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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  2016 Sonata Limited 2.4 L all options - 2016 Hyundai Sonata
  By Mike - May 15 - 3:26 am

  Im in a unique position because I bought the 2016 Sonata for myself and my wife got a 2016 Camry XLE a week earlier. Im very familiar with both. Im glad I got the Sonata, its much better (more comfortable) than the Camry and my wife has been driving those since 1994 so I know that car well. There are many things that I dont use but I knew that going in. The moon roof is only usable at night or late in the afternoon due to the sun. The lane departure warnings (where the car watches the lines in the road and beeps if I cross them) is annoying most of the time so I have that turned off. I would definitely turn it on if on a long highway trip where I might be tempted to get tired and drift. The blind side monitor is great (the outside mirror lights up if someone is in either blind spot). Dynamic cruise control is of little use to me because if the traffic is that heavy, I dont want to be on cruise control anyway. So why did I pay for so may things that I have little use for? To get the what matters most - automatic emergency breaking. Thats what is supposed to stop the car if someone stops in front of me and I dont see them or if a kid runs in front of the car and I dont see him. My guess is that within 10 years AEB will be as mandatory as seat belts on all new cars. I like a big car that moves over the road with no noise and I got that with the Sonata. Its not rated as a large car but it feels that way to me. Its hard to believe that this has a 2.4 liter engine. The car moves as effortlessly on the highway as 5 liter V8 cars that Ive owned. I drove this for a month in Phoenix over the very nice freeways that they have during low volume traffic (weekends, etc). Those people seem to have one speed that they all drive at (80 mph) and the Sonata did that with no wind or road noise and the tach was hovering at about 2100 rpm. Mixed mileage is about 30 or 31 but if I keep it at 65mph on the highway, Ill get over 40 mpg. The GPS is a little better than the one in the Camry but giving it directions by voice is a hit or miss proposition and to type a destination, you have to be stopped. Mine has memory seats which is great if on a long trip and my wife does some of the driving. I have it set so that the seat does NOT move back when I turn the car off. All in all, this is probably the best car I ever owned and Im very particular.

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  Very Disappointed by 2011 Hyundai Sonata - 2011 Hyundai Sonata
  By 2011sonataownr - May 15 - 2:59 am

  Bought this Hyundai Sonata (2011 GLS) new. Thought I would try a Hyundai since seeing all the TV ads about their quality. The Ride is hard. Radio FM tuner sound quality is marginal at best. Radio was replaced due to display fading issue(research on web for more details). Having issues with the engine pinging while accelerating. Only 19K miles on engine, and trying to get it fixed at dealer is not going well.

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  Zippy little ride - 2007 Hyundai Accent
  By Mrs.Alvarado - May 14 - 10:04 pm

  This is a fun little car to drive that is most comfortable for smaller people. My husband, who is 61" and 240 lbs. does NOT enjoy this car, and would be hard to fit in the back seat. Also, you can not get a large stroller in the trunk, nor can you get a rear-facing car seat in the back without pushing the seat all the way to the front. With that being said, its got fantastic MPG, great looks, my children and I love to be in it and it was a great price!

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  Awesome Car - 2007 Hyundai Tiburon
  By German - May 13 - 9:23 pm

  The car looks much better in person than in the pictures. Everyone loves the car and its design. The standard features are awesome and it is a lot of fun to drive.

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  Hyundai Accent Review - 2006 Hyundai Accent
  By Hal - May 12 - 6:02 pm

  Excellent car to own. Sometimes need to double clutch to get in reverse gear. But this is only a slight inconvenients - not a problem to be concerned about. Excellent car to tow behind a Motorhome, just put in neutral, turn key to "ACC", and off you go (I pull the fuse for the dash on long tows).

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  Monster Minivan - 2007 Hyundai Entourage
  By US Made Never Again - May 12 - 5:30 pm

  I was trading in my 2000 Chevy Venture and didnt want another minivan. After driving several other types of vehicles, I saw the Entourage and asked to drive it. After leaving the parking lot, I was like "Wow" this is smooth, very nice seating, quiet acceleration, and the interior is nice. I bought it at the advertised price, which is rare.

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  WOW Incredible Value - 2011 Hyundai Sonata
  By Mike - May 12 - 8:56 am

  I bought a black Limited edition sonata for 25,200. Limited is fully loaded with everything but navigation. This car floats on the road. The styling is excellent looks like a Mercedes, Lexus,etc.. And I havent driven in those cars but let me tell you.. 1) You dont feel a bump 2) You dont hear the engine...stopped at a light for first time I though engine died, no you really cant hear a thing 3) People really look at this car 4) Quality everywhere is top notch from closing the doors to interior, to under the hood 5) SIMPLE! Everything is logistically placed perfectly!! HANDS DOWN UNBELIEVABLE CAR FOR THE MONEY!!

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  Bad Transmission - 2008 Hyundai Santa Fe
  By steph - May 12 - 7:23 am

  I agree with all the other posters as there is a definite problem with this transmission design. It does not function properly when cold. It is absolutely stupid that Hyundai would put a vehicle on the market with this transmission design. They knew this problem existed and stuck the fools (like me) who decided to purchase it. Never again. I will never buy another Hyundai. This is not a trustworthy company.

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  Daily Drive - 2010 Hyundai Genesis Coupe
  By scottyc - May 11 - 9:56 pm

  Traded my BMW 328 daily drive. The genesis coupe is really fun to drive. Seats are luxurious and comfortable. Handles great on all the turns and the catback has a great sound with the 6 speed auto climbs the gears nicely. My weekend car is C6 corvette but both equally fun to drive. OK I took off the huydai fron grill and replaced it with the chrome aftermaket grill for looks.

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  Fun Car - 2014 Hyundai Genesis Coupe
  By Martin Popagain - May 11 - 8:46 pm

  People have to take this car for what it is, A road racer. Great handling, super performance, Good looks, and good fuel economy. 17MPG around town, 27MPG on highway. With Premium version you get sun roof and navigation to name a few extras. This car is electronically limited to 150+MPH. I will vouch for 135. This car has the ability to put you in jail in any of the 50 states. It is a car that wants to be driven. Good trunk space for 2 people. Con: This isnt a car for families with children. Back seat would be a pain to put a baby seat in and its not designed for adults.