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 Commuter/Long Trip Car - 2009 Hyundai Sonata
  By Hope it lasts - July 16 - 9:53 am

  Not one to buy on price by cant ignore the value of the Sonata. Mind you will lose it on resale so not quite the bargain it seems. Interior is best in class for me. Materials not quite as good as Accord but layout way better. Seats fairly comfortable, quiet ride. 249hp plenty for me - I dont understand the need for 270+ in a fwd family car. Fortunately seem to not have the suspension noise problem (and roads are horrible here right now) and tranny shifts OK. Chassis simply not as sophisticated and composed as Accord or Mazda6. Seems chassis itself is not stout enough and the flex leads to some unsteadiness at speed despite stiff suspension. So far so good - hope it lasts!

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  07 accent... twice the car - 2007 Hyundai Accent
  By doug - July 15 - 5:41 am

  I have a 98 gsi and the new 07 3 door accent, what a difference they have done a lot to make this car a well behaved machine

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  Best bang for the buck - 2001 Hyundai Tiburon
  By dlk33 - July 15 - 2:00 am

  I purchased the 2001 Cobalt Blue with leather. I had a few minor problems which were fixed quickly by the dealership. I love my Tibby! Ive put a magnaflow muffler on it, took off the resinator, added a k&n air filter. Im getting it tinted and eventually hope to improve the horsepower. You cant beat the warranty! Im not worried about the low resale value because I plan on keeping mine for a long time. If youre thinking about buying one, give it a test drive. I dont think youll be disappointed. Even with automatic its a fun car to drive.

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  New Car - 2004 Hyundai XG350
  By DanRita - July 15 - 2:00 am

  The cvar is very quiet and comfortable. I put a sub woofer in the trunk and now i love everything about the car.

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  Great Car - Style/Safety/Price Superb - 2004 Hyundai Elantra
  By JM2 - July 15 - 2:00 am

  I own 2 Elantras. They are great vehicles re: price, style, quality, performance and, in my opinion, safety. I recently skidded on ice and hit a tree broadside on drivers side w/my 2002 Elantra). The drivers *side* airbag (not available on many more expensive cars) deployed and likely saved my life. I got top dollar on the "totaled car" -- so they hold their value) and I promptly bought a 2004 to join my 2003. Got super customer service, as well!

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  Dont let looks fool you! - 2004 Hyundai Sonata
  By junk car1 - July 15 - 2:00 am

  *Air bag sensor 700 miles 3 trips to the dealer. *Altenator 2,000mi *Replace transmission at 5,000 mi. *Battery 9,000mi. *Throwout bearing failed in new trans at 9,800mi. **Michelen tries replaced on front at 15,000mi *Front wheel bearing 20,000mi (car sounded like jet *car overheats(everthing associated has been replaced started at 11,000mi and still attempting at 28,000mi 5 trip to dealer. You will probably see good review early on, but once this car hits 5k you will wonder if it will stay fixed.

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  still like it after problems - 2007 Hyundai Santa Fe
  By jcwsbltd - July 15 - 1:26 am

  Bought my Limited after testing Honda CRv, Toyota Rav 4,Camry, Infiniti QX, Lexus 350 as it had the best ride, safety features, standard accessories and design at much less than all the others. I was very impressed how quiet and smooth it is. Poor gas mileage though, nowhere near as stated. Had some initial quality oroblems with rear seat cupholder not staying closed (replaced) rear seat leather edge wont stay attached,then a failure in the brake switch (no brake lights) then a failure in the bolt of the rear pass.side control arm, which almost caused a wreck (replaced) and a squeaky suspension. Dealer refused to replace the vehicle.Have lost trust in my vehicles build quaity.

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  One of the best - 2005 Hyundai XG350
  By Chris - July 12 - 6:36 pm

  We just brought a 2005 Hyundai XG350L. I have to say it is great! This is one of the nicest looking cars out there in todays world, like the front grill, the rims, the looks all around, the leather seats, the 210 watt Infinity sound system with 6 speakers, 8 CD changer, the way the doors close (a good tight sound) the wood on the steering wheel and one the doors and center console. If you dont own a Hyundai you should really think about getting one, you cannot go wrong with the warrantees, the way the car is built, very well, and the way the car rides, very solid. dont listen to the people who dont like em. This is a car to say. If you dont own a Hyundai and are looking for a new car, look at Hyundai.

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  The New Hotness - 2011 Hyundai Sonata
  By VanessaR - July 11 - 9:00 pm

  My husband and I call my new car the New Hotness. Ive only owned Hondas. Im now proud to say Ive been converted to a Hyundai owner. I saw one on the road a couple of months ago and was smitten. Eventually went to a dealership and test drove one and was sold but still didnt buy. I went back two weeks ago to buy one and they were all sold out of the color and model I wanted. :-( Luckily, one of their other locations in Florida had one that they could ship. I now have my car and I love everything about it. I got it fully loaded. It drives so smoothly and handles so well. People compliment me on it and confuse it for a Lexus. They are shocked to find out its a Hyundai.

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  sweet little car - 2006 Hyundai Accent
  By aeon - July 11 - 4:58 pm

  going from a full size to a compact was a little tough at first, but ive been very pleased with the accent. very good on gas. been averaging 36mpg. comfy on my 40min drive to work. handles well on back roads and highway. roomy trunk for a compact. like the interior, except the carpeting is chintzy. exterior is nice also, liked it much better in person than in pics online. had it a month with no problems. plenty of standard features. price was better than toyota or scion.