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 BANG FOR BUCK - 2004 Hyundai Tiburon
  By BAH - April 11 - 2:00 am

  The car is great thats all ther is to it. THE AMOUNT OF AFTER MARKET PARTS FOR THIS CAR IS HUGE. and its so fun to drive

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  03 Sante Fe - 2003 Hyundai Santa Fe
  By Ken Grum - April 11 - 2:00 am

  A pleasure to drive covering the state of Arizona.Very good exceleration on hills.Comfortable on long trips. Driver fatigue at a minimum.Good straight handling in wet and dry conditions. have not driven on ice or snow yet.Seems to sway (roll) on curves and passing,Would like suspention a little stiffer.

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  Best small SUV money can buy ! - 2005 Hyundai TUCSON
  By carfan - April 10 - 1:20 pm

  Recently purchased it for my wife. Compared with other cars, this is the best money can buy ! It has everything the others offer and a great warranty. Big interior, responsive engine, nice looking, good fuel economy (very important these days !)

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  love santa fes - 2005 Hyundai Santa Fe
  By roberta Bramley - April 9 - 6:13 am

  I have enjoyed my Santa Fe , its comfortable, fun to drive , handles the road great. I feel very safe after 2 rearenders in my Elantra I traded in for my Santa Fe.I love my Santa Fe.

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  I LOVE MY CAR!!! - 2006 Hyundai Sonata
  By Alicia Reffett - April 9 - 4:36 am

  This is the most fun, awesome car that I have ever owned or driven. I HIGHLY RECOMMEND IT!!! This car is SO fast. I dont think you can get any better than this.

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  I Love This Car - 2005 Hyundai Elantra
  By Joanna - April 8 - 11:50 pm

  This is a very nice driving car. I do alot of traveling and have had no problems with the heavy strain I put on the car. Id buy another again, and recommend it to anyone.

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  The best small SUV value in the USA - 2011 Hyundai TUCSON
  By cb1955 - April 8 - 4:45 pm

  We just purchased a 2011 Tucson GLS for our collegiate daughter on the heels of purchasing a 2012 Sonata for my wife. The Tucson came with a homelink mirror and a navigation system for $25 k! The Tucson is comfortable, stylish, and get tremendous highway gas mileage at 31 mpg. The SUV also has the famous 5 year/60,000 mile waranty, along with the 10 year/100,000 mile drivetrain warranty. Hyundai also has some low APR financing rates for their products. The navigation system is integrated with the Bluetooth phone system which is easy to use, and easy to call up phone numbers from your cell phone. The upgraded audio system is also a nice touch. Give a Tucson a test drive.

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  Underated car - 2008 Hyundai Elantra
  By Ian J - April 8 - 1:46 pm

  This was to replace my wifes 3.4 V6 Alero. We looked around for the last 6 months,& chose the Elantra. Civics are far too expensive, even taking in to account their high residuals. We chose the Elantra SE over the GLS with preferred package, as for around $1000 in our case, we got the tremendous Stability Control, which Consumer Reports magazine say is the most significant safety feature on cars since the seat belt. See Hyundai web site for details of this & other SE features. The room inside is amazing, the ergonomics are superb. Little things, like doors opening a full 90 degrees to make entry/exit easier. A great little car. Try it & be amazed. Go for the SE though.

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  Best car for your $$$ - 2007 Hyundai Elantra
  By SteveS - April 7 - 12:40 am

  I just bought this car after carefull research of similar models. I am very happy with my purchase. You can not get a different new car with this many options and standard features for the $, period. This is a great compact sedan with everything you need. Easy to see out of, easy to get around in, easy to get in and out of. There are a few features that are missing like power seats but you have to remember what you are buying. A economical car. I have put around 300 miles on it and its getting about 23.5 mpg and climbing. This lower mpg was due to a lead footed car porter. I am shocked at how well this car handles on the highway. I would do a road trip in this thing in a second.

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  100,000 miles without a single problem - 2002 Hyundai Santa Fe
  By fonixkween - April 6 - 9:36 pm

  I commute over a mountain and have had to successfully navigate through black ice, snow, steep terrain, suicidal deer, and drunken drivers. My Santa Fe just hit 100,000 miles and I have had ZERO problems. My factory tires lasted 60,000 miles (my friend who drives a European car over the same roads had to get new tires at 30,000 miles). My car has started, dependably, each and every time. It has the power to tackle steep roads (and with the Shiftronic Transmission) it is hell-a-fun to drive. I once raced another friend (who drove a Miata) over the mountain, and my Santa Fe handled the curves better than her little car. Great Car!!! Comfy cloth seats!! Im so glad I own it.