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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  Head Turner - 2006 Hyundai Azera
  By TAB - October 20 - 7:56 am

  I cant drive it anywhere without getting second looks and stunned disbelief when I say its a Hyundai Azera. Its frequently mistaken for a 300 series Mercedes. When I tell questioners the features included in the Limited Series Ultra Package and "ballpark them a price" theres even more disbelief. We took a drive along Skyline Drive in VA and the handling around mountain curves was superb.

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  Time will tell - Getting disappointed day by day - 2011 Hyundai Sonata
  By ding9888 - October 20 - 4:53 am

  When we bought this car in April 2010, we were so excited and thought it was great value - good looking, great freeway mileage etc. There were some minor problems (the handle bars fell off within 1/2 year) but we were okay as long as the engine runs well. However in less than 2 years, we kind of regret it. Since January we have visited the service department 4 times in less than 2 months: 1. Engine lights on 2. Starter broke and was replaced 3. Oil leak 4. More oil leak after less than 2 weeks This car only has 29K miles. Although these were all covered by warranty, its not fun to visit the service dept. every other week. I dont need free car wash anymore.

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  Better than youd think - 2007 Hyundai Accent
  By Lon - October 20 - 12:39 am

  I bought my car about 2 weeks ago and have put over a 100 miles on it already. It is surprisingly quick but tops out at 75 mph w/o running it too hard. I got the sun & sound package and was glad I did, the stereo is decent for stock and the 6 disc changer is a nice addition and all in the dash. Youll want to go for the sports package because the larger wheels and the shifting is much better than the base model I test drove and the shifting isnt as loose either. Overall Im glad I made the purchase for the money its hard to beat and my girlfriend actually says its nicer than her Honda Civic.

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  Tucson 2013 - 2013 Hyundai TUCSON
  By priscilinha - October 19 - 11:12 pm

  Tucson is a really good car to drive, very confortable and secure. Has a good gas control and powerfull motor.

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  my 2002 sonata experience - 2002 Hyundai Sonata
  By rashaun - October 18 - 11:34 pm

  I have owned the car for 5 years. First let me tell you for the first 60,000 miles zero problems as long as a kept up the maint. After tho power steering pressure hose burst 560.00, ignition crank sensor failed 600.00. During this time many interior and exterior pieces started coming loose and generally looking bad. struts now bad too. 75,000 miles the timing belt fails and destroys the engine to the point where it needs a rebuild. Id ditch the car after 60k, its resale value is so low its not worth the repairs. now have a year old toyota and a six thousand dollar paper weight.

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  Great car for the price - 2007 Hyundai Azera
  By DFWfrank - October 18 - 7:02 pm

  Researched for 3 months with test driving both Azera and Avalon. 18 years of Toyota ownership, the last 6 in Avalons, decided on the Azera. Felt that fit-and-finish,quietness, and power as good if not better than Avalon. Transmission and shifting was better than Avalon. We like the exterior and interior looks better than Avalon. Slight concern on reliability but with warranty not a big deal. Had to take Avalons in for reliability issues. Drive is not better or worse than Avalon just different, still very nice. We find the car fun to drive. You get a lot of features as standard features. Especially like that trunk size is 16.6 vs. Avalons 14.0. cubic ft. Would recommend.

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  I Love My Car - 2002 Hyundai Sonata
  By Stevie - October 18 - 5:30 pm

  I love my car. I have had things go wrong with it: replacing four window regulators, one speed input sensor, one speed output sensor, one oxygen sensor, but other than that, this car has been great in the near six years I have owned it. I love it more than the Plymouth I had before (for 14 years). It has such a comfortable interior that I can drive it for long periods of time and not get tired or sore. When I first got it in 2001, it was a big head turner and people would come up to me and go, "Thats a Hyundai?!" They thought it was a Jaquar, BMW or a Mercedes. Mine is black with black/gray interior and it looks sophisticated. Still looks like new because I take good care of it.

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  Regret - 2005 Hyundai TUCSON
  By Nan - October 17 - 11:00 pm

  I enjoyed the look of this vehicle and warranty, very smooth ride. I only had the Tuscon for three weeks when it would die while driving it. Thank goodness for the warranty. I dont think I would purchase again. The Tuscon does not hold its value and not worth what I paid for it.

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  Best Buy in its class - 2011 Hyundai Sonata
  By DF - October 17 - 12:06 pm

  By far the best car and best buy in its class. Others do not come close in style, comfort and performance. As soon as I test drove this car, I knew it was the car for me. The interior feels sporty and luxurious and the exterior lines are impressive. I was pleasantly surprised with the feel of the engine - quick and smooth. It really feels like the car is floating along the road. I still cant believe the base model comes with so many features. My only complaint is the sight lines from the rear view mirror. Its difficult to see behind you.

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  Santa Fe - 2011 Hyundai Santa Fe
  By bmn - October 16 - 4:41 pm

  Purchased my car May10. Currently has 10,000 miles on it. There is much to like about the Santa Fe. It handles well in the snow and even with record snow fall I have not had any problems getting around. Other things I like - great acceleration,easy to manuveur in tight spots like parking ramps. Things that are disappointig - interior is nicely styled but scratches easily, carpeting is cheap, bigget disappointment is gas mileage. Should be getting an average of 22 mpg (according to Hyundai web site) but I am getting 14-15 mpg average. Brought to dealer they checked it out and said it is running as it should so this is what my mileage will be.