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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  Wheel Wells Broken - 2009 Hyundai Elantra
  By snowback - January 21 - 7:17 pm

  I have 4,000 Kms on my new Hyundai and the wheel wells have cracked and are broken in the front drivers side and in the rear - both sides! Hyundai Canada will not consider this a warranty issue and will not honor repairing the car. The car was driven on gravel roads at temps or - 35 degrees. If the car should not be driven on gravel roads, that means the car cannot drive on 77% of the roads in Alberta!!!!! If this is what I have in two months driving how is the car going to look in two years? JD Powers are completely wrong with this vehicle. Will never buy another Hyundai.

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  Hyundai has proven itself reliable - 2004 Hyundai Accent
  By JordanG - January 21 - 1:17 pm

  My cars coming up on 100,000 miles and nothing at all has acted older than brand new. With the 5 speed manual transmission, it feels quicker than most other cars in its class, probably because it weighs in at only slightly over a ton. Ive driven a lot of cars with manual transmission, including a Honda Civic with 30,000 miles, and I can safely say this car has the smoothest and easiest shifter Ive ever used, even at 100,000 miles. The fuel economy is right around that Civic/Corolla 30 mpg range. Overall, its a very basic, no frills, reliable car, and its hardly left a dent in my pocket at all.

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  Lemon? I think so. - 2007 Hyundai Accent
  By Brian - January 21 - 9:37 am

  I feel swindled by the Hyundai people. Things started off without any real problems. Never had an accident and I always tried to keep-up with any maintenance. Sadly, after 30000 miles, my catalytic converter is destroyed, Ive had serious ignition problems, and theyve had to replace the spark plugs like clockwork. Just traded that sucker in.

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  hyundai xg-350 best bang for your buck - 2004 Hyundai XG350
  By wood1126 - January 21 - 2:00 am

  I was socked at how far hyundai has come in terms of reliability! My wife uses the car mostly and i try and steal it from here when i can (I have company car)and that warranty 5yrs. 60,000 mi with roadside service and not on problem yet! thats why they can give the warranty!

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  Buyers beware - 2004 Hyundai Elantra
  By junkhyundai - January 21 - 2:00 am

  This car is not reliable. With a few initial minor problems and after 4000 miles later, the engine leaks coolant. A well-made car should not have this kind of problem, IMHO. The point is, you are buying a cheap car and that is what you get. Their cheap service comes as part of a cheap package, too. Be warned. You are taking a risk.

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  Awesome Value - 2003 Hyundai Santa Fe
  By SBL - January 21 - 2:00 am

  I am a self employed contractor who has to repair trucks and heavy equiptment for a living. I had previously owned a 1990 Sonata and did all the maintenance and repairs by myself. What amazed me was the quality and design of every part that I worked on that car over the five years that I owned it. After driving the car from 70k to 200,000 miles , I sold it running as good as the day I bought it, and bought the Santa Fe. Let me tell you , the Santa Fe is an awesome vehicle. I have put 15,000 miles on it in 5 months with zero problems.

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  Love It - 2004 Hyundai Santa Fe
  By Susans - January 21 - 2:00 am

  Love everything about the car except lack of power and that is still okay

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  fantastic - 2004 Hyundai Santa Fe
  By mystormy - January 21 - 2:00 am

  very comfertible and drive very very nice. both my wife and i love it and the price was great.

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  Hyundai Sante Fe - 2004 Hyundai Santa Fe
  By Tina Hazen - January 21 - 2:00 am

  This is the second Sante Fe I have owned. My daughter was hit broadside with my first one. She was not injured at all, but the car was totaled. It spun twice, but never tipped over. A safe little SUV, I feel. I never had any problems with that vehichle or the new one that I replaced it with. The service on these cars is amazing. I cant say enought about the dealership! What a value for the consumer. My new Sante Fe even has side airbags now! I am very happy with this vehichle.

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  Lemon Hyundai - 2004 Hyundai Santa Fe
  By DebbieK - January 21 - 2:00 am

  My Santa Fe is 5 months old. It has broken down 5 times. I would never buy another Hyundai again. The customer service has been the worst I have ever dealt with. My brand new car keeps breaking down & they act like Im bothering them by wanting it fixed.