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:

• 

  Excellent SUV - 2004 Hyundai Santa Fe
  By scott - January 15 - 12:40 pm

  Ive owned three Santa Fes... 01, 03, and 04. This is by far the best and most fun to drive. I just passed 31k miles and have had zero problems.

• 

  Never thought Id own a Hyundai - 2007 Hyundai Entourage
  By Barttstar - January 14 - 5:52 pm

  Just purchased yesterday. I was set on purchasing the Odyssey. Wife and I couldnt believe the features along with the price of the Entourage. Safety rating top notch. Figured we would at least test drive. I was amazed at the power. Wife likes the extras that came standard. With the amazing warranty we figured to take a shot. Love the look, feel, features, safety, and price. I am looking forward to posting here once we get about 2k miles on it.

• 

  Luxury sedan for less ! - 2006 Hyundai Azera
  By paris - January 13 - 11:51 pm

  Azera is fun to drive very powerfull Engine - 3.8L v6, ...spacious ....very nicely and neatly designed Interior ....

• 

  The best there is in small cars. - 2002 Hyundai Elantra
  By elantra sedan - January 13 - 9:07 am

  Since I purchased this vehicle, all Ive had to do was to service this vehicle for normal maintenance. I just recently replaced the radiator at 142,000 miles. Other than that, its just been tires, brakes, tuneups, etc. The car has nice pickup for its size engine and on of the coldest a/c units Ive ever experienced. Last June, someone in front of me kicked up some 4x8 pieces of wood on the highway. The car took it like a champ, and although had extensive front end damage, I was easily able to pull over on the shoulder of the road, even though the car obviously had to drive over the debris. The hood took most of the impact, was repaired, and Im back on the road at over 145,000 miles.

• 

  Korean Landcruiser - 2002 Hyundai Santa Fe
  By Great Value - January 12 - 10:00 am

  We were down to the wire between the RAVA and the Santa Fe. I have been a longterm Toyota customer, but the featurers, warranty and the price of the Santa Fe far out weighted my customer loyalty to Toyota. This car has the same ( except outside temp. display and V8 engine ) featurers as my 99 Landcruiser at less than half the price. Very solid ride and no rattles. Hope it holds up through the warranty like my Toyotas have.

• 

  2006 LX - 2006 Hyundai Sonata
  By Pedro - January 12 - 6:30 am

  Was looking to trade in a a 2000 Accord with manual transmission for a 2006 model. Have always driven a manual but wife (Elantra driver) suggested 2006 Sonata. Well done wife. We got the LX with the extras and Ive been very impressed so far. No major flaws. Very comfortable (Im 62" and 230lb) and plenty of space for 4 adults (the inlaws). We drove the 2006 Accord V6 and the Camry V6 and simply thought the Sonata was better. Enough said.

• 

  Best Value !!!! - 2002 Hyundai XG350
  By danzon - January 12 - 2:00 am

  We were looking at a Sonata or a Santa Fe and ended up with the XG350L instead. Greatest attraction was the shape and the color (white pearl) of the car. After test driving the car, we definitely were sold on it, specially when the Hyundai dealership (Hatfield) gave us a deal we cant refuse. With all the safety (abs, traction control, front and side airbags) included as standard on this vehicle, couple with the high torque V6 engine, plus the sunroof, power seats with memory, am/fm stereo cassette with CD, leather w/heated seats and side mirrors, this car would be thousands more compared to other mid-size vehicle. We feel that the car was the best car for value !!!

• 

  Love our Tibby!!! - 2003 Hyundai Tiburon
  By Magpie - January 12 - 2:00 am

  We saw the new Tiburon and just fell in love. It handles great. I love the interior, the dials, knobs, etc.. Its very peppy and just feels solid. Im really impressed by how far Hyundais come. The sound system is phenomenal for coming standard. There are so many standard features, its a great deal!

• 

  Great car - 2003 Hyundai Tiburon
  By sungjae - January 12 - 2:00 am

  its my first car i dont know about other cars but i love it~!! so far great~

• 

  Great entry level car. - 2002 Hyundai Accent
  By Jason McGovern - January 12 - 2:00 am

  If you talk the dealer down, you can buy a new one of these for around 11,500 with Auto Trans. WIth being a little car, this thing can get moving when it needs to. The interior is fairly basic, and compact. I am 61" and it was ok sizewise. All Hyundais come with a 5 year/100,000 mile powertrain warranty. If something goes wrong, you take it in. But car reliability also depends on the driver. This is no sports car, so dont drive it like one and it will last.