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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  Not so good - 2006 Hyundai Santa Fe
  By beth88182 - May 22 - 7:46 pm

  I bought my first Hyundai 2006 Santa Fe in 8/05. I bought the car because everything I read was talking about how good the cars were & how great the warranty was. I have put roughly 27,000 miles on my car since then. I have had several minor, but irritating, issues with the car lately. (1) a piece luggage rack flew off- I never used it (2) driverÂ’s seat seam has come apart, the stitching came undone-clearly a defect (3) another obvious defect is the back windows (that donÂ’t open) and the back windshield leak. All of my issues are fairly minor and should not be hard to fix. I guess that is why I donÂ’t understand why I am having so much trouble getting them fixed under warranty.

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  ALREADY BITTEN - 2002 Hyundai Santa Fe
  By texanboy - May 22 - 2:00 am

  At about 1500 miles on the car, it broke down.Dealer replaced IDLE PULLEY. At 3000 miles, broke down again. IDLE PULLEY again. Whats up with that? Running good after that. Now at about 4000 miles.

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  Unsafe, good for a new driver - 2002 Hyundai Accent
  By CaF - May 22 - 2:00 am

  Well they always say " you get what you pay for ". In the 2002 Hyundai Accent I bought it was great for me considering I am a new driver. For a person who has never driven a car before, this one is great. If you are a mid aged person who has came from a volvo or mercedes, or even a nice honda like the accord or cr-v, then this isnt the car for you. This is a car for the low income, always satisfied conser who is jst looking for a car to get him/her from point "A" to point "B" with no pains. Also, by buying this car did I mention you can actually breathe and drive wth no worries? Hyundai has the best warrenty.

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  Nightmare - 2006 Hyundai TUCSON
  By Ms Piggy - May 21 - 1:06 pm

  I have brought four different made of Hyundai vehicles since 2000. The last one is a Tucson which gives me the most headache. After it has been used for 16 months, the battery suddenly drained out and couldnt recharge after stayed in garage for 5 days. No interior nor exterior light were turned on. It happened in Jan, May and Sept 2009. I informed Hyundai USA customer service in May and they promised to "do something" if it happened again. Then, when the issue resurfaced in Sept, I called them. They either gave me the run around or simply not return my calls even I have case number. I wrote them email and no reply. What a service! It will be my last Hyundai vehicle(period).

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  My second Hyundai. - 1995 Hyundai Accent
  By Disco7 - May 18 - 2:00 am

  This was my second Hyundai and im now on my third. I loved this car. I dont know why peeps bash Hyundais, but i love them. I bought this car at 60000 miles and drove it till 130000 and sold it and bought another. Only thing that went bad was the tranny at 80000 miles due to previous owner negligence. Solid car.

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  My Elantra, one year later - 2003 Hyundai Elantra
  By cml4sinatra - May 18 - 2:00 am

  The quiet ride is the most notable feature. Its easy to forget that the car is on sometimes, when idling in a parking spot. Long trips(for two) are comfortable, since the passenger seat lays back quite a bit, flush with the rear seating. I love how the headlights will shut off automatically when the key is removed and the door opened. I get annoyed with the air conditioning system--the recirculation button will not remain engaged when you switch the fan on and off again. I would have liked to have both a sunroof and ABS, but these options are not offered together.

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  my santa fe - 2001 Hyundai Santa Fe
  By santa fe - May 17 - 5:06 pm

  I bought mine used in 2005, it was a 2001, it just needed a new catalytic converter... but after that, its perfect. I have 2 kids, I just LOVE it, its roomy, comfortable, it drives real nice and smooth, like a car just bigger and higher up! Im so glad I was able to get this car. I hope they stay around for a while so I can get a new one in a few years!

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  Very pleased so far. Had car 4 months. - 2017 Hyundai Elantra
  By ElantraownerfromFL - May 16 - 12:29 am

  Got a great Black Friday deal for a new SE. Was happy with my 2 Kia Optimas I had in the past. Like Kia / Hyundai warranty. I like everything about my Elantra, except the fact that since the car was on the BOAT for a looong time, from Korea, the tires had FLAT SPOTTING, which impacted the cars ride. Test drive carefully. Dealer wouldnt fix. Frustrating. And, VERY ANNOYING and FRUSTRATED, that the BACK UP camera was not included in the SE model.

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  My Hyundai - 2004 Hyundai Sonata
  By PainKillJen - May 14 - 10:00 am

  It is a very comfortable, reliable vechile. It looks expensive, but I have a fully loaded model that was inexpensive. You get a lot for your money and who can beat the 10 year warranty?

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  cost to maintain - 2004 Hyundai Sonata
  By dan marshall - May 14 - 10:00 am

  Great car but costly to repair, recomended maintance should not be a hinderence yet it is.