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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  Terrible car!!! - 2007 Hyundai Sonata
  By jiannaccone1 - September 17 - 11:25 am

  I bought a 2007 new and had to repalce the engine at 71,000 miles. This was completely covered by the factory warranty which I was greatful for. Two years later and 35,000 miles into the 2nd engine it blows again!! I am being told that the whole bottom half of the engine needs to be replaced and that Hyundai is willing to help by paying 1/2 the cost of the repair. While I agree that is a somewhat nice offer I feel they should cover the entire cost of the 2nd new engine. I would still have to pay $2650 out of pocket if they cover half and my confidence in the cars reliability is completely gone. They do not stand behind their car or engine. I am at a loss now.

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  Great looks and great value! - 2012 Hyundai Accent
  By rlfeen - September 14 - 4:16 am

  I have owned this car for about a year and a half ~36k. I loved the way the new Hyundais looked and I decided on the Accent. I got a silver SE trim. I love black interior, fog lights and rims. MPGs arent that great for such a small car. AVG is 27/36 This is a great handling car. Engine is a bit noisy, however it is very responsive and you can really get up and go when needed. Drove this thing from Maryland to California and it did great. After about 10k I drove through a pretty deep puddle during a hurricane and the engine was damaged (my fault 100%). I ended up having to replace the engine. Hyundai wouldnt cover it because it was "water damaged," but my insurance did cover it.

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  OK small car - 2013 Hyundai Accent
  By colby_butler - September 12 - 7:22 am

  I had this car for about 2 weeks. Only had 10k miles on the odometer. I put about 1000 miles on the car. At first this vehicle did not impress me. This is by far the smallest cheapest car I have ever driven. However the highlights are the seats, the stereo, and shiftronic automatic. This car turned out to be quite comfortable even for a 4 hr drive. However I had a problem with this car. One day the turnsignals quit working. Checked everything and everything else works fine. I believe there may be a problem with the modulation control for the turnsignals in this model I had. In all this car seems like it would be a solid buy other then the one issue.

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  Love it - 2012 Hyundai Elantra
  By cf4e - August 30 - 8:01 am

  I have owned my 2012 Elantra for about a year and a half. I have just short of 18,000 miles on it. I bought this car mainly for its looks and gas mileage. It doesnt disappoint in either category. I have averaged 32.5 mpg between city and hwy driving, but im also an enthusiastic driver. I have found the econo mode makes about a 2 mpg difference when its turned off. I have achieved 40 mpg on the highway with econo mode on.The car is a bit for fun to drive with it turned off. Only 1 minor problem. On long trips of 1000 miles or more, I will stop at a rest stop in the middle of the trip and when I get back in the cruise will stop working for 20-30 miles - then start working again.

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  Ages quickly-lost top gear at 117,500 miles - 2007 Hyundai Elantra
  By nwmn1 - August 24 - 11:26 am

  I was enamored with my 2007 Elantra when I purchased it certified used with 35,000 miles in 2009. I commute 5 hrs one way to work each week. The cars suspension ages quickly, and it seems I go through tires faster than on other vehicles? I accepted all of that until a mid-night commute in rural MN found the car bucking and losing top gear. Im now unable to go more than 50mph without a new buck every 10-15 miles. Transmission rebuild isnt worth it for the dents and plastic undercarriage breakage from living on dirt roads. I had planned on driving this car into the ground miles-wise. I expected many more years to do so . . .

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  Excellent first car - 1999 Hyundai Accent
  By exonite - August 23 - 7:27 pm

  really reliably,economical and fun to drive car.its been almost 14 years now and its still handy and without any major problems

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  Nice Ride - 2013 Hyundai Genesis
  By ytown - August 17 - 4:00 pm

  Coming out of my Infiniti G37X lease I wanted to find a nice car that was affordable. Chose the Genesis based on a beautiful exterior design and a great value for the money. I couldnt believe the deal I was able to get on this car. Currently have 7k miles on it, no problems with the car so far. Very luxurious car, fast acceleration, no problems driving at 80-90 miles an hour on the highway and whisper quiet. My only complaint with this car is the handling is not as sporty as I would like but I knew that before I bought the car. I just couldnt bring myself to pay extra for the R-Spec.

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  Motor Blew - 2012 Hyundai Elantra
  By shelly47 - August 15 - 7:51 am

  I bought my 2012 Elantra September 2012, it only had 25,000km. I purchased it in Orangeville, Ontario, The customer service was great when I was on their lot. After purchasing my Elantra, the customer service plummeted, I was no longer worth the time of day to them. 3 months after buying the car it started ticking, Iam thinking no way I bought this car thinking I would have no problems so early. After 4 months of back and forth to hyundai dealerships, they told me my motor was going. I was appaulled, this is a brand new car, they treated me like crap, I wanted to give the car back, compensation $100 gas card & 1yr free roadside assistance. DONT BUY FROM HYUNDAI

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  Bad Mileage - 2009 Hyundai Accent
  By jeniferlw - August 15 - 7:27 am

  I bought the car used a little over 2 years ago. It had high mileage but the price was right and I trusted the Hyundai brand. Boy was I wrong. The car functioned fairly well for the first 2 years, I was getting the street mileage ( 26 mpg) but was no where close to the highway mileage (35 mpg). Then in April my mileage suddenly dropped. Since then I now average 20 mpg, which is 200 miles per tank. Basically I can no longer afford to drive the car. I contacted Hyundai who told me to take it to their service dept. I have spent over $500 to try and figure out the issue. The only thing left to try is the fuel consumption test, which I am saving up for.

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  Gas Mileage - 2012 Hyundai Elantra
  By rodgarrett - August 12 - 4:30 pm

  Bought my Elantra in May 2012. I know they overestimated the mileage but I am getting about 18mpg in the city and less than 30mpg on the highway. Nowhere near what I expected. I do not drive fast or overly aggressive. I would not buy another Elantra or Hyundai for that matter. Considering reporting to the Consumer Protection Agency and the EPA.