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:

• 

  Dont Expect too much - 2011 Hyundai TUCSON
  By rob_from_ks - February 23 - 9:36 am

  It is a prettier and cheaper SUV than the main two alternatives we were looking at, the CRV and Rav4). However, after you drive the Tuscon a while, you begin to notice more and more reasons for the lower price tag. It starts out with just cabin noise, then you notice the very poor quality sound system. The slightest touch from another car produces a ding. Sometimes for no reason, I am unable to lock the car doors when exiting. I assume it thinks the key is still in the ignition but that is not the case (electrical?). Now I notice that the picture on the back up camera is blurry but the dealership tells me that it is operating as designed and Hyundai consumer affairs agrees.

• 

  Nice car but lots of problems - 2010 Hyundai Veracruz
  By Chris in Jersey - February 13 - 10:00 am

  We purchased this vehicle based on its features per dollar and it does excel in this area. It is quiet, comfortable, has a nice interior and is roomy. It could be a little more sporty and the stereo sounds like the 8 track from my 77 Caprice Estate Wagon but other than that we are happy with the performance. The problems are with the reliability. Had to replace the stereo(dealer did not return cds), a taillight, license plate light, brakes, "ESC off" control light is on constantly, resume bottom on cruise control does not work, key fob stopped working and the transmission stopped and stranded my family on the highway. This would make me think twice before purchasing a Hyundai again.

• 

  Not Feeling It Anymore.. - 2011 Hyundai Sonata
  By niteflite888 - February 10 - 11:16 pm

  30k update. The pulling problem is pretty severe. The tires began to cup some times ago and the ride is noisy. Took to dealer and they wanted me to pay a few hundred bucks for some work-around to address unadjustable camber. I refuse to pay out of pocket to fix anything on a car with such low mileage. MPG calculator is not accurate. Power window doesnt function at times. Will steer clear of hyundai next time and stick to toyota or honda. maybe even a ford or cadillac.

• 

  Definitely NOT worth $30,000 - 2008 Hyundai Santa Fe
  By Stacy V - February 4 - 9:16 pm

  I chose my brand new Santa Fe over a used Lexis with 15K miles. WORST mistake ever. Just a months after owning it I had to have the carpet replaced twice and bumper repainted because paint was peeling off. Now after 20K miles the dash is peeling and the leather seats have rubbed down to nothing leaving a rip in the driver seat. Im 54", weigh 120lbs but they say its not covered under warranty because Im not entering my car the right way. The latches on the third row seat broke and had to be replaced. Im scared what the value is going to be if I decide not to keep it.

• 

  Dead Battery - 2006 Hyundai Azera
  By Dennis - January 31 - 7:01 am

  Gas mileage is terrible. No front seat drivers side leg room. Not a car to drive if you are over six feet tall. Battery drains after 3-4 days of being parked. Hyundai says that is normal(?) Transmission never knows what gear it wants to be in. No reason to buy this car as long as they are building Accords and Camrys.

• 

  Regret - 2008 Hyundai Veracruz
  By Ricardo - January 29 - 12:30 pm

  I traded in my Santa Fe for this because Hyundai gave me the highest trade in value. The exterior was so so. The interior was great. Soft touch material. Good looking leather. It drove quiet. Infinity radio is not that impressive but ok. However, within a month, the leather starts to fade. It starts to pick up road noise. Some rattle starts to show up here and there. Most serious problem was the transmission. I heard a lot of good things about the Aisian transmission. However, my transmission has problem shifting from 3rd to 4th gear, rumbling a lot. It went back to the dealership. They told me that there was nothing wrong. They also broke their promise about loaner car. Regret

• 

  Terrible Fuel Milage - 2007 Hyundai Azera
  By HB - January 25 - 1:09 pm

  EPA ratings must be a joke to the Koreans. A loaded truck will get better fuel milage than I am getting with the Azera with 6500 miles on it. I have also had to get the rear window shade repaired. The dealer had to order parts, it would seem that since they have had so many with problems they would just stock parts to repair them.

• 

  Electrical problems- warranty ignored - 2000 Hyundai Tiburon
  By Adriane - January 25 - 8:23 am

  This car had persistent electrical problems, and the dealership was dishonest about the cause of them. The car would power surge and burned out 12 headlights, 2 radios, and 3 new batteries. The dealership replaced the individual parts per warranty, but would not investigate the underlying cause. Then, when it was humid, the car would not start. Once the 5-year warranty expired I took it to a non- hyundai mechanic (and my electrical engineer father), and they immediately identified the problem. The specs in the factory for the plating in the electrical system were off, and the connectors would vibrate loose (as evidenced by corrosion) which would cause arcs and surges. I had the car 6 years.

• 

  Problems with Blower Control Knob - 2004 Hyundai Santa Fe
  By Chris K - January 21 - 7:30 pm

  I actually like my 2004 Santa Fe which I purchased new back in May of 2004. I have a problem that I cannot resolve. Each year I have a problem with my blower control knob. The blower starts to run only on one level and eventually stops altogether. It has cost me several hundred dollars each time I have had this fixed only to be back in the same situation the next year. Right now I have been only able to use my heat or A/C on high because it wont work on any other level. Thanks, TOO HOT OR TOO COLD

• 

  Push Button Start Not Working - 2013 Hyundai Elantra GT
  By nothappy2013 - January 16 - 8:03 am

  Purchased the 2013 Elantra GT 8/31/13, no start issues until 11/15/13. Very nice vehicle except it will not start daily without pressing the brake and start button multiple times. Stranded once and called Roadside Assistance. They tightened the positive battery terminal. Also stopped at the dealership later the same day and the negative terminal was tightened. Last problem required 19 attempts to start the vehicle, number 20 was the lucky number. A very frustrating problem, dealership tests showed no problems found, certainly something is going on. Second trip to the dealership Tues. 12/10.