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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  Great Value, Excellent Car - 2009 Hyundai Sonata
  By Jordo - July 22 - 1:16 am

  The only complaint I have is the fuel door doesnt open very well. Also during the break in period the transmission shifted rough. Now transmission is starting to shift smoother.

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  A great fun, reliable car! - 2002 Hyundai Elantra
  By pirategirl - July 21 - 8:59 pm

  Ive had my Elantra GT for 5 years and I absolutely love it. Its given me no problems, its fun to drive and with the hatchback and fold down seats it has a ton of cargo space. I opted for the manual 5 speed, I really didnt think the automatic had enough pep in it. Were now in the market for an SUV as well and were definately looking at Hyundai - cant beat the value.

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  Good little car - 2001 Hyundai Elantra
  By BobL - July 21 - 10:08 am

  Good little car for the money. Warranty is not what its cracked up to be. Gas mileage could be better for the size of the car. Clutch is slushy, almost NO feedback. Died after 30,000 miles and found out it ISNT covered under the powertrain warranty. Dealer wanted $1300 to replace, went locally and had it done for $800. Never had a clutch last less than 80,000 miles before.

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  Great Vehicle - 2006 Hyundai Azera
  By Brown - July 21 - 9:14 am

  Purchased used 2006 Azera Ltd. with 15,200 miles. Tremendous car. I miss the smoother ride of the XG350 I previously had, which was sacrificed in the Azera for better/sportier handling, however I knew that when I purchased it. Overall, I am very satisfied with the combination of handling, quiet ride (its still very smooth) and performance/fuel efficiency from the 3.8 liter engine. The interior features are all top notch with tons of space for comfort. Six air bags and electronic stability control add some peace-of-mind safety features.

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  A love/hate relationship... with my car! - 2003 Hyundai Tiburon
  By srhall89 - July 20 - 6:30 pm

  A very fun car to drive... When it isnt in the shop! Purchased from the dealership with 56k miles on it, one owner, and had problems since I got it! Passengers side strut was busted when I bought it, around $650 to get it fixed. Ran good for a while.. I bumped into a curb and broke the strut again, also set the drivers side airbag off when I hit the curb... Was only going around 15 MPH. Engine had began to make a strange clicking noise when a few weeks later my transmission defaulted to third gear. Transmission fluid and antifreeze began leaking into each other, paint started flaking off spoiler and passengers side mirror, stereo display went out, moonroof rattles very bad when opened.

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  Best Car Ive Ever Owned - 2008 Hyundai Santa Fe
  By Brandy - July 20 - 5:14 am

  I got this car in August of 2015. I traded in my old 2005 Chevy Aveo for something large enough for my growing family and this car was the first one I saw. So far, weve had no problems. The only thing I noticed was the little skip in the car if you start breaking for a red light. Im not entirely sure if its just because of an internal problem or if the breaks need a readjustment but I am in love with this car!!

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  MY evaluation is 7.8 just like 05-04 Ela - 2006 Hyundai Elantra
  By chazbro1 - July 19 - 7:35 pm

  06 hyundai Elantra has been a good car I am averaging better than 26 miles per gallon/32 Hiway 17 city. No problems I have my reservations because it has taken Hyundai 20 years to make excellent cars Koreans along with the Japanese quality is approximately 11 problems per car. Hyundai Kia were tied for twelvth J.D. Power survey for initial quality. The top third of 36 manufacturers with and industry average 125 problems per car(industry ave)

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  A Refreshing Surprise - 2004 Hyundai XG350
  By Tony L. - July 19 - 1:10 pm

  Love the style, features and warranty for the price. I had previously owned a Cadillac Deville Concourse and let me tell you, Im not disappointed. Easy to handle around NYC traffic and lots of power for our treks upstate. Highway gas mileage is about 27 mpg, but city driving is about 16 (what I was getting in the Caddy). I hope Hyundai is hard at work regarding their engine R&D if they want to compete with the Japanese in the MPG wars. Hyundai needs to also work on its dealer service network. It took 3 trips to the dealership to repair an inoperative drivers side maplight, all 3 times having the wrong part. I finally had it repaired in 1 visit to a Brooklyn dealer. Overall, Im very happy.

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  In the beginning....... - 2006 Hyundai Sonata
  By dr lou - July 19 - 12:46 am

  We had it delivered to our house today. A solid hunk of steel and technology with all available options included in the price. We paid 24385 out the door inclusive of 6 per cent Michigan sales tax. Dual exhaust, multi cd, power sunroof, seats. 235 horsepower all aluminum V6 5 speed transmission, heated seats. You name it. It has it. A 4 cylinder Honda sedan stickered at over 24 thousand without the options the Hyundai has. What a buy. What a car. Finally the 10 year 100 thousand mile warranty! What more could you ask for?

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  New Owner - 2005 Hyundai Santa Fe
  By pbg - July 19 - 12:20 am

  So far, lived up to all expectations. Solid ride, good power, and handles well.