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:
Showing 2111 through 2120 of 13,764.00-
I love my Elantra GT 2005 - 2005 Hyundai Elantra
By nick - July 13 - 2:50 amAfter visiting a Mazda dealer for used Protege5 2003 car, I went to the Hyundai dealer. The Protege5 2003 is a very good car, but when I tested the 2005 Elantra GT, I felt completly in love. First this car is very funny to drive, even in winter weather (it was - 15 Celsius, and full of snow when I drove the car for the first time - in Montreal, Quebec). I tested the car for at least an hour, and my choice was made....financing package was unbeatable - 0%/5years - first payment will be in May 2006!!!! I bought the GT premium version - sunroof, ABS (great brakes), spoiler...but no TCS (Traction Control), they told me it comes only in the GT version, no premuim...I did not understand why...
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Never Go To Anything Else - 2007 Hyundai Santa Fe
By howard434_Toronto - July 13 - 2:16 amI love this suv its 3000 less than a rav4 and is 2500 less than a crv I got into a minor accident with a parked truck and my Santa Fe only got $1253.11cdn worth of damage. And the truck got $5000.00. That tells you something! Ive only had one problem and that is the battery in Canadian winters is useless [go to Costco and get a cheap battery its better than this one]
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Tib is a Winner - 2004 Hyundai Tiburon
By rishthe1 - July 12 - 10:00 amOwning this beauty for two months now it remains flawless and always fun to drive. I would highly recommend it to anyone looking in this segment; fun, sporty, and quick.
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Hyundai Paving the Way to #1 for Sedans! - 2006 Hyundai Sonata
By Michael P. - July 11 - 6:06 amI commute 60 miles round trip to my job and my 2006 Hyundai Sonata GLS V6 4 door sedan makes this trip very pleasurable. The ability to go from 0- 60 in about 7 seconds is great for moving from one lane to another on the highway. It provides a very quite, smooth, ride. The body style is also very attractive. The standard ESC really works extremely well, providing additional safety when needed.
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Great car - 2006 Hyundai Sonata
By pfred912 - July 10 - 11:20 pmI knew nothing about Hyundais before this vehicle. I have enjoyed other foreign models. This car is a joy to drive. Small enough to be economical and large enough to have a solid feel and ride. This car is very responsive when power is needed with a 3.3 L V6. There is plenty of room in front and adequate room in back. Trunk space is impressive. Stability features really smooth out the ride. I would not mind taking the car on any trip. Great sound system and plenty of comfort. I am glad I found this car and will get another if they keep manufactoring this kind of quality.
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Very Pleased - 2002 Hyundai XG350
By ZootInNH - July 10 - 7:16 pmBought a 2002 XG350L with 32,000 miles on it nine and a half months ago. In that time Ive put around 19,000 miles on it. Only problem Ive had was a headlight that needed replacing, and that was covered under warranty.
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45,500 Miles Not A Problem - 2006 Hyundai Azera
By Silver Azera - July 10 - 4:28 pmThe Hankook tires will just about make my next 5,000 miles which will be my first big investment in this car- new tires at 50K miles. Rain, sleet, snow and clear skies, the car handles well and is comfortable for both front and rear passengers. Ive had the dealer just perform oil changes (wiper blades at 40K)and rotated the tires. No other maintenance required. The body finish has held up well and the car looks brand new coming out of the car wash. Everyone who gets in cant believe how comfortable it rides, quiet and roomy. Overall this has been one of the best cars I have bought.
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What a great car!! - 2008 Hyundai Azera
By Paul J - July 10 - 8:22 amWe went to the Hyundai dealership to look at the Sonata and while it is a great car, was not big enough for our family. We the looked at the Azera and drove it. We found that the car drove and ran excellent. More power than the Sonata, and my 61" son can sit behind me in the back seat and still have leg room. The car rides excellent, looks great, and gets decent gas milage, considering its size and horsepower output. At many thousands of dollars less than the competition, this car sticks out as an EXCELLENT alternative. The warranty doesnt hurt anything either!
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Mid life crisis - 2004 Hyundai Tiburon
By Hillbilly - July 9 - 9:40 pmI drove by the dealer and had to have this bright yellow sports car. It has been great to drive, although I do store it in the winter months. I had origionally bought it to teach my teens to drive. No way! Way to quick and many blind spots. Its ok though because I totally love to grive this car. Only had 2 mechanical issues, both fully under warrenty.,
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Lovin it - 2011 Hyundai Sonata
By airforceguy - July 9 - 3:13 pmOk, I have only owned mine for about a month, so I cant speak to reliability yet, but as for everything else, its near perfect. The car doesnt feel cheap at all. Its intelligently put together, its an ergonomic dream, the gas mileage is phenominal (Im averaging about 33.5 mpg and 510 miles to a tank), its quiet/rides smooth, the optional equipment upgrade(s) are excellent, and its a great value overall. What more could you want in a car? It is a little "knocky" sounding at low speeds though, I dont like that very much, but its a great highway car. Its ridiculous how quiet and comfortable this car is on the open road! The lumbar support is great. Buy this car!
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