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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  Better than expected... - 1995 Hyundai Sonata
  By Pinkfire - March 3 - 5:26 pm

  I purchased this Sonata new. It had a five-speed, A/C and no other power options. The first repair was at 97K, for a new clutch. At 125K, maintenance has included a timing belt every 60K, rebuilt starter and alternator, new water pump, etc. Dealer service went down hill when my local dealer changed hands. The second timing belt service was vastly overpriced, and several non-factory parts were used.

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  2009 Hyundai Sonata GLS - LAH Review - 2009 Hyundai Sonata
  By Lord Alfred Hayes - March 3 - 4:40 am

  For the price paid, this is a great car to drive for comfort and reliability thus far. I bought the car in January 2009 (should have waited a month due to tax breaks but oh well) and now have 18,500 on the car. I am averaging 26 MPG with city driving and am consistently in the lower 30s MPG with highway driving. The only problems I have with car are the cruise control (sometimes unresponsive), the paint (flaking away on the hood and the front grill) and the instrument panel lighting which seems to flicker often and cannot be fixed since Hyundai service personnel cannot replicate the problem.

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  Okay - 1995 Hyundai Sonata
  By odis - February 27 - 3:45 am

  The car ran great until 90,000. I had to redo the transmission and airconditioning

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  Good car, only a few issues - 2003 Hyundai Santa Fe
  By BlakeJana - February 25 - 5:23 pm

  Overall, I love my Santa Fe. It is a smooth ride since it is on the car body, instead of a truck. I have been in Blazers (which is similar) and it is a horrible ride compared to the Santa Fe. The main issue I have is that sometimes when I am driving, the engine gets bogged down and the car will jerk. It corrects itself, but it is scary when it happens. Besides that, I would recommend this car. I only wish Hyundia made a bigger SUV. i am out of room with my two kids in the back!

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  a little bit of heaven - 2005 Hyundai Elantra
  By allen - February 25 - 7:33 am

  Although I would like to see the seat coverings more modern looking, the car drives fabulous. Its responsive and handles with ease and surety. It has all the bolts and whistles at a fraction of the costs we pay for Toyota and Honda. After test driving all three I picked the Elantra. It had a better feel than the other two. And you cannot beat the warranty.

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  Suspension Noise Trumps Everything Else - 2009 Hyundai Sonata
  By kurt - February 21 - 8:40 pm

  I bought this car used with 11k miles on it. It has the option premium package with moon roof, automatic lights, trip computer, electric seat. Got a great deal and now I can see why: this car is fine on the highway and if that is all you basically do then fine, buy it. But if most of your driving is in town, on any road less than perfect then forget it. It is one constant busy, bumpy, and thunky ride with every imperfection in the road transmitted through the inferior suspension put into this car. After a week of this nonsense I finally had enough and took it back for another car. Fortunately, the dealer allowed me to trade it without penalty. Be warned, this car is terrible on city streets

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  Veracruz - 2007 Hyundai Veracruz
  By leo - February 19 - 12:06 am

  very quiet and easy to drive steering wheel controls nice touch good head clearance for tall person mileage good dealer sold non Hyundai extended warranty without warning.........not good....buyer beware

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  A best buy for the money..... - 2004 Hyundai Sonata
  By Ledfut - February 18 - 10:00 am

  Our 2003 LX has just passed the 10,000 mile mark and is thus far, flawless. For the amenities and features of this model, youd pay five to seven thousand more. It carries two to four passengers in comfortably and securely.

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  review31852 - 2016 Hyundai Elantra
  By Mark Strominger - February 17 - 5:57 pm

  Carbuyer9900

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  Overall happy with purchase - 2006 Hyundai Sonata
  By Jimmy - February 11 - 8:33 pm

  I like my Sonata, and I am happy with my purchase. However, I am not happy with the fuel economy. I have had this car for a month now, and I average about 18 mpg, even though I do mostly highway driving. I have to fill up my tank after about 280-290 miles on an 18 gallon tank. I am now thinking I should have gone with the four cylinder, but I do not regret getting a Sonata.