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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  2007 Azera - Best All Around Value - 2007 Hyundai Azera
  By Yaz Era - June 22 - 8:39 pm

  The car is quiet, refined and quick. Interior space (front and rear)is equivalent to a large car but handling and extrerior dimensions are more like a midsized car. Braking is impressive and the Michelin tires on the Limited provide strong grip when cornering. Much more fun to drive than Buick Lucerne and Toyota Avalon, but always comfortable. Overall fuel economy @26 mpg. Also looked at Acura, Jaguar, BMW and Buick.

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  Excellent value - 2010 Hyundai Elantra Touring
  By John - June 22 - 11:46 am

  This was my first new car purchase - Ive had it for about two months now and am loving it. Averaging 35 mpg mixed driving. Im 63" and have plenty of head and leg room. Love the blue color. Overall, Id say its a great value at about $19.8k OTD.

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  2004 Santa Fe - 2004 Hyundai Santa Fe
  By tarie1028 - June 22 - 10:00 am

  Very roomy. Comfortable. Family Friendly. Great gas mileage. Insurance is very reasonable on this car.

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  Proud &Happy Hundai Owner - 2007 Hyundai Santa Fe
  By Houston - June 22 - 7:46 am

  Fun to drive, plenty of power while delivering 23-26 mpg on highway. Wet road traction is outstanding with the AWD. Rear seating has adequate foot room even with front seats all the way back.

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  Best Buy Out There - 2007 Hyundai Santa Fe
  By William Manners - June 22 - 5:06 am

  We have not owned long but what a pleasure to drive. It is fun to drive, handles great in and out of curves. The 2.6 has all we need and the shiftronic is great as well.

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  Never will I buy American again! - 2007 Hyundai Entourage
  By Luv My Hyundai - June 21 - 11:55 am

  Weve had our Entourage for 30 days now & absolutely love it! We took it on a 1,000 mile trip a week after we purchased it & we had a wonderful trip! There were 4 adults & 2 children & we had loads of room & the ride was as smooth as it could be. This was our first minivan & we werent sure if we would like it or not. Weve always had Fords in the past but had several bad experiences with our Explorers. I would definitely recommend this van to anyone that may be on the fence especially if you cant decide between the Hyundai, Toyota, & Honda. This van is a much better buy than the other two & cheaper too! The Toyota van would have been about $10,000 more w/the same options!

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  Not sure I would purchase again - 2007 Hyundai Elantra
  By Krista - June 21 - 12:27 am

  I am a long-time Hyundai owner. I like the body style, the comfort of the seats and the design of the interior. Additionally, the ultimate performance of the vehicle is better than prior models and the engine has more power. However, the manual transmission is difficult, to say the least, and I have driven a manual since I started driving. The friction point is hard to hit and the shifting is not smooth. Additionally the reverse is located in the same spot as 1st and does not easily come out of reverse to be put into first gear. Also, if you try to replace the stock stereo its almost impossible to find a wiring harness I ultimately had to have one shipped from New York to California.

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  Better than a Lexus ES350 - 2007 Hyundai Azera
  By Maximus - June 20 - 8:53 pm

  Yes, this is not a Lexus. But it is better than a Lexus ES350 in terms of overall quality and value. The price is about $12,000 cheaper than a comparably equipped ES350 but quality is equivalent or actually better in some areas. For example, the ride is not floaty as ES350 since the Azera provides a firmer (better road handling) yet very comfortable ride. Inside the cabin is quieter than the ES350 (closer to the LS430) since I could hear my wrist watch ticking at 65 mph on a hwy. Azera has a bigger interior space than the BMW 760i. It is a true luxury at a very humble price.

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  Better than Lexus, Infiniti, Acura, et. - 2007 Hyundai Azera
  By Belton Bob - June 20 - 11:57 am

  Looks, rides and feels like a luxury car. Others look like made over versions or their regular brands and they are small inside. Getting about 3 MPG less than I did with a Camry V6-and that is great for this size car. It is a better designed car than Lexus or Infiniti. Compares very well to Lexus LS and Infiniti M. Dealers want to sell the cars, whereas above want to get as much money as possible out of you. Paid far less than TMV or even Consumer Reports bottom line-and still got a much better car. Friend says it rides better and has more front seat room than his Mercury Marquis. It does seem to create a lot of brake dust, but only has 1700 miles on it. Best not considering price.

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  Beware of mileage - 2007 Hyundai Entourage
  By Docfairway - June 19 - 8:15 pm

  Purchased Entourage GLS after having had two Voyagers. The Hyundai is superior. Standard ESC, all the airbags, ABS, warranty are great. Have a 1999 Sonata that lead me to look at the Entourage. The major problem is the HORRIBLE mileage. Currently have 5000 miles after 7 months and cannot get over 12mpg in city/suburban driving. City/hwy is only 15mpg. This is the worst mileage I have ever gotten with any car that I have owned.