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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  great care - 2005 Hyundai Sonata
  By jim - February 24 - 9:55 pm

  great car, great options, great warranty, smooth to drive, price is unbeatable, we have had minivans and suvs, but notice little difference in travel, trunk is huge for a midsize and long trips are comfortable. we come from a family that all work for the major u.s. car companies where we could use the employee discounts, we still chose the sonata. the other cars in this class couldnt compare.....we will definately choose another hyundai and reccommend it to everyone

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  What doesnt it do well? - 2011 Hyundai Sonata
  By carev - February 24 - 8:19 pm

  I love cars. Two GTOs, a G8 GT, Z3, 4 Hondas, a couple of Chevys, Murano, Mustang... even a Hyundai Genesis Coupe 3.8...all in the last 4 years. But when the Sonata 2.0T came out, I had to try it. "Impressed" doesnt begin to describe my reaction to this car! For performance it has 274hp on 87 octane. For being green, it gets better mileage than small cars with 1/2 the horsepower (the Mazda 3 comes to mind). For safety, only the BMW 550i is its equal. Styling is niche-appropriate without being me-too. Features for the money, long a Hyundai hallmark, shows up in spades (Bluetooth, XM, power everything, keyless ignition, etc). Looks like a 100,000 mile/ 10 year match made in heaven!

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  A great value proposition in this segment - 2015 Hyundai Santa Fe
  By Sharvan Mohan - February 24 - 12:45 pm

  It is one of the better 3 row crossovers in the segment.Smooth ride,great handling,refined engine and transmission.Reliable electronics and cool features such as panaromic sunroof,Heated and cooled seats,heated rear 2nd row seats,smart liftgate and good comfort overall.If there are some weak points it has to do the front seats not height adjustable(my spouse doesnt like it),Brakes not so effective especially under full load and suspension that bottoms out under full load of passengers.

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  Get it! - 2008 Hyundai Sonata
  By N i i i i c e. - February 24 - 6:10 am

  My husband and I have had many other cars before and shopped around a lot before purchasing this car. We both love it. I especially love the v6 power and the sharp style.

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  XG 350l My Dream Car - 2002 Hyundai XG350
  By jloatlanta - February 24 - 2:00 am

  I Love This car. I was in the market for a sonata but then saw this on the lot for two thousand more. It drives like a dream and everyone is always complimenting the design. I am very happy and would consider a Hyundai again.

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  Love it - 2003 Hyundai Santa Fe
  By Long Ball - February 24 - 2:00 am

  I test drove them all and bought the Santa-Fe and so far Im still very satisfied. everyone talks about it being underpowerd, I guess they are race track drivers because it has all the power a normal person needs.

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  i love this car - 2003 Hyundai Elantra
  By SaraLee18 - February 24 - 2:00 am

  i love this car. it is roomy andincredibly gas efficient, anddidnt break my bank. I hope to have this car for the next 10 years.

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  Move aside Honda - 2005 Hyundai Elantra
  By Jay - February 23 - 11:57 pm

  One of the nicest compacts out there. Rides better and has more room and pep than my Civic had. But my 3 negatives are: (1)Squeaks developed going slowly over speed bumps after 8 mos. (2)I have yet to get over 20 mpg and I drive slowly and do not accelerate suddenly. I do drive solely in town however. (3)The rear window fogs when its rainy and humid unless the AC is full blast.

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  I ENCOURAGE EVERYONE TO GET ONE! - 2000 Hyundai Accent
  By Erika - February 23 - 11:21 am

  The 2000 Accent GL 4 door/automatic was the first used car Ive bought, but its been the most RELIABLE! Bought it with 45K, now it has 70K on it. I love it so much! Its fun to drive, and more reliable than any of the new vehicles weve ever bought... maybe thats because its a foreign- made car. Those Koreans really know how to make cars! Hyundai (along with Toyota, Honda, and Mitsubishi) knows how to make American automakers look like garbage! I think Ill do all of my car-buying with Hyundai now. Ive been so pleased with their customer service when the seat belt locked up. It wasnt under factory warranty at that point, but they fixed it under the warranty anyway.

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  Cruzing In Style - 2008 Hyundai Veracruz
  By Scott - February 22 - 5:26 am

  Without a doubt the best CUV for the money on the market. Transmission is amazing, dont even fell the shifts. Power from engine is more than adequate. Very comfortable on long rides. Gas milage is also very good - getting better than epa estimates (20.2 in 50/50 driving over 7k miles). Ride is very quiet. Zero problems to date.