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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  sweet buy! - 2004 Hyundai Santa Fe
  By numusic - February 22 - 10:00 am

  u know, i gotta tell ya... i have owned a mercedes c320, a bmw 328ci, a mercedes ml320 and a vw beetle in the past 6 years- this is one of the strongest, most comfortable, most care free car, i love it. i had BOTH of my mercedes in the shop CONSANTLY! i had so many issues with the c320 i ended up getting rid of it 6 months old! i havent owned this suv long but i have to tell u there is not ONE thing i can gripe about, never been to the shop, always purrs like a cat-

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  Driving is BELIEVING! - 2004 Hyundai Santa Fe
  By Priscilla C. - February 22 - 10:00 am

  Nice SUV for the price. Paid below invoice and ours includes running board and moonroof too. Its solid and the quality is exceptional. As good as the Honda and Toyota products. Smooth driving quality! Almost as smooth as a Lexus RX, NO kidding! For under $20K and youre thinking of a Honda CRV, Toyota RAV 4 or Highlander. Take a look at the Sante Fe...driving is believing!

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  A very nice car besides fuel economy - 2016 Hyundai Sonata Hybrid
  By gbxk86a - February 21 - 11:14 pm

  I own three Hyundai cars, a 2007 Sonata, a 2016 Genesis AWD Tech, and this, a 2016 Sonata Hybrid Limited Ultimate. I bought the hybrid car for the economy, but to my pleasant surprise, the car is very quiet and comfortable for a car in this price range. At standstill, the car is completely quiet with no vibration like any other hybrid car. When cruising on the highway, I sometimes thought, "boy, this is almost as quiet as the Genesis." The gear shift as well as the switching of various modes of engine/battery hybrid system are unnoticeable. Other than the extreme quietness at idle, the car just move and ride like a very quiet six cylinder car. I was thinking about a Honda hybrid, but with the big discount and the generous warranty plan, it was a no brainer to choose Hyundai. I will be very satisfied with this purchase if the car has a reliability same as the 2007 Sonata.

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  Brand new Genesis - 2016 Hyundai Genesis
  By Jim Roosevelt - February 21 - 3:28 pm

  I took delivery of my new 2016 Genesis just three days ago so this is more about first impressions rather than a full review. Mine is the 3.8 with the Ultimate package, all the toys. The Genesis is a wonderful package of technology, safety, and quality wrapped in an easy to adjust package. The car drives and handles perfectly. The technology and safety features are what drew me to consider a Genesis. I came from a hybrid Toyota Avalon Limited that got great gas mileage, but was well behind the curve as far as technology and safety. Toyota does hybrid well, but I wanted features such as the dynamic cruise control, automatic emergency breaking, lane keeping assist, and so on. The Genesis delivers these, they work exactly as advertised and exude confidence when driving. The 9.2 inch screen for the nav system is as good as any I have seen on any car. I love the heads up display. The Lexicon sound system is far better than any I have heard. The only suggestion I could offer is to add a little more up-down range to the front power seats to make my wife a little happier.

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  An opinion - 2005 Hyundai Santa Fe
  By Tee - February 21 - 1:20 pm

  Less than 12,000 miles and the valves are rattling unless I run premium gasoline. Gas mileage is about what they say as long as I run premium. Otherwise, gas mileage is about 25% less than they claim. Interior rattles coming from who knows where, but very irritating. Brakes are squeaking as if I need brake pads already -- surely not, but gotta have it checked out.

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  Great Car-Great Price! - 2008 Hyundai Accent
  By ddrake - February 21 - 12:39 pm

  My husband and I bought our second Hyundai Accent about one month ago. Our first one we purchased in 2001 and it is pushing 95,000 miles and still scampering along (we never had any major problems with the car!) I have been driving the car approx. 62 miles each day for my commute to work and just love it. Even for a smaller engine, it still has pep. The interior is actually bigger than our 2001 and I like the outside styling much better. The only downside is the quality of the plastic interior Hyundai should use better plastics. Our side panel did not fit correctly and that needs to be replaced but no big deal (dealership has been great!) 27 miles gas mileage round town highway 33+!

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  Squeaks & Groans! - 2008 Hyundai Sonata
  By burt - February 21 - 10:02 am

  This car is built very cheaply. The interior plastic surfaces squeak, and the front suspension has a really annoying squeak/rattle. The interior lights dont come on when you remove the ignition key. The switches on the door (lock/unlock, windows, etc.) are not illuminated. The ignition key ring taps against the dash board when driving. The Infinity sound systems subwoofer is mounted in the cardboard deck behind the rear seats and creates an annoying distortion even at low volume.

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  Best Bang for the Buck! - 2011 Hyundai Sonata
  By Flanker28 - February 21 - 4:00 am

  I just purchased this vehicle to replace my 10 year old Chrysler 300M. I thought I would have to give up some of the creature features when I purchased a new one.....NOT. The new Hyundai Sonata was just what I needed. Great Looks, Super Fuel Economy (without having to lug around a battery pack), Quality, Quiet Ride, Responsive handling and a Warranty Second to None! If you have not looked at the Hyundai line up of vehicles lately, you need to take a trip to your local dealer. Take a test drive and then make up your own mind about their products. They are on top of their game with a solid product offering for the American driver.

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  My car is just great - 2008 Hyundai TUCSON
  By Georgina - February 20 - 12:00 pm

  I just got my Tucson a few days ago, but I love it. It is affordable, has a smooth ride and is very, very spacious on the inside. I would recommend it to anyone who wants a SUV but cannot afford to get a Benz, BMW or Cadillac. So get one and enjoy it....

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  Almost an RX300 for half the price - 2002 Hyundai Santa Fe
  By raatx - February 20 - 10:00 am

  Wife really wanted the Lexus RX300 but the price was heart-stopping. We each test drove the Sante Fe at 2 different dealerships and couldnt believe value of this SUV. Toured the entire Dallas Auto Show and NOTHING touched it. After 6 months we have 10K miles and a trip to Colorado with our new Sante Fe and zero problems. Very fun to drive, great ride, lots of cargo room (more than our old Windstar van with a family of 4 loaded in), loads of standard. features. Second gear is geared a little low but the pickup overall is just fine, city or highway. From a die- hard Toyota and GM fan, this is one great car. Plus the warranty if youre still not convinced!