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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  sweetest car ever for the dollar - 2006 Hyundai Sonata
  By buckenbronco2003 - April 18 - 1:40 pm

  I compared a lot of vehicles in the sonatas class and nothing compared to the quality and affordibility of the sonata. I got a sweet car for under 19,000.

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  Affraid to get a different car - 2002 Hyundai Sonata
  By Robert - April 18 - 10:24 am

  The 2002 Sonata was the first new car I ever bought. Ive been driving it now for close to 7 years and put 137,000 miles on it. At 100,000 my brakes begin to wear out. This is the only time Ive had to take it in for major work, but new brakes at 100,000 miles is normal. My Sonata drives today at 137,000 as well as it did when I drove it off the lot with 12 miles on it. I believe that in order to get any car as good as the Sonata, I will have to either get another Sonata or a BMW, Mercedes, or Audi to get the same quality that Ive gotten from the 2002 Sonata. It has been nothing less than superior in all areas of performance and reliability. I Will have a very hard time replacing it.

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  Serene Machine - 2009 Hyundai Sonata
  By tucsoncharley - April 17 - 11:23 pm

  Reluctantly traded my 2003 Corolla for missing safety features needed for crosstown commute to a new job. Imagine getting four wheel antilock disc brakes,traction control,stability control,six air bags,active head restraints,Michelin tires,"big car" feel and ride for under $12,000 with trade. City mpg steady at 27 and getting 38 to 40 on Arizona interstates with light foot(under 75 mph). What was the last car you owned when you smiled each time you got behind the wheel? I could not be happier with my Sonatas value, quality, and comfort.

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  good litte cheapie - 1997 Hyundai Elantra
  By den - April 17 - 9:55 pm

  Bought from an older gentleman 6 yrs ago some just general maint. Both my power Windows had to be fixed the car now has 61k and still works good dont know how long I will keep it the trade value is poor to say the least so as long as I can I will keep it.

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  Awesome Ride - 2007 Hyundai Azera
  By Andy - April 17 - 7:51 pm

  Best car for the money. First foreign car I have owned. I purchased a limited in December of 2007. I got the golden beige. My wife liked it so much we bought her one. She got the XM steel Gray. I have almost 7000 miles on mine. Best car I have ever had! Very quiet. Plenty of power. Infinity sound system rocks. I had all the tires aligned and ha nitrogen put in them. No issues with the michelins. Drives like a dream. My wifes car is a program car with 22k miles. She loves it. The entire buying experience was unbelievable. Great experience with dealer. The entire sale was negotiated over the phone. I truly believe that the azera is the most car for the money on the road today!

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  save gas in style - 2004 Hyundai Elantra
  By babu - April 17 - 10:00 am

  Just a fun car to drive, my other car is 3/4 ton pick-up so you can see y i like this car half the gas twice the fun. Luv it

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  1st hyundai..HAPPY with the whole machin - 2004 Hyundai Elantra
  By HARRY GRAPE !! - April 17 - 10:00 am

  garage kept? looked/smelled/drove like a new car. lots of pep when nedded !! stock tires(michlens) still run grt. 1st wk.drove 1500 mi..FLAWLESS IN ALL RESPECTS.

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  very good car for the price - 2003 Hyundai Sonata
  By Eric - April 17 - 9:45 am

  Just returned the car at the dealer (was on a lease). The Sonata had been a very reliable car. Put on 70K without any problems except for normal maintenance. You buy this car for family needs (roomy for 4 & a good size trunk), not for performance (small V6).

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  Watch out if you had kids!!! - 2007 Hyundai Entourage
  By Jenn - April 16 - 9:18 pm

  My boyfriend bought the van over a year ago for him and his kids. He was sold on the "safety feature" that said that any obstruction would automatically open the side door. Since then we have constantly had problems with the power doors-- if you are on any type of incline, the power doors have a great chance of not closing as well as sliding forward on their own. His 9 year old son has actually had his hand crushed in the doors (that DID NOT automatically open) when he was reaching to grab his seat belt to buckle in as the door closed. Both of his children are now terrified of the closing doors and warn their friends to not touch the doors. I am almost 30 and even I get nervous about it.

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  Very happy - 2005 Hyundai Elantra
  By rachel - April 16 - 1:20 pm

  Weve had this car for a few weeks, and I am surprised how much Ive grown to love it- how well it handles, the beauty of the interior and exterior (European stying), and it appears to be very well-made- nice perfect lines throughout the body and all seams. Between the price for its class, the features, the warranty- its the best deal. Also it has lots of pep! It loses just a little with the a/c on, but with the 2.0 it definitely beats the Civics and the Corollas 1.6. Its so much fun to drive! I would never pay so much more for a comparable Honda or Toyota just for resale value- Id rather pay less now- its all relative in the end.