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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  Great SUV - 2009 Hyundai Veracruz
  By Chris - August 9 - 11:56 am

  Weve had this Veracruz for about 6 months now and really love the ride and feel. The Best Hyundai Ive ever owned. The only complaints I have that are common with Hyundai is a few rattle and squeaks. Gas mileage just plain stinks in the city, we average about 15 with 80% city 20% hwy. I did take a long road trip and we got about 23 with a little stop and go traffic. Overall we are very happy with our purchase.

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  Very nice, but..... - 2010 Hyundai TUCSON
  By Don Kaufman - August 8 - 9:26 pm

  The rear visibility is a bit tough, but the rear camera really helps. It drives nicely w/ great power for a 4 cylinder. The price was not cheap, and the features that my 10 year old Ford has and this doesnt are very concerning. I cover them below.

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  OK car - 2009 Hyundai Sonata
  By Myra - August 8 - 5:10 am

  After owning Camarys in the past looked at the Sonata because of price and consumer rating. Overall the car is OK. Smooth braking to a complete stop is impossible. Transmission seems to jump out of gear at times.

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  Great Car at Its Price Point - 2009 Hyundai Sonata
  By Ben G - August 4 - 9:20 pm

  Test drove similar sized cars such as Nissan Altima, Ford Fusion and Toyota Camary....This car is a good value for the money and was about $2000 less than the 2010 Fusion which was my 2nd choice....The car lacks a few items like driver and passenger side arm rets..The rear seating could be better...The 2.4L engine delivers good response and the overall ride is very good for a car this size....

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  From Camry XLE to Hyundai Sonata Limited - 2013 Hyundai Sonata
  By btiger14 - August 4 - 10:51 am

  Had been driving Toyota Camries for the last 20 years. The new 2012 Toyota Camry styling just did not do it for me. I liked the Sonata exterior styling much more. The car is good looking and fun to drive. Rides nice and looks great. The Nav option is very nice; only complaint being the special cord required for IPOD use. The 2.4 engine is ample in power; a concern I had since I was coming from the V6. Gas mileage at this point not great, but still in break in period. Given that the Hyundai comes with a very good warranty it is discouraging and concerning that the dealer pushes hard on the extended warranty for a sizable sum of money; makes you wonder about the service aspects.

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  Paint is peeling after 10 months!!! - 2003 Hyundai Elantra
  By New_Mexico_Viking - August 3 - 2:00 am

  The clear coat and paint are peeling off in dime and quarter-sized spots the car that I bought only 10 months ago. I took it to the dealer expecting that the "so-called" paint warranty would cover the repairs. The dealer, and later the Hyundai Regional Service Manager, both told me that the damage had been caused by "bird-droppings." I wash the car weekly. Worse yet, they said that this is considered "damage caused by external contamination," and hence not warranted under their "bumper-to-bumper warranty." They tell me that it is perfectly normal for bird poop to peel the paint right off a car. This is the first time Ive seen such a thing.

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  Carbon Blue Elantra GT - 2002 Hyundai Elantra
  By Edstrd - July 31 - 10:00 am

  Very nice vehicle for the money. Lots of options and a great commuter car.

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  so much for so little - 2003 Hyundai XG350
  By damaine1 - July 25 - 8:20 am

  I have only had my XG for 1 month, I brought it used and it had 34,000 miles on it. The car looks great, drives great and has all the little things that most cars for its price dont have. I love the wood trim and leather interior, it looks and feels great. I love the chrome accents on the exterior of the vehicle. Its a very comfortable and enjoyable ride a slow and highway speeds. Just enough power to satisfy my hunger for speed :-). So far its an all around great car.

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  Fun Economy - 2004 Hyundai Accent
  By Texworkmom - July 24 - 2:00 am

  I drive a lot of interstate hwys. and in town. The pick-up of the engine is good with the 5-speed transmission and I average 36 mi. per gallon of gas. I like hatchback style, but a scoop might jazz it up?!.

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  Used Hyundai vWagon - 2000 Hyundai Elantra
  By Mike Portnoy - July 23 - 2:00 am

  This car has not given me any Mechanical problems. Only normal maintaince such as Brakes, tires Wires and tires have been replaced. Some interior body hardware has been replaced. Milage is 83,600