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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  4k on my Elantra Touring... - 2009 Hyundai Elantra Touring
  By whiteh2opdlr - April 26 - 12:40 am

  Choose out of Vibe, Mazda3 5D, and another pickup. Very pleased with the car so far, the fuel economy is slightly disappointing for a small 4cyl car, but is passable after driving a pickup for 10 years. Handles great, comfortable on long drives, and have no major issues with the car so far.

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  Nice, but little issues.... - 2008 Hyundai Santa Fe
  By SteveH - April 25 - 7:40 pm

  Chose the Santa Fe over Rav4 for slightly larger size and cost savings. Initially I like the vehicle, but starting to find annoying issues. Items like the lackluster highway gas mileage (21-22 avg), flat audio from radio (or speakers), and unresolvable issue with car pulling to the right drive me nuts. Turn signal clicker too loud. The door ajar beeper is way too loud and annoying, and beeps at every little thing. The tiny foot rest to the left of the break pedal is too low and out of the way to use. Drivers seat is too high for taller drivers. The spring in the front sun visor causes it to pop forward and limit adjustment.

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  Great Van, Great Value!! - 2007 Hyundai Entourage
  By Alabama - April 25 - 3:37 am

  Have had the van since June of 2006. Love every aspect except fuel mileage. The ride and the feel of the van is terrific. My wife does not want to drive anything else. Took this van on a 1200 mile trip and never had any problems or complaints about comfort. Entertainment system is awesome with the 8 speaker system and Infinity sound.

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  Superb Vehicle - 2017 Hyundai Elantra
  By Nicholas Rodriguez - April 25 - 2:31 am

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  Disappointed with fuel economy! - 2011 Hyundai Sonata Hybrid
  By justicebrown - April 24 - 5:41 am

  I purchased the Hyundai Sonata Hybrid specifically based on the estimated fuel economy. The "average fuel economy" which is displayed by the car says 35 MPG. My calculations at refueling say otherwise (Dividing the miles traveled (trip odometer) by the amount of gallons it took to refill the tank). My first three refills are 32.74 MPG, 33 MPG and 31.26. I expect to get at minimum 35 MPG which is estimated for city driving. My driving is mixed city and highway but I would accept a consistent 35 MPG. No jack rabbit starts or hard braking and I use cruise control. Ill update this review if there is improvement but it seems to be going the other way. One power loss/stutter mid-intersection.

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  Not so bad for a low-end compact SUV - 2011 Hyundai TUCSON
  By hyundai3 - April 23 - 11:46 am

  This is the third Hyundai I have purchased. So far, it is great. Would love the electric drivers seat though. Has a rattle in the rear door, may be the license plate bracket, still havent figured out where it is coming from yet. Not a big deal. Fuel economy is from 16.5 to 19.1. Hot summer here so using AC all the time, plus city driving mainly. Has under 700 miles on it but I really enjoy driving it. AC seems to run warm on occasion. Had five people in it and drove nicely, still had ample acceleration.

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  Love My XG350L - 2005 Hyundai XG350
  By sue - April 22 - 10:43 pm

  This is my first-ever new car, so perhaps Im comparing apples to oranges, but I Love This Car! After test driving many makes & models & thinking I wanted a used Lexus, by chance I came across the XG350L & immediately knew it was the car for me. It looks rich, has a wonderful ride & a spacious, well-appointed interior. A friend who recently bought an Avalon, said she didnt like those light weight cars when told I had purchased a Hyundai. As it turns out, my car weighs 150 pounds more than hers. The car is great, the warranties give peace of mind & the dealership was terrific. While Ive owned this vehicle only 3 months, I expect to keep it a long time.

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  Great, no hassle, reliable quality car! - 2005 Hyundai Santa Fe
  By boisegal - April 22 - 4:50 am

  Ive owned my car since purchase, over five years now and never one problem! Its very reliable, works great for hauling around family, stuff, and friends. Still looks good, and cleans up nicely. I was in an accident three years ago, had front-end rebuilt. And still, never one problem before or after. These are great quality vehicles.

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  Check service bulletins - 2006 Hyundai Sonata
  By Mahlon Williams - April 22 - 1:53 am

  Pros: Ride is quiet and feels good, great V6 power, ESC is standard, more air bags than most cars in its class even larger, big trunk space with inside safety latch. Cons: No station controls on wheel only volume, there are no vents for back passengers in center console. Review: I have a GLS 3.3 V6 with 17,340 mi. I recently noticed when starting up the car a short noise from the engine was present at each crank up. Upon further inspection from Hyundai it was the timing chain tensioner. There is a service bulletin for the repair, so far thats it.The crappy part is that they have to pull the engine out to do the work. That means opening up most lines. Work is approx 4 1/2 days.

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  04 GLS Elantra - 2004 Hyundai Elantra
  By Ashley - April 21 - 7:28 pm

  Bought the car brand new. Very good for about 1.5 years, then had to replace brake pads 2 times in 1 year, among other problems. Not good handling, car does not want to turn. No acceleration.