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:

• 

  great car - 2004 Hyundai Tiburon
  By toolman98831 - December 30 - 10:00 am

  very fun car. great sound system. has more power than all the car i drove. the only bad thing is the back seat. it has no function its to small. i feel that the car would be a better two seater.

• 

  Terrific performance - 2004 Hyundai Santa Fe
  By Carl Pattison - December 30 - 10:00 am

  Better than I expeted

• 

  I cant believe it! - 2007 Hyundai Veracruz
  By M. Allen - December 29 - 2:40 am

  I love the styling and the interior is fabulous. So far, Im averaging about 19.6 MPG in all around driving and it is not even broken in yet. I test drove everything in its class, but something kept bringing back to the Veracruz. I pull a 3500 pound boat, and it pulls it much better than my 4.0L, V-6 Explorer did. The engine and transmission are both smooth and refined. Sometimes I cant tell if the engine is even running. I owned two Hondas prior to this, but I could not purchase the Pilot over the Veracruz. The Honda dealers arrogance just pushed me right into the Hyundai dealers showroom. Time will tell, but Im very pleased with this vehicle, and highly recommend it!

• 

  Love This SUV - 2008 Hyundai TUCSON
  By Love My First SUV - December 28 - 10:00 am

  Ive only owned this vehicle for a couple of months and Im very pleased. This is my very first SUV. My sister owns a Sonata and my dad owns a 2007 Tucson and Ive never heard them complain so I got one. My Tucson is a 2.0L 4-cyl but I like it. Could do a lot better on gas.

• 

  Nice Car, Except..... - 2005 Hyundai Elantra
  By Joe Sherman - December 28 - 5:40 am

  Boy, there is a lot to like about Elantra. Best looking small car out there, much more plush, roomy, solid and fun to drive than Sentra, Corolla, Civic, Focus, etc.. But why does a car this size with a 4-cyl/5-spd get such poor gas mileage? Even driving over flat roads at 60mph, I cannot get better than the mid-20s for highway mileage. I have driven larger 6 and 8- cyl cars and gotten better mileage. Cmon Hyundai, you build a nice car, now get with the program and deliver better mileage (especially with gas costing $2.75/gal!!!).

• 

  My Review - 1998 Hyundai Accent
  By Tony Bonelli - December 28 - 2:00 am

  Stylish yet economical. The engine has guts on the road yet gets almost 40 mpg. I drive long hours and find it extremely comfortable. The sound system is great.

• 

  A Sonata in A+ Major - 2011 Hyundai Sonata
  By A Sonata in A+ Major - December 27 - 5:13 pm

  Theres a reason users give it a 9.7 and Efmunds only 7.8. Edmunds was only with it for a few hours. Live with this car and you will love looking at it before you get in and love it even more behind the wheel. First, it looks and feels more like a Benz than a Hyundai. I still cant believe I bought a Hyundai and Im lovin every moment of it. Got a Limited in Black. Wow, does this car sparkle. And does it get looks from others. I had 2 guys in a new Porsche Turbo convertible turn around once they past me just to look at the front. The car speaks luxury. And all for very little $$. I had a 2007 Camry XLE with V-6 and got tired of this boring car and seeing myself coming and going.

• 

  My Hyundai - 2001 Hyundai Santa Fe
  By Grandma - December 27 - 9:10 am

  I love my vehicle. I have not had any trouble with it at all until last month.I have made 3 trips to Texas from Wyoming and never had a problem. I keep up with the changing of the oil and always try to keep at least half a tank full of gas as I never know when I am going to have to go out of town for some reason. I can take most of what I need and still have plenty of room for my little sitzu to go. She has plenty of room to get to her bed. I like the way the windows work. The service men at Underridders in Billings, Mt. do the service work on it as they sell Hyundais however they cant seem to find the trouble I have this time. I hope they can find it soon so I can have my car back.

• 

  Great little inexpensive car - 2002 Hyundai Sonata
  By shoesalive - December 27 - 2:00 am

  Vehicle picked out by the wife to replace 93 Maxima. She liked the way it looked and handled. Passed over Nissan Altima and Toyota Camry. I love to drive it and I own Chrysler 300. Handling is great. Price is unbelievaable. Long range durablility could be an issue but bumper to bumper warrenty is unsurpassed.

• 

  Incredible! - 2007 Hyundai Elantra
  By tertullian - December 26 - 3:50 am

  This is a great car. I have reviewed: Sentra, Corolla, and Civic. But I came to buy Elantra for its value overall. I bought 07 Elantra GLS + Preferred Package + Automatic for only $13,000. The other cars dont even come close to that price. The car is well made and its safety features are far above the competitors. The car drives well, it is comfortable, it is roomy (bigger than my old Galant 98). My wife just loves the car. Thank you, Hyundai and keep up the good work.