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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  Perfect Fit! - 2002 Hyundai Elantra
  By mogultek - June 14 - 2:00 am

  Ive had my Elantra GT for 6 months now, & I still love it. It is fun to drive & very comfortable. Although it is a very inexpensive car, it still has all of the options & style of one twice as expensive. When you think of buying a new car for less than $20,000, you think of having to sacrifice options like leather seats, lumbar support, or a power sunroof. I was very pleasantly surprised to find all of these options & many more inside the Elantra GT, & the best part was, not only was it under $20k, it was under $15k! Once I took it for a test drive, I knew that I was sold. It fits perfectly into my budget, as well as my lifestyle!

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  Bare boned fun! - 2010 Hyundai TUCSON
  By vmk - June 13 - 7:50 pm

  You certainly do not need all the extras to feel good in the Tucson. It rides well, feels safe, (I havent had to test the safety features!) looks and has been mistaken for a more expensive vehicle. There is plenty of leg room, front and back. I have driven a small car for years and was completely comfortable with the transition. This is the best upgrade I have made in years and recommend the Tucson in more ways than one. Happy Driving!!

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  Great Except For - 2010 Hyundai Santa Fe
  By Moonman - June 13 - 3:30 pm

  Great vehicle-except A) no protective covering on rear bumper as in 2009 models, B) and takes a lot of effort in order to lock steering wheel (180 degree turn of steering wheel). Lastly, no daytime running lights, reason unknown.. All controls easy to see, reach and use. I do mostly city driving and have gotten about 20 mpg thus far.

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  puddle jumper - 2005 Hyundai Accent
  By bob - June 13 - 1:14 pm

  traded my explorer for it .wise trade has plenty of go with 5 speed, added mud guards and hood bra and window vents. will tint out hatchback this week

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  Alot of fun for the buck!!! - 2003 Hyundai Tiburon
  By yakkman - June 13 - 4:36 am

  I think the tiburon is a great buy for the money.It handles GREAT,has good power,and looks really good.I have owned my Tiburon for a little over a year and would buy another one in a heartbeat.I havent had any problems w/ it since I bought it.Horsepower is good (not great)but compared to other cars in its class,check out their price!With a few extras,this car would keep up and you still would have spent less and have a reliable,sporty vehicle.

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  Compare to more expensive cars - 2016 Hyundai TUCSON
  By Rocket Ron - June 12 - 10:30 pm

  Ive had this care for about 1500 miles and generally am very happy with it. Im excited to get in it in the morning and drive it. I have the top of the line model so I think you have to compare this car to the Lexus NX and Audi Q3. Both are 10K more than the Tucson. This car has all the luxury features that the others have. I now understand the future of driver less cars with all the sensor the Tucson has. It really does make you a safer driver. Although I love driving the car, I do have one concern. The turbo lag from a stand still is very noticeable. Sometime the car just does not respond for a few seconds. Im learning to compensate so I think it will get better, but that is one benefit of a larger engine. All in all I would definitely recommend this car.

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  Absolutely Fantastic Car! - 2015 Hyundai Sonata
  By Grayson Digger - June 12 - 9:54 pm

  Ive owned my 2015 Sonata for almost 6 months. I actually purchased a 2014 Sonata and when I took it in for the first scheduled maintenance I decided to take a look at the 2015. Long story short I drove out with one! Hyundai made numerous changes from the previous years and every one of them is an improvement. They turned a nice looking car into an absolute beauty! The 2015 has more interior room and drives like a dream. The interior was completely redesigned and simply looks awesome. I already have 17,000 miles on it and have not had any problems whatsoever. I am 6 1" and even after a 400+ mile day have absolutely no lower back pain at all.

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  Good all around car - 1997 Hyundai Elantra
  By Nathan Toke - June 12 - 5:07 pm

  I bought this as my first car in graduate school and it has served me well for three years and 20k miles. It has been reliable and easy to drive. The interior is really crappy as was the case with 1990s hyundais... many plastic parts are wearing down on the interior. The window motors start to die at 80k. Some of this could be enhanced because of sitting so long in the desert (phoenix) sun. The outside of the car is nice (although the paint has worn on the grill and the hub caps look pretty poor these days. The visibility in this car is supreme! which makes this car fun and easy to drive. It is better to drive on the highway at speeds between 60-75(33mpg) than the city (21mpg).

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  Great Ride - 2007 Hyundai Azera
  By snapper - June 12 - 3:21 pm

  This is one great car. Who would have thought that Hyundai would produce such a fine luxourious automobile. My wife who dislikes cars and has never complimented a vehicle in her life even said to me "I love this car it is comfortable,and snazzy". I was impressed with all the safety features 8 air bags, ESC,ABS,EBFD, and to top it off I got mine for under $24k

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  Affordable, Fun, & Smooth - 2008 Hyundai Tiburon
  By CW - June 12 - 10:43 am

  The Tiburon GT, at minimum, is adequate in every area. Its ride is smooth and nimble. The experts claim that the handling is "numb", but I have found it to be the best handling car that I have ever driven.(That includes Acura TL, Acura CL, Honda Civic, Ford Taurus SHO, and Ford Mustang) The brakes are extremely responsive and took some getting use to. The engine is a little weak, considering it is a V6 with 172 HP, but it will give enough pep for realistic driving. I have been extremely pleased with the gas mileage. Critics, and Hyundai themselves have posted 17/23 MPG, while I have been consistently getting 25-27 MPG when driving conservative. Overall, I am satisfied with my purchase.