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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  Good Basic Transportation - 2003 Hyundai Accent
  By Chris - April 27 - 9:20 am

  This car was purchased mainly for my wife, and she loves it. It is almost 4 years old now and it has NEVER broken down. All I have done was change the oil & filter every 3,000 miles. Sure, it could have more power, but what do you expect. In a vehicle this size MPG is more important than horsepower, and besides, my wife never seems to complain that it is slow, so I guess it is not that bad.

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  Great4theprice - 2011 Hyundai Sonata
  By Nice4theprice - April 27 - 12:26 am

  This is my first Hyundai. I previously owned a 2003 Inifiniti G35 which I purchased brand new,was paid for and loved! I had a Lexus ES300 before that. Unfortunately my G35 was totaled in a wreck. I did not want to have a $500 car payment again. I was only looking at high end preowned cars and saw reviews on Sonata. Test drove and loved it!It will be interesting to see how my maintenance experience will be compared to Infiniti which was awesome.

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  Best Small SUV - 2005 Hyundai TUCSON
  By Shane1v - April 26 - 8:46 pm

  I did months of research for a new(my 1st!)vehicle to suit my needs and considered these factors- Price,Safety,decent cargo room,reliability/quality,snow/rain handling,good MPG,& looks. I tried the CR-V,Escape,Rav-4,Prius,Vibe & Matrix & Murano among others. The V6 GLS Tucson was the clear standout. I would recommend it.I LOVE IT

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  Elantra wowed me - 2007 Hyundai Elantra
  By artzfemme - April 26 - 7:41 pm

  I absolutely love it. It has a lot of get up and go! The standard options are fantastic and so is the warranty. I love the sporty look and the way it handles.

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  Fun to drive - 2006 Hyundai Sonata
  By Glenn - April 26 - 11:06 am

  We bought the Sonata LX w/sunroof and 6 cd system. We drove the vehicle last weekend into the North GA/NC mountains.This vehicle handled those mountain curves with no problem. Our first 1100 miles we have averaged 25 mpg. Great pickup, great looks, it beat out an Accord and a Camry for us.

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  superior car - 2006 Hyundai Azera
  By bernard edwards - April 26 - 10:02 am

  Hello, I wanted to share with the readers about my 2006 Azera limited. The car has exceeded any expectations I had and I have had Acuras, and the American cars dont even compare. I drove it to Daytona Beach and got 26 mpg with the air on. The car is just as good as some 40,000 cars, the fit and finish is superb, and I get lots of admiring comments. I even just go out to the garage to look at this beauty. I am buying the new rear wheel drive v8 engine. I would not trade this car in except another Hyundai. This car cannot be beaten, for the price and warranty.

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  2007 Santa Fe Limited = Luxury for Less! - 2007 Hyundai Santa Fe
  By JCS - April 26 - 8:53 am

  The new 2007 Santa Fe is a great value! It is loaded with standard features, has great looks inside and out, a ton of safety features, 5 star crash test ratings, super competitive pricing, and a superb warranty. Driving this vehicle is is oure joy and I look for every excuse to drive it. We test drove CR-V, Matirx, RAV4, Pilot, Element, and others. No comparison - we bought the Santa Fe!

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  yo - 2006 Hyundai Sonata
  By yo - April 26 - 2:36 am

  excellent! what more can I say!! This vehicle says all!! I strongly recommend this one!! better than honda, maxima, camry, or any other competing sedans!

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  Its Nice :) - 2001 Hyundai Santa Fe
  By Estrellas701 - April 26 - 2:00 am

  40000mi-previous owner Interior fabric is soft/exterior is durable Roomy-keep finding hidden drawers Shiftronic is AWESOME Drove 800 mile trip w/5 people & camping gear-could still see out bk window-27 mi/g Comes with very nice tires-full spare-NOT on bk door-bumper bash not so awful Fog lamps & brights=instant daylight Window tint is inside the glass-wont scratch/bubble Alarm system easy to ad on to Hauls trailer uphill w/ease Takes off road much better than expected-full skid plate Acceleration & stopping better than most Trans sensor failed- dealership fixed for free under warranty Otherwise=bang 4 your buck Lots of features included in MSRP

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  Hyundai Rocks - 2003 Hyundai Santa Fe
  By aecoe - April 26 - 2:00 am

  I have been a hyundai owner for the last 10 years. All I drive are Hyundais. Not only are they reliable, but their warranty cant be beat. The Santa Fe comes standard with more features and upgrades than one can imagine. It also has superior crash test ratings. The interior is classy with the wood grain trim, and it feels very heavy and durable-not those cheap plastic pieces you find in isuzu or nissan. For the price, you cant go wrong!!!!!!!!!!