Mazda CX7 when I replace this Santa Fe.

• 

  Oops - 2010 Hyundai Elantra Touring
  By Tom - April 6 - 10:00 am

  Thought this would be an economical 2nd car since Hyundai touts 35 mpg. I use car on hwy and rural roads no city driving and I am averaging 24 to 25 mpg. My V6 AWD RAV 268 hp gets 22 to 23 mpg with same driving. The car definitely is lacking power and is very noisy when trying to get it going. I believe the 17" rims make this car ride hard. Wrong choice for me.

• 

  Good value, no fun - 2006 Hyundai TUCSON
  By meh! - April 6 - 10:00 am

  Purchased with 6000 mi on it as a dealership demo. Spongy brakes from day one, underpowered V6 and poor gas mileage. 3 recalls so far. Starter cable came loose on a Saturday night and the vehicle would not start after work, small issue but very inconvenient. This car is a cheap no frills cross over that is not fun to drive, but certainly serves its purpose. I can load tons of stuff in the cargo area with the back seats folded flat. If practicality is what you are looking for the Tucson is a good purchase.

• 

  Good little SUV for the money - 2006 Hyundai TUCSON
  By TY in IN - April 4 - 3:10 pm

  The Hyundai Tuscon GLS has been ideal for our family. It carries my family of four comfortably on short trips. It is an ideal size for maneuvering into parking spots at work. It has a roomy back end for groceries and such. We have had issues with the battery, headlights, air conditioning, and tires as mentioned in previous reviews. But with the warranty and the wonderful service at the Hyundai dealership, I had it all fixed quickly and without too much trouble and $$ for me. The gas mileage isnt the best @ 17-19 MPG. I love the 4WD, it isnt going to get me out of 3ft of snow, but it has helped me in snow <8 inches. It is a basic SUV, not a luxury vehicle, and it gets the job done.

• 

  2000 - 2000 Hyundai Elantra
  By Dennis - April 3 - 11:41 pm

  OK, You might not agree with me but this has been one of the most dependable cars I ever had. Yes Ive had plenty, starting with a 55 Ford and I might add Ive never purchased a Ford since. I changed the brakes at 45,000 and thats the most I have ever gone on brake pads. The only down side was I replace the battery at 30,000 and the tires. I dont like the current looks of the new models so that would keep me away from purchasing one at least until they make some external design changes.