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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  Love this car - 2009 Hyundai Sonata
  By Robert Gravel - September 11 - 10:54 pm

  Ive owned my Sonata V6 Sport since new from March 2009 til now (Feb 2015) and theres 71,000 km on it.Its been flawless the whole time except 2 years ago I had to get the TPS replaced under warranty (a known issue that I knew about before buying this car).Ive stuck to the maintenance schedule and again its been perfect.I replaced the battery last year but having a battery last THAT long is pretty good especially when I do a lot of city/short distance driving.

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  Love the Azera - 2006 Hyundai Azera
  By Paul - September 11 - 4:34 pm

  Due to illness I drive very little. But my experience with the Hyundai Azera has been just fabulous. Ive owned Cadillacs, Mercedes, Volvo etc., but none as given me more pleasure than this car.

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  07 azera se - 2007 Hyundai Azera
  By bob - September 11 - 11:50 am

  Great performance--22 around town and about 28 on hwy--dont trust the computer mpg calculations. Lots of compliments on styling etc.-- dealerships seem to want to please but the jury is still out on this one. I did buy a used tucson based on this azera performance.

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  I MISS HER!! would suggest to anyone.. - 2001 Hyundai Elantra
  By KasieD - September 11 - 11:29 am

  Ok, i had my car for 2months, until a drunk driver smashed her. I found a steal on 80,000 miles for 5,000. This car had such great pick up. It was amazing on gas. i am a college student so gas mileage is everything. i loved this car. it was cute for a girl car and peppy when it needed to be or when i pushed it. I loved this car, was the best i have had. i went from a 89 grandprix se. to a 96 dodge neon, to the best car i had had so far 01 elantra gls. I am tempted to go for another to last me. I can 100% bet it will last me thru college. i would suggest this car to anyone. especially a parent trying to find their new driver an amazing first car!

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  The Best Car For The Value - 2002 Hyundai Santa Fe
  By danco - September 11 - 10:00 am

  Outstanding reliability. A/C unit had to replaced along with the AM/FM radio. Other than that, mechanicaly it is outstanding and a pleasure to drive. Excellent bumper to bumper warranty. Low maintenance other than 60k timing belt replacement costs. Id buy another when Im ready.

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  I love my Santa Fe - 2004 Hyundai Santa Fe
  By longing4nc - September 11 - 10:00 am

  I had seen the Santa Fe and was very impressed with the body style and the over all appeareance of the vehicle. I test drove several other vehicles before coming to hyundai. Once I took a test drive I was sold. This vehicle handles very well on the road especially on long trips. It is roomy and very comfortable. I find that I dont get as tired driving with the Santa fe as I did with my old vehicle. I would recommend this vehicle to anyone that is looking for a great vehicle.

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  Good choice - 2004 Hyundai Santa Fe
  By cshaw - September 11 - 10:00 am

  After months of exhaustive car research, we chose the Santa Fe. It has the safety features I want and the warranty cant be beat. The engine has plenty of torque and is quite peppy with the manual transmission. We got a great price and they knocked $500 off the price of the extended warranty. Ride is pretty smooth. Cabin is well laid out.

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  Honda Civic Replacement - 2007 Hyundai Elantra
  By EX-Civic Owner - September 11 - 6:43 am

  After owning many new Hondas including the Civic, I found a replacement for the Civic in my Elantra SE. With a KN Air Filter and 100% synthetic motor oil, my mileage is consistently 35-36 MPG combined city/highway. This rivals the Civics economy. The Elantra also has many more creature features than Civic for about $4,000 less.The ride is solid and very stable. The comfort is a little better than a Civic and the exterior is every bit a good looking as the Civic. If the reliability ratings continue into the future as they have in the past on Hyundai, then Honda better watch out as this car will eat its lunch. I was wondering when some car maker would catch up to the Civic and the Elantra has

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  Great Car - 2006 Hyundai Sonata
  By Acer - September 10 - 8:56 am

  I traded my 01 Blazer for this car mainly for fuel economy. My only complaint is that Hyundai does not offer a rear spoiler and the car does not come with automatic locks. The 17" wheels offer a much stiffer ride than what Im used to, but its not bad. The interior seems spacious, but I think Ill have to get a smaller childs car seat for comfort of rear seat passengers.

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  Great car, Fun to drive! - 2011 Hyundai Sonata
  By Mish32 - September 9 - 5:03 pm

  I was coming to an end on my lease with my 2007 Camry and was in the market for a new car. I had looked at Camrys again, but wanted something different. Thats when I came across the 2011 Sonata. I loved the car the minute I saw it. I loved it even more after I drove it! I ended up getting a GLS with the popular package which added a few nice extras (alloy wheels, ipod hookup, floor mats, etc). What I loved about this car was that it had a sporty look, without the sports car price. It drives smoothly, has great pickup on the highway and is a really quiet ride. Everywhere I go, this car turns heads. Definitely a car you need to look at if you are in the market for a new car!