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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  Traded my 2005 BMW 325i! =) - 2011 Hyundai Sonata
  By shane - October 4 - 11:10 am

  Coming from a BMW, I was very pleased with the bells and whistles in the car, but moreover I was impressed with the sporty feel of the car. The size puts it in the range of the 5-series, but I was sold on the 198hp engine with the gas mileage of a 4-cylinder engine. Why would I need a 6-cylinder??? The only thing Ill miss is the auto-sensing wipers, but thats a small sacrifice for this bold and beautiful car. You wont be disappointed, and hopefully this will AT LEAST get you to take a test drive. Got the limited for $24,100, so negotiate hard. I feel safer in this car than with the side curtain airbags, which the BMW lacked (in 05 model). With a 9 month old, safety is everything!

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  Warranty Stinks!!! - 2003 Hyundai Tiburon
  By Vickies Tibby - October 3 - 4:56 pm

  I really love my Tiburon, its so fun to drive but Ive only had it a year and now the clutch went out and it broke the flywheel. $1700.00 at the dealership!! What I dont understand is why am I being penalized because I own a maual transmission if it was an automatic I would actually reap the benefits of the bumper to bumper warranty! I actually own 2 mine has 57,000 mi. my husbands only has 33,000 his did exactly the same thing. The dealership claims this is a rare problem - bull!!!! Beware if the clutch goes out your in for a big repair bill!!

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  Thumbs up! - 2005 Hyundai Santa Fe
  By viennadarling - October 3 - 3:36 am

  I bought this SUV after driving a Jeep for years. I thought nothing would compare to my old Jeep, but the Santa Fe definitely holds its own. Im rather short, but the Santa Fe has great visibility all around. The only thing I would change is the tan interior; I have dogs and the seats need shampooed quite frequently. Its easy and fun to drive and hasnt given me a problem yet.

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  Could be more comfort - 2011 Hyundai Sonata
  By Alan - October 3 - 2:10 am

  We had the car for two months. My only complaint is the rough ride and better comfort front seats. The car needs different tires. 17 inch rims and low profile tires do not give a smooth ride. Hyundai needs to work on this. Other wise a great car

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  2005 XG 350L - 2005 Hyundai XG350
  By Jason - October 2 - 8:16 pm

  I picked up my wife XG350L a few days ago. So far everything seems fine. We are moving from a 99 Toyota Corolla to the XG, and the XG is a much nicer car. Size, power, features, and appearance are much, much better than expected. I wasnt thrilled with the dealership, but everything worked out ok. Next years model, the TG, looks interesting, but my wife preferred the 2005. She loves the floating feel. And compared to the Corolla, this car is fit for a king. Ill do my best to check back in a few months with an update.

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  In the service shop all the time - 2007 Hyundai Santa Fe
  By Kwollard - October 1 - 10:33 am

  My car has rattled in the back end and I was told at 20,000 miles I need two new struts. This did not solve the problem and I still have the rattle. I also have had my check engine light on several times and the last time it was blinking. I have had the fuel pump replaced in it also. I had to have knew tires at 22,000 miles because it was out of lined. I bought the car with 8000 miles on it and I feel that this was a damaged program car! I love the car, the room it has in it, and my sun roof, but have been unhappy with it breaking down all the time!

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  OK - 2003 Hyundai Accent
  By Crazy8 - October 1 - 2:00 am

  This car is very affordable and reliable, plus you cant beat the warranty!

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  my accent - 2003 Hyundai Accent
  By marktee - September 28 - 2:00 am

  After owning a Toyota I dont feel this car quite measures up but it certainly qualifies as adequate in this price range.

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  Black beauty - 2006 Hyundai Sonata
  By Paul Friedman - September 27 - 8:10 pm

  This car is a very good deal. The steering is well connected and the ABS brakes are well suited for city traffic. The seats are comfortable for both my wife and me. I like the performance fro a 4 cylinder engine. No trouble with hiway on ramps.

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  Disappointed - 2010 Hyundai TUCSON
  By Emily - September 26 - 2:10 pm

  My temperature gauge doesnt reflect the actual temperature until Ive been driving the car for 15 minutes. Hyundai tech support told me that was normal and that is because of sensor that "chose" to put in the car. In other words, cheap or low end in my opinion. That must be the case with the Bluetooth too, because it doesnt work well either. My mileage averages 18 in the city. I was told it would be better after 5,000 miles, geez. I fill up constantly it seems. I must say I am disappointed with these things. If I had it to do over, I would consider the Honda CR-V or would have kept my Toyota Highlander Im sorry to say.