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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  Best car I have ever had! - 2009 Hyundai Elantra
  By Messy - March 4 - 10:13 am

  Ive never had a new car before, granted, but I think I am a Hyundai owner for life! This car, though the basic model, is so great--gas mileage is very good. I just got 521.5 miles on a tank and when I filled it up I put in less than 14 gallons! Im eager to see if I can repeat that. I have put 15,500 miles on it in the 9 months Ive owned it, and so far its running like a dream!

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  Happy owner of used 08 GLS - 2008 Hyundai Sonata
  By happy owner - March 4 - 1:36 am

  Bought my wife this car used a year ago for an amazing price ($13K w/ 13K miles and sunroof). Both of us love it and always choose it over my Frontier unless we need to haul something. Weve gotten 29.9 mpg overall (my wife was getting 32 mpg overall for a while when commuting to work) and dont find the power lacking at all. It is a little asthmatic when loaded up with four pax and going up mountains but works fine for everyday commuting. Trunk is spacious and easily holds both our golf push carts and both sets of clubs. Fit and finish is great and havent had a single maintenance issue yet (though we drive conservatively to maximize mpg). Gotten up to 33-35 mpg on long trips.

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  Love it - 2008 Hyundai Elantra
  By Kristen - February 28 - 4:36 pm

  There are so many things about my Elantra that I love. Even after a year of owning it every time I get in it to drive Im so excited about owning it. Ive never been so happy with a car, but like some others have mentioned it handles very poorly in snowy conditions which is not good living in Wisconsin. I did a lot of research before I bought this car and never came across anything about that problem. Also as some have mentioned the trunk does tend to pop open without me realizing it. Other than that I do love it and would recommend it to anyone.

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  What I expected and needed - 2010 Hyundai Accent
  By JeffC - February 28 - 1:31 pm

  I needed a second car to teach my daughter to drive in, as well as a daily commuter.I also have a 2008 Tiburon GT that I drive on nice days. I picked this up after trying to find a decent used car, however, I guess I got tired of trying to find a decent used car with low miles, so spent maybe $4,000 extra to get a brand new one, with the great warranty. Initial thoughts,it was what I expected. Engine seems to have decent pep for what it is, but I needed something that gets 30 plus mpg as I have a 60 mile commute. Sticker was $13,895, paid $11,399 plus TTL. Black with gray interior. Will need to add a radio, but that shouldnt run more than $250. So far, car seems very solid, drives nice.

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  This car may have saved my life - 2010 Hyundai Accent
  By Karen - February 26 - 7:11 pm

  Two days ago I was plowed into the drivers side by a Subaru, who suffered minimal damage to his car but mine had to be totaled. Ive had several people say they are amazed I managed to walk away without a single scratch or bruise. I loved this car from the moment I test drove it but in the aftermath of my accident I am hooked for life just on the safety features. If little cars are your thing, get one of these!!

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  commuter car - 2009 Hyundai Elantra
  By 2bigfoot - February 26 - 12:54 pm

  I bought this car as a commuter vehicle. It gets 34 mpg doing my commute of 60 miles each way. I am 62" and for the most part it is a comfortable ride. If stuck in traffic for a while my right leg starts to cramp because there is not enough thigh support. I use a driving pillow which helps some. The front wheel well inserts seem a little flimsy because you can really hear all the road pebbles thrown up from the tires. The first couple hundred miles my radio died. It was replaced and now is O.K. Pretty quite highway ride and pretty good in the snow.

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  Cant beat it for the price - 2010 Hyundai Genesis
  By Dennis - February 22 - 3:55 pm

  Start looking for a slightly used Benz. We have had Benzs for 20 years and they have been great cars. Read the reviews on the Genesis and decided to look and drive. We found it very comparable to an E Type for $20K less. Great interior chocked with all the goodies. Handles well though steering is a little too sensitive on center and goes like H--for a 6 cyl. The wife loves it after driving her S Type for years. Great Buy!

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  Love my new 2010 Elantra GLS! - 2010 Hyundai Elantra
  By Laura - February 17 - 7:17 pm

  I just got my 2010 Elantra GLS w/sunroof for 16,395 (after a week of haggling between dealerships). My Olds Alero hit a snowbank and was totaled so had one week to research and buy car. Was looking between Corolla, Mazda 3, Malibu...about 10 diff cars. I love the Elantra, the 10 year 100,000 mi warranty cant be beat. Feels more luxurious than other small cars I drove. Neat blue backlighting in interior. Great gas mileage - 36 mpg. Looks and feels sporty. 3 mo of free xm radio is cool. Sleek look, good pickup. Really happy with my purchase.

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  No Problems but normal wear and Tear - 2006 Hyundai Sonata
  By Feezy - February 15 - 8:45 pm

  I have over 110,000 miles and I have had not issues other than the normal wear and tear item. Being a do it yourselfer I spent about 150 to change both control arms to get rid of an annoying squeak but other than that just the normal changing of bulbs, oil/filter and tires....

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  The Genesis is a winner. - 2010 Hyundai Genesis
  By Genesis Lover - February 15 - 7:39 pm

  I looked at Audi, BMW, Infiniti and Lexus before test driving the Hyundai Genesis. The Lexus was the only car that was slightly more comfortable, but did not perform as well as the Genesis. It is comfy, smooth, quite and has everything I could ever want at an unbelievable price. It is amazing and I am constantly turning heads. I like to think it is because of my beauty, but I know it is the car! o)