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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  A real DAH vehicle - 2007 Hyundai Santa Fe
  By Jack Carmody - October 11 - 8:23 pm

  After owning 15 new domestic vehicles I purchased this DAH. Bad mistake. No interior lights when door is open. Several blind spots Poor fuel mileage not close to sticker Wiper blakes freeze in the wells ice builds up and wipers fall off road noise so loud I am not able to play radio. I called customer service several times and was given a file number and name to call. every time I called I was given a new contact person (5 times) Dealer said the reason for poor fuel mileage was that i was not using the right oil. I had them cahange the oil and could not see any change.

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  Great car spoiled by driver seat - 2006 Hyundai Sonata
  By zen2 - October 11 - 10:33 am

  Quiet, yet powerful ride. Great build quality, Lots of room, inside, and in the trunk. However, almost all overshadowed by the very uncomfortable driver seat.

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  Hyundai is the Harbor Freight of the car world. - 2015 Hyundai Sonata
  By Author Name - October 11 - 6:48 am

  When we narrowed our choices down to the Sonata or the Accord, the price and warranty of the Sonata seemed to make our decision easy. Initially, the vehicle was amazing, despite the abundant road noise, that we didnt seem to notice when we were purchasing it. However, things quickly went downhill. Within a few months, little things started going bad and we were constantly dropping it off at the dealership to fix the heated seats, automatic breaking, BSD system, heated steering wheel, traction control, TPM system and so on. Like harbor freight, the vehicle was "comparable" to others in its class, but at a sacrifice of quality. We figured that its okay, because the warranty would cover us, which it still does, but constantly dropping it off at the dealership became cumbersome and now we have issues that we just leave, because its not worth the time of not having the vehicle. Current issues: the backup camera takes almost ten seconds to turn on when you put it in reverse / the automatic mirror tilt when you put it in reverse, doesnt always work / a "Check BSD System" light flashes every so often / the memory seats dont always work when you push the button / it brakes randomly, even when no one is in front of us (I try not to even use the cruise control anymore) / bluetooth doesnt always sync, on multiple devices. Theres probably more that Im forgetting. The other issue is that the vehicle doesnt have a remote start function from the remote. The only way to get remote start is to pay a yearly subscription fee to Bluelink or purchase aftermarket, which we were told would void the warranty unless we paid a fortune to have it done at the dealership. We did not know this when we purchased the vehicle and thought that Bluelink was free with the vehicle. I guess that ones on us; we should have checked. If you dont mind continually taking your vehicle in for service and you want a deal, then the Sonata is for you. For me, I think next time well just pay the extra money for the accord.

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  Fun Car - 2014 Hyundai Veloster
  By gd2583 - October 10 - 5:28 pm

  The Veloster Turbo is a fun fuel efficient car to drive. With horsepower of 201 it passes like a car with a V8. The cornering and handling seem to be from a much more expensive car. Hyundai did a great job on the exterior design, While shopping I was looking at 2 door coupes like the KIA Forte, Hyundai Elantra and Honda coupes. I saw my first Veloster in the lot after test driving the Elantra Coupe and ask the salesman what it was. I noticed that a couple had turbo badges on them and said why not take it for a test drive, who knows. Needless to say this was the car for me.I can see the Veloster becoming a cult classic of the fast and furious types.

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  Impressive Hyundai - 2006 Hyundai Azera
  By Kevin - October 10 - 10:56 am

  Ive owned my Azera almost 9 months and have enjoyed every minute. I was prepared to buy an 07 Sonata but after test driving some leftover 06 Azeras on the lot, I was hooked. I ended up paying about $1200 more than I would have for a new Sonata and got a heck of a lot more car. People cant believe its a Hyundai. Its not a tight "sporty" ride. Handling is a bit drifty, but its a bigger, softer car. BUT, with 263 ponies under the hood, this car is NOT shy. Styling is sharp and contemporary. Not one "cheap" element to this vehicle. I just dont understand why Hyundai has so heavily marketed the Sonata when this gem is out there. Just test drive it!

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  A great vehicle for us - 2001 Hyundai Santa Fe
  By hoverfish - October 10 - 5:50 am

  Bought this one at 125K km, now has 205K. Weve replaced only wear parts so far. Its a little underpowered for my liking but it did pull a u-haul trailer through the Canadian Rockies just fine.

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  Hyundai XG300 - 2001 Hyundai XG300
  By Donna - October 10 - 2:13 am

  excellent value for a car w/ premium options.

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  In the end, Sonata was an easy choice! - 2003 Hyundai Sonata
  By David McCormack - October 9 - 10:00 am

  Me and the wife just bought our 2003 Sonata LX, we own a 2001 Elantra. it still looks brand new, and performs marvelously. The Sonata looks and perfroms like a 30,000.00 dolar car, yet i got mine for 17,500.00 after rebates and dealership loyalty bonuses. My honest tip to anyone who is looking for luxury, performance and quality at a reasonable price must take a serious look at the Sonata LX. Defenitely one of the best purchases i have made in my life.

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  Wooooow - 2004 Hyundai XG350
  By GopherM - October 9 - 10:00 am

  Wifes new XG350L but I love driving it too. Critics compare exterior styling to the Jaguar, Lincoln LS, and Infinity. So what! We dont care what the Hyundai resembles. Very appealing appearance and is extremely comfortable and well appointed on the inside. Couldt touch Toyota, Honda, or Lincoln LS for this cars cost. Not a Sport Sedan but ride is very comfortable and the handling is well behaved. 4 wheel ABS disk brakes, traction control, front and side air bags and a specially reinforced crash bar hidden in the doors and the vehicle make safety a great selling point. Huge list of standard features.

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  One Hot SUV - 2003 Hyundai Santa Fe
  By HookedonSanteFe - October 9 - 10:00 am

  This is one HOT SUV! I test drove the Jeep Liberty first and then the Sante Fe. As soon as we took off for the test drive, my wife and I looked at each other and said this in the one! The 3.5L is powerful and much faster than the 2.7L. The back seat is very roomy (much more than the Liberty). Headroom is not too bad either. Im 64" and have plenty of room. Handling is excellent! The Sante Fe is definitely a head turner.