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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  Well it "Looks" really good - 2003 Hyundai Tiburon
  By AaronDaPyro05 - May 15 - 10:00 am

  I owned a 94 TransAM, when it came time to lay her to rest i didnt have a lot of money but i didnt want to buy someone elses problems. So i bought a tiburon. It was a very affordable price and the big warranty gave me some piece of mind that it would be reliable...... But now it has 17k miles on it and ive had a new clutch and transmission, ive spent over 5 thousand dollars in repairs from the clutch, 1600 dollars, and then a wreck from the brakes locking on a turn. Overall its a good car but its not made to be driven like a sports car without some major mods.

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  Hyundai - 2004 Hyundai Accent
  By Ron Hoelzer - May 13 - 2:00 am

  Our company has a fleet of 7 Hyundai. We have owned a total of 12. Our cars are used mostly for in-town delivery and average 45,000/car/year. We have had minimal problems dispite hard driving and different drivers using the cars.

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  Impressed - 1995 Hyundai Sonata
  By Brudzio - May 12 - 2:00 am

  Bought new and still driving 9 yrs later. Fun to drive, especially at 190km/h. Had front crash at 80 km/h miraculously nothing happened to us, car took all the impact and was severed. Mechanically excellent and snappy. Body mouldings rust inside and swell - had to replace 2 times. Door locks rust & freeze, takes time to get in - can turn the key, however cant open. Hardware falls apart (sunshades, door knobs). Upgraded stereo to Hyundai CD combo - far much better sound. A/C still works well. Fuel tank rusted - had to rebuild. Manual tranny rebuilt in 5th year, wheel bearings noisy. Overall quite positive experience

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  New Generation Hyundai Try it! - 2003 Hyundai Elantra
  By Digitalman - May 12 - 2:00 am

  Great car. New generation Hyundais have nothing to envy the other manufacturers considering the low price tag it and the lots of standard features you get. Good grip, handling, powerfull engine. Gearbox is a bit long. Air conditioner punishes performance. Not very confortable front seats. Ugly exhaust pipe, average fuel economy. Anyway, people who say it´s better buying an old japanese instead of a new korean are people who haven´t driven the new Elantra. Try before you buy I and think you´ll end up liking this car as much as your Neon or Civic, for a lot money less.This car is definetly a serious competitor for the japanese and europeans when choosing a new car.

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  What a nice truck - 2005 Hyundai TUCSON
  By Ric - May 11 - 9:06 pm

  We were looking for something that we could "put stuff in" and didnt want to pay $30,000 plus for a Jeep. Looked at Chevy and wouldve paid more for a lot less. More airbags than my Volvo, took it on a trip from Jersey to Florida over the holidays and it was great!!! And I needed the 4WD in North Carolina of all places.

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  great - 2008 Hyundai Sonata
  By fred - May 11 - 8:26 pm

  i love driving our new sonata. it has a smooth ride and plenty of powerv when you need it . i also like the new stle change

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  Fantastic value and solid brand quality - 2008 Hyundai Veracruz
  By Steve - May 9 - 2:56 pm

  Nevermind the MotorTrend review where it beats the Lexus, or the various quality awards from JD Power, etc. This car is sleek and unbelievably refined and classy inside, and in the GLS FWD trim, an insane bargain at under 25k. The various traction and brake and ESC controls, 5 stars for safety and the tons of airbags make me feel its a great choice for our family. The driving is still sort of truck like, with acceleration and body roll pretty average, and the cabins not as quiet as the reviews say it is, but overall still very impressive. Havent had it long enough to have firsthand experience with its reliability, but Im surprised at the lack of initial issues - none at all.

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  first(but wont be last)Hyundai - 2009 Hyundai Sonata
  By rickyrick - May 8 - 4:06 pm

  Hyundai. really? This co. has stepped up big time. after months of research it was a no brainer. After hearing accolades after accolades about this brand and this particular matter, i did my own real world comparisons. Better value than the "Cam-Cord", Smoother than the Mazda products and Lexus type interior(oh for under 20k) u kidding me?? and seriously i was trying to talk myself out of purchasing my Limited but after driving the comparable cars back to back there was an obvious choice ( i did love the 2009-10 Mazda6 but for 10k more, forget about it!) oh and Hyudai has this 10yr/100k mile warranty thingy, too just to throw in. not to worried about resale cause i keep my cars 4ever.

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  Best Vehicle Ive Driven - 2008 Hyundai TUCSON
  By Greg S. - May 8 - 11:20 am

  In driving cars since 1975 the Tucson is the best vehicle Ive owned. Does it have shortcomings, of course. But, I knew that when I bought it. As of 8-16-10 I have 36,000 and not one problem. Tires are still very good, oil is changed every 3,000 to 4,000 and lubed. Preventive maintenance is key. The only thing I dont like it that it is noisy from a tire standpoint. Good mileage up to 27 mpg on the highway and about 22 in local traffic. Its just a nice vehicle.

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  2012 Elantra Touring GL - 2012 Hyundai Elantra Touring
  By rooke1991 - May 7 - 2:23 pm

  Had it for 8 months now, pretty damn good! Really comfortable and spacious, driven with 5 average guys, between 20-27. and everyone had enough space for a 3 hour drive. Fit enough stuff(tent, beer, air mattresses, etc) for 3 people for a weekend camping trip, not comprimising on seating space at all. Alittle slow acceeration wise but once going its all good! Sound system is good, the usb input is kind of a pain, auxillary cable works fine though. Tons of compartments, all mine are empty dont have enough stuff to fill them. ONly complaint is seeing as im 21 I get called a soccer mom alot.