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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  Over all great car! - 2013 Hyundai Elantra GT
  By bkohs - February 23 - 1:19 am

  Ive been driving my GT for about 5 months now and have just under 3000mi on it. There have been zero mecanical issues as expected for such a new car. My wife was very suprised by me getting this car because Ive been into either sprots cars, or SUVs for a while. I eneded up test driving the GT just to pass some time while my wifes car was in for service. Thats all it took for me was one test drive. I came back later that day to trade in my Jeep. I opted for a 6spd manual with the touch and go package which added 17" wheel, keyless entry, push button start, and sport pedals. It also had the homelink mirror which has a nice auto dim feature.

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  Sante Fe - 2005 Hyundai Santa Fe
  By plr518 - February 20 - 10:36 pm

  I like driving an suv that handles like a car. It is very roomy and easy to manuever. I wish the mileage was better. but overall, I am very pleased with my Sante Fe and would definitely purchase another when the time comes

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  Big value for minimal money - 2005 Hyundai Sonata
  By Seth-in-Chicago - February 19 - 4:56 pm

  I purchased a 2005 GLS SV on 2/19/05. Same car as the LX sans leather seats and power driving seat. Everything else upgraded. Wow!....what a value...I financed $16K for a new vehicle. Give Camry and Accord a run for their money on all aspects and certainly beats them in value for the money. Resale is not as important to me as I will drive this for several years. I will be selling my 95 Accent @ 81k miles....too bad...its been flawless and gives me 35 MPG. Hyundai, you have a life-long new customer. Job well done.

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  Decent Wheels - 2005 Hyundai Accent
  By Frank - February 19 - 3:02 pm

  Really wanted the Elantra GLS, but this was a decent trade-off. It is an enjoyable drive, though I havent taken an extended trip in it yet. Im hoping to get one or two in soon to see if I can get some decent mileage. That is my biggest complaint to date - barely getting over 20 mpg. Second least favorite fact - lack of lighting on the ignition switch makes it hard to find at night. Third least favorite fact - the in-curving lines on the hood do not provide a good visual clue to how straight I am parking the car. It would be nice if the foglights could be used as daytime running lights.

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  Discouraged in NJ - 2003 Hyundai XG350
  By Discouraged in NJ - February 19 - 10:50 am

  Having many troubles with the Check Engine light. Local dealer tried 2 times telling me the gas cap was not clicked closed 3 turns. On 3rd visit they found problem with a sensor. Said they fixed. Problem continues today, one year later. Just Failed NJ state inspection for Emissions. Love the look and comfort but Hate the hassels and under the hood problems.

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  $ for $, Best Buy Out There - 2003 Hyundai Elantra
  By ChuckO - February 18 - 2:00 am

  I have been extremely pleased with the reliability and versatility of this little car. Very tall friends fit comfortably in the front or rear seats; very long packages (9 feet) can be carried with the rear seats folded down. And its reasonably fun to drive. Its no Porsche, but for $13,500 out the door, I could buy five of these for one Porsche. On top of everything else, the dealership gave me ten free oil changes.

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  reliable - 2003 Hyundai Elantra
  By jlong - February 18 - 2:00 am

  a good solid reliable vehicle for a first time new car buyer

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  Great vehicle, bad mgp - 2005 Hyundai TUCSON
  By Paetz2 - February 17 - 5:30 am

  When I purchased the Tuscan, I was looking at the Santefee.... I was drawn to the Tuscan for more leg room ... (I am 63") I have enjoyed the comfort up front, but the mpg is not that good. I have taken it thru snow, responded well, I have taken it on vacations, good too. I have never had to replace anything other than the drive belt. This car is really a reliable vehicle. It just stinks when it comes to mpg.

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  Problems with 2005 Hyundai Sonota - 2005 Hyundai Sonata
  By James Page - February 16 - 1:12 pm

  Weather strip along top of right top of door came loose also the wiper blade fillers came out on both wipers.

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  Needs cruise for manual trans - 2010 Hyundai Elantra Touring
  By Joe - February 15 - 2:00 am

  Overall its a great car. Going from an SUV that average 18 mpg to a hatchback with nearly just as much room that averages about 28 mpg for me Im very pleased with my purchase. I wish the base model came with more options (mostly Cruise control!), but with what you get in a base model for 15k its great