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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  Review of 2004 Sante Fe - 2004 Hyundai Santa Fe
  By Billye - June 15 - 10:00 am

  Excellent comfort for an SUV, good on mileage, roomier than other SUVs of comparable price.

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  Love my Santa Fe - 2004 Hyundai Santa Fe
  By Spike_NY - June 15 - 10:00 am

  Id driven the 2002 & found it very lacking in the get up & go dept and that was in comparison to a `95 Mitsubishi Expo (4 cyl.) w/ close to 100,000 mi. that regularly left the 2002 Santa Fe in the dust! I still love my Expo, the gas pedals responsiveness, the roominess, car like drive, a ton of standard features for the price, etc., but those are the exact reasons Im in love with my new Santa Fe LX as well. It doesnt look exactly like every other SUV out there, which seems fitting being it out classes most of them anyway (IMHO). For the look, room, ride, price & quality of even the most standard features on the LX, it cant be beat.

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  My Santa Fe - 2004 Hyundai Santa Fe
  By bob b - June 15 - 10:00 am

  Just got back from a 3500 mile trip with my Santa Fe and it ran flawlessly, I averaged 25-28MPG.

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  very happy with the santa fe - 2004 Hyundai Santa Fe
  By MillyC - June 15 - 10:00 am

  Fun to drive and very nice looking and is very good with the fuel used. Has lots of room in it.

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  Best For Your Money - 2005 Hyundai TUCSON
  By Bruce - June 15 - 6:03 am

  I would highly recommend this to anyone searching for a quality built vehicle. They gave this suv a lot of thought. Has alot of room to haul people or grocerys. The warranty they put behind this suv is amazing. If all the other manufactures can build them this good then they would back it up with a warranty like this one has. It is a joy to drive. I would buy this one again.

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  Great Car - 2006 Hyundai Azera
  By WK - June 15 - 3:50 am

  Great car to drive, very comfortable for big person such as I. Havent had car long enough to judge fuel efficiency, but getting 18.5 city/hwy driving thus far. Lot of luxury for the money.

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  Still great after 1 1/2 years... - 2009 Hyundai Sonata
  By Pianoman - June 15 - 3:50 am

  I read the posts of others who are unhappy, and I just want to say, thats not my experience at all. After 25,000+ miles, I am still delighted with my 2009 Sonata Limited 4 cyl. Absolutely no money spent other than normal maintenance, and the car continues to run like a champ. Have gotten up to 37 miles per gallon on non-hilly interstate traveling at 70 mph - it is a great highway cruiser with a quiet, smooth ride. Lots of room inside, and build quality is great. It is definitely not a sports car, but I didnt buy it with that expectation - I drive my wifes Legacy GT if I want kicks. Still like it better than my 3 previous Accords. Overall, Im very happy - no buyers remorse at all.

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  Very Happy Touring - 2009 Hyundai Elantra Touring
  By cinell234 - June 14 - 7:16 pm

  This is an ideal car for a small family. I have also owned VW GTI S I cant say that this even compares but my dollar bought one sweet ride. The real deal would have much more needed power and some quite tires they are really loud on some roads. Its a poor man sports wagon I hope I have similar luck with this Hyundai as others have with the Sonatas it seems like every body likes them even when they have hundreds of thousands of miles. So as of now I only have a few thousand I would recommend this wagon to a friend or even my brother that I did. Good luck on your future purchase other cars to check would be Mazda 3 but will cost you a few more dollars and they dont have a warranty as good.

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  Great Car, except... - 2006 Hyundai Sonata
  By Helen - June 14 - 2:30 pm

  I am quite pleased with my 06 Sonata. I bought it used and it has had a few squeaks and rattles. The main problem Ive had is the rear shelf squeak/rattle sounds like the car is going to split apart. Dealer finally replaced the shelf this morning and well see if that worked or not. Mileage is okay, but not great. I love the car, its performance and its look, both inside and out. Id buy another for sure!

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  2005 Hyundai Sonata - 2005 Hyundai Sonata
  By Vinny - June 14 - 12:32 pm

  Not having much experience in car buying & owning at only 19 years old this car caught my eye. It has the performace needed for being a teenager. Has the confort, safety, room, & reliability as being a single parent. Out of my three cars Ive owned (1994 Ford Probe, 2003 Ford Taurus, & this 2005 Hyundai Sonata) this is definitely the best. It is the most refined & the price is reasonable.