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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  Watch for price add ons - 2012 Hyundai Sonata
  By emlod - February 25 - 10:56 am

  The dealer added $3500 price to the sticker price and said he was doing me a favor taking $1000 off the total. The car is OK but the rude is very harsh and the handling does not justify it. The car is OK but I think i would have done bettter with something else. Dont pay the rediculous $3500 add on. This will be temporary as it is a car in demand. Wait and it will drop off. Maybe the dealer did this on his own. I dont trust Major Motors in PA, I expected more. The drive they gave you proved nothing. Avoid Jeff Butler in sales.

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  Eh... - 2015 Hyundai Sonata
  By scottsdalebri - February 10 - 6:22 am

  I was really hoping to love this car. I liked it over the Honda Accord and Mazda 6 from test drives. I got the Sport with Prem and Tech packages. After driving it for 4+ months, there is nothing to be excited about. Acceleration is poor, but most in this class are similar. The seats are not comfortable and the adjustable lumbar support hits your back in the wrong spot. I hate the NAV system. Not user friendly. The worst part of the car is the GAS MILEAGE. I have only been getting 22-24mpg combined (70% city/30% hwy). I did get 31mpg on an easy 100% hwy hwy drive, but that is still well below stated figures. May be a good value with just the BASE car but not worth adding too much.

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  Fix the Transmission, and this will be a winner! - 2016 Hyundai TUCSON
  By M Knox - January 29 - 3:15 pm

  This vehicle is amazing, but buyer beware. There is a serious issue with the dual-clutch transmission in this vehicle which results in ZERO power to the wheels, occurs intermittently, without notice, and will leave you stranded in the road. -Hopefully not when youre turning, or otherwise facing oncoming traffic. This issue must be fixed, and Hyundai has thus far had a very poor response on the problem. Otherwise, this vehicle is absolutely amazing, and you will not find a better value in the segment. Loaded with technology, loaded with safety and loaded with value. -But be sure to research the DCT issue before buying.

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  Multiple Problems - 2002 Hyundai Santa Fe
  By Lauren81M - January 23 - 9:20 pm

  The second day I had it I took it on a long trip to Florida and the AC froze up after 2 hours. I got no support from the dealer of course. Ive replaced compressor, checked for leaks, replaced sensors...nothing works, cant take it on trips longer than 2 hours when I need AC. Also have had to replace O2 sensor 3 times. Was in shop for almost 3 months straight when I first bought it. Warranty is not transferable if bought used. Would never buy one ever again.

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  3200 miles and engine light on. - 2005 Hyundai Elantra
  By James A Haskin - January 17 - 8:36 pm

  I have 3200 miles on my Elantra. I check all systems and fluids on a very regular basis. Yesterday, the engine warning light came on. No reason found in preliminary check. Having it towed in tomorrow to dealership. Very disappointed

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  Excellent value - 2012 Hyundai Elantra Touring
  By crowcanada - January 1 - 10:41 pm

  My wife and kids positively *love* our Touring! Theyre all short (52 to 54) so they love the visibility and low-dash design The controls are well laid out and easy to use. The radio is small and fiddly. Ride is stiff, but handling is good. Not truly sporty, though. Hyundai seems to think making things stiff and heavy = sporty, but thats not true. It is a vastly better driver than my 13 Elantra Sedan, which, although more comfortable, has "unsettled" handling. Handling is predictable and road holding good. Engine is weak and mileage is not great in this class. Seats are hard and flat, but surprisingly dont kill you on long (14+ hour) drives.

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  Drisgruntled Owner - 2003 Hyundai Tiburon
  By Ron - December 24 - 11:00 am

  Had to replace the clutch 3 times already and only have 45k miles on it. Warrenty did not cover the second two after a year or 15 thousand miles because hyundai knows how terrible the clutch is in their vehicle. Their great warrenty covers everything but the clutch after a year. Already a major lawsuit being raised up against hyundai in the United States for the clutch in thousands of owners cars.

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  Airbag - 2004 Hyundai Elantra
  By Johnar - December 17 - 2:00 am

  Airbig wount stay on on the passanger side. Hyundai has put a light for the passanger side seat. You have to have 50# for the airbag to activate. When you drive my car it goes on & off Sometimes it stay on. I have only had it 3 weeks and in the shop 4 times. Its now a lemon the law says they have to replace the car. The dealership gave me a new one off the lot and it did the same thing. Hyundai had a man to work on it and he said it was ok NOT! So The dealership called Hyundai no answer yet. Thanks for your time John

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  Noisy!!! - 2008 Hyundai Veracruz
  By R Don Huffman - December 10 - 7:10 pm

  Sold the car, now have a 2016 Toyota Highlander

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  Do not buy this car - 2015 Hyundai Sonata
  By Phyllis - December 3 - 1:00 pm

  I had a 2006 Hyundai Sonata which was a great car, so I bought another Sonata. Its nowhere near as comfortable. The front seats are extremely uncomfortable because of a seam that presses into the back of the legs, sides that angle up (fine if youre VERY, VERY skinny) and is deeper than is comfortable from front to back. The design of the seats also make it more difficult to get in and out of the car. The rear of the car slants down which makes it "sexier" looking, but is impractical. The trunk is large, but because of the slant of the rear window, the opening for the trunk makes it difficult to get anything of size into it. The rear seats fold down, but the release to fold them is in the trunk instead of the back window ledge - a very inconvenient feature. The steering wheel is smaller than a standard size which made it hard to find a cover for it (needed for hot summers). The steering wheel also has controls so The Club doesnt fit easily. It does NOT have a spare tire - just a "fix-a-flat" kit which is worthless for a blow-out. When the ignition is turned off, all 4 doors unlock which I consider very dangerous. Its difficult to put on and take off the front seat belts because the latch is very low between the seat and the console. Im sorry I bought the car.