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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  The best car if you take Care of it - 2004 Hyundai Sonata
  By kaylabandy - October 5 - 10:28 pm

  My hyundai belonged to my dad before he gave it to me. He bought it new and it has never had any major issues. Just did regular maintenance. The only thing I dont like is the headlights dont seem To be very bright! But other than that I love the car and its always been really reliable. Just watch out for the timing belt, because of the interference engine. Dont replace it late. Other than that the car is amazing and has never failed me. Already has 190000 miles on it and runs beautifully.

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  116,800 mi, 8 years--never let me down! - 2006 Hyundai Elantra
  By jasonhk - September 19 - 6:04 pm

  Im surprised at all the mixed reviews here. I live in PA and bought my Elantra new in 06. roughly 6 months are cold, some snowy. I do 50% highway, 50% city. I do all recommended maintenance and in almost 8 years, changed brake pads 2x, tires 3x, headlights 4x, radiator 1x (102kmi), and an 02 sensor. The car NEVER let me down and repairs have been minimal and reasonable. Im considering getting a new Elantra due to greater safety specs, but Im leaning towards just putting in another new timing belt at 120 and doing the service. I totally see myself getting over 200K. Those who report bad things probably beat the hell out of their car. Just take care of it!

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  This is a great car - 2009 Hyundai Accent
  By ggracchus - September 5 - 11:47 am

  Of course it gets great MPG and is reliable. Our favorite thing about it, though, may seem a bit odd -- it is that it has a button that permits air recirculation for the fan, heater and AC. You may think this is common, but the difference is that once you set it to recirculate instead of pull air from the outside, it STAYS ON. Other vehicles will do an override, like our Ford, that will shut it off. Those types of vehicles think they are smarter than you are, and if the humidity or whatever gets to a certain level, off it goes. We really, really hate breathing pollution from the cars in front of us -- the fan will pull it right from their exhaust pipe into your face.

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  Owned 4.5 years - 2003 Hyundai Elantra
  By pencemen - August 9 - 10:00 am

  I purchased my blue 2003 Elantra GT hatchback with 65,000 miles, and it now has 135,000 miles. The leather seats and sunroof give you amenities not seen in cheaper vehicles like this one. Hyundai parts are easy to find, and repairs are cheap. I bought this car just before I went to college to use while in school. I replaced the audio unit with an updated one, so I could play pandora and hook in my maps. It comfortably seats 4, but fits 5 people. The size of the trunk is nice and not typically seen in hatchbacks. Ive replaced a section of the exhaust pipe for $200, valve cover gasket $25, brake caliper assembly $110. I can foresee that I will have to replace the timing belt and struts soon.

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  Good old car - 2001 Hyundai Elantra
  By powersk22 - July 29 - 3:36 pm

  I bought my hyundia elentra with 80k miles on it after 9 years the car has been very reliable. I now have 150k and a few things started to fail. I went out and got a 2010 elentra because I didnt want to put more money in a car that I wasnt planning on keeping around much longer. A few bad things Ive notice is the body by the wheels is rusting pretty good, and the radiator just went out. Not a huge deal as the price to get a new one is around $130 and to get it put in will cost around $300.

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  I love this car, 50MPG is easily attainable. - 2009 Hyundai Accent
  By drunkenrobot - July 29 - 10:03 am

  I have had this car from new. It has been exceptionally reliable. Ive never had a problem with it. I average 40-50 MPG on the highway and 30-40 MPG in the city. It is very fuel efficient for the price. My only issues that the seats are a bit uncomfortable on very long trips. I drive for two days each way to my summer vacation spot, and my back hurts after each run. Two doors was enough when I bought it, but limber passengers are a requirement to get into the back, though there is plenty of legroom back there. With the back seats down, the cargo area is enormous, we have shoved mountains of stuff in there. 100K on it so far, no issues.

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  Very Good First Car - 2005 Hyundai Sonata
  By blackboxmike - July 25 - 9:36 pm

  First car. Purchased used at approximately 112k miles. Even with so many miles, an absolute smooth ride. Brakes made a loud scraping noise every morning after first starting the car but then went away. Seems the body dented somewhat easily. But not a huge problem. Very very quiet ride. Surprised, actually, at how quiet the car was. Even on the highway. Had a problem with the automatic locks not always engaging after pressing the lock/unlock button. Might have been a problem with my specific car. Owned it for only a little over a month before hitting a deer and totaling it. Everyone in the car was safe. The deer though--pretty much, it was splattered. Highly recommended.

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  my New Genesis 2014 - 2014 Hyundai Genesis
  By 200sowner - July 14 - 6:24 pm

  picked up car 2 weeks ago New,after driving and putting on about 400 miles found some areas disappointing . Contrary to what is on you tube from motor week, car and driver etc etc. yes car in quite if your stopped at a light or slow moving traffic. Surprised at the road noise level inside the cabin traded in a Chrysler200 (2011) S model which was much more Quite . Engine noise is Quite as well as wind noise, BUT that road noise is a killer Dont know if its the tires or what ???

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  3 years strong - 2012 Hyundai Accent
  By mdelarosa45 - June 26 - 4:41 pm

  I come from a family of mechanics and live in TX I have owned my hatchback accent for 3 years, bought it with 4 miles on the odometer. Now have 65k miles on it and have yet to have any mechanical problems with it, very little maintenance. Original tires wear out at 35k miles. I have driven this car icy conditions, the car handled very well, the front wheel drive and traction control did their job. Braking is very sensitive but stops good. Acceleration sucks. But Eco mode saves gas! This is a great city car, saves gas and handles curves relatively well despite it not being a performance vehicle, under 70mph it feels very safe handling. MY HYUNDAI IS A VERY RELIABLE CAR I WOULD RECOMMEND IT!

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  Wont buy another Hyundai - 2012 Hyundai Genesis
  By mmdv61 - June 21 - 11:00 am

  I have 33k on my 2012 Genesis. Since purchase in 8/2011 I have had the navigation replaced, the fuel injectors had to be cleaned because they were so dirty the car would stall in the middle of driving and now the oxygen sensor had to be replaced....stalling again, but this time the engine light went on so they could find the problem easier. Last time when it was stalling they couldnt find the problem until after keeping the car for 5 days. Now they recommend I buy fuel injector cleaner and put that in the tank every time I get an oil change in order to keep it from happening again. Even doing this, the car still has a rough idle at the start of the day.