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 what I thought - 2006 Hyundai TUCSON
  By watson - August 9 - 8:33 am

  Not vary reliable, The computor has had to be reprogramed twice. Now the front end is being repaired because car shakes. MPH is bad. Good side is that the warrenty and the finish are great. Would I buy it again? Not sure, but price and warrenty are good. Engine noise very loud.

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  Fuel Economy is important - 2008 Hyundai Accent
  By E. Stanfill - August 9 - 1:00 am

  Great Commuter Car. I travel approx 70 miles per day and had been driving a Diesel Pickup that was costing me over $140 per week in fuel, this little car has enough room for a driver 63" tall and Im only spending around $40 per week Im saving $400 per month and the car payment w/ insurance are much less than that. Its money in the bank to buy this car and keep the diesel parked.

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  great car, great value - 2002 Hyundai Elantra
  By trunks - August 8 - 5:00 pm

  i love my car! it feels and drives like it costs $10,000 more! the interior is comfortable, roomy, holds my snowboard easily, great for drive in movies, and the leather feels smooth! the drive quality is also smooth, road noise could be a little better, but otherwise, cant find anything wrong. sunroof and windows work great, CD stereo sounds great, keyless works flawlessly, and the speedometer looks cool blue!

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  best value for the money - 2006 Hyundai Sonata
  By thopaine - August 8 - 6:08 am

  After 3 years and 24000 miles,I say that this auto has lots of pep,is very reliable, very inexpensive to operate and maintain,is safe,and looks and feels good to drive.One possible negative is the seats can be a little uncomfortable. Best car for the money on the market today.

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  Great value for the money!!! - 2013 Hyundai Genesis
  By Tom Storm - August 8 - 4:49 am

  I would definitely buy another Geneses.

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  Great Car So Far. - 2009 Hyundai Sonata
  By Holajn - August 8 - 3:33 am

  This has been a great car for my family. We have had to replace the radio twice already. It had several electronic glitches. The warranty covered it and will cover future repairs for the next ten years. The Sonata is additionally very efficient, it has plenty of horsepower which still managing to get 29 mpg on the highway.

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  Great Car, Great Value - 2007 Hyundai Sonata
  By Tom G - August 7 - 11:59 pm

  I bought this car used with just over 2,000 miles. I was immediately impressed with the quality, comfort and performance. The car looks great as well, and for the money, cant be beat. A year later I have 20,000 miles on it and have had no problems. My wife and kids want to drive it more than they do their own vehicles. I never owned a Hyundai before, and am now convinced their vehicles are on par with Honda and Toyota.

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  Check Engine Light on - 2005 Hyundai Elantra
  By Disappointed - August 7 - 10:07 pm

  Bought this with 9000 miles on it nothing but problems with it, brakes tires, rotors, check engine light is on evap leak somewhere,plugs and wires replaced,many very small dents everywhere, gas cap replaced, headlight bulbs replaced three times, air bag doesnt read my 20 year old that weighs 105 pounds, the only thing good about this car is the gas mileage

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  Reaffirmed Hyundai believer - 2004 Hyundai XG350
  By Mark - August 7 - 8:36 pm

  I was in the market for a smaller car and actually went to the dealership to test drive a Sonata. I did drive a Sonata but once I climbed into the XG, I knew my search was over. I have no complaints about my car. People constantly mistake it for a Lincoln LS. One lady climbed out of her car to look at mine. She was slightly embarrased by the time she got to my window as she was in the market for a new car and thought mine was a Jaguar. It is the best car I have ever owned. When the time comes for another, I will definately start with Hyundai.

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  Loving It!!! - 2008 Hyundai Accent
  By Coro - August 7 - 3:07 pm

  I just bought my new Hyundai Accent last weekend. I replaced a 1999 Accent and this one is light years over the old one! As soon as I sat on the drivers seat, I fell in love with the car. Its my first new car and I couldnt be any happier. My dad owns a Nissan Versa and the Accent has a much more comfortable driver seat, and have to admit the Versa it better in the back seat. Overall, I find the Accent to be a great value and an excellent car for a college student like me. I already took it to a 250 mile trip and was awesome!