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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  A Great Buy - 2012 Hyundai Accent
  By greenmrt - August 8 - 10:07 am

  When looking for a fuel efficient car, I assumed we would have to settle for a boring vehicle. I am happy to have been so wrong. With a plethora of features, the Accent suprised. We are thrilled to be averaging 40mpg on the vehicle. A great car for the value. With the 60,000 bumper-to-bumper warranty and the 100,000 powertrain warranty, we also have peace-of-mind.

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  Hyundai Elantra GLS - 2012 Hyundai Elantra
  By iamnovice - August 7 - 4:35 pm

  I purchase an Elantra on June 2. When I bought it, I had three criteria. I wanted really good gas mileage. I wanted a car that was drivable. And I wanted some cargo capacity. I had a 2008 Honda Fit. The Fit got 32 miles to the gallon overall and had a lot of cargo capacity as a hatchback. The Elantra is very drivable and can accelerate better than the Fit and doesnt have the problems maintaining highway speed. And the Elantra has really good EPA mpg ratings. So I thought I could forego the cargo capacity. Unfortunately the Elantra gets just over 30 mpg on gas with no ethanol. So I only got one of my three requirements. I wish I had not purchased the Elantra.

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  6 speed manual ..... - 2012 Hyundai Accent
  By myfj40 - August 7 - 10:32 am

  This is a great little car, but lacks power when the A/C is on. If you try to pull a hill in lower gears with the Air on you have to really wrap it out or it will bog down when you upshift. I have owned this car 3 weeks and put on 800 miles so far....gas mileage is NOT as good as my 2000 Corolla with an Automatic. I have averaged around 34 highway so far. And that is including some pretty flat interstate driving.....My corolla has actually gotten over 40 when the conditions are right !!! I am really hoping that I can get much better mileage once it cools off and I dont have to run the air......

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  My Car - 2012 Hyundai Accent
  By vcave - August 6 - 10:13 pm

  I had to trade in my 5sp manual to get an automatic for health reason. We have 100 miles on the car in one day, and have not gotten under 36 miles per gallon yet. I am totally impressed. I expect to get the 40 when the car is broken in.

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  Annoying engine vibration - 2011 Hyundai Elantra
  By stellasmom - August 6 - 9:07 am

  I bought my 2011 Elantra in January. My mpg averages 27 in the city and as high as 37 on a 600 mile trip. Im not getting the advertised mpg. My major compliant is that the cars engine vibrates at idle with the air conditioner on and the engine is hot. Very annoying. The steering wheel vibrates and the drivers side seat vibrates. I took it to dealer service dept to have this checked out and was informed that there was no fix. The car has no idle adjustment. Ive owned cars this size all my life and its been since the 70s that Ive owned a car that vibrated. Obviously the engine is not powerful enough to carry the load of the air conditioner. Cute car, but dont let looks fool you.

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  Hyundai proves again that they are a company to be noticed.... - 2012 Hyundai Accent
  By twbmusic - August 5 - 7:39 pm

  Awesome! Is the word to describe Hyundais latest redesign of its entry level vehicle.... First of all let me say that finding a vehicle that fits a over 6 tall male and a 5 female can be a challenge, especially from a driving position point-of-view. No problems here...seat, steering wheel, interior headroom and leg room are all generous....I can even fit in the back seat comfortably! The 138 hp direct fuel-injected engine is very willing and has plenty of passing power on the highway. In my opinion, the car rides as nice or better than Hyundais own redesigned Elantra (which is not direct fuel injected). Fit and finish both inside and out are class equal to its competition.

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  Luxury Standard has arrived - 2012 Hyundai Genesis
  By croat - August 4 - 8:18 pm

  Purchased a 2012 Genesis 4.6 traded my Lexus IS 350... wow what a ride... what fun. The car is awesome performs greatly and returns 26 mpg in my commute... and its not broken in yet. Mercedes and BMW should run for Alps. They can not deliver such a reliable package, in this luxury segment. The integration of the electronics navigation sound system the adaptive cruise control is well done.

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  good value - 2008 Hyundai Accent
  By sbrothers - August 3 - 9:51 am

  this is not a great car, but it is a good solid well built reliable car. our 5-speed manual averages about 34 mpg per tank full. we have had minor problems: check engine light (loose gas cap?) and tire warning light that kept coming on---dealer said they reset the onboard computer. other than basic oil and filter changes we have had no other expenses in about 3 years of driving.

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  great car (25000 miles in 10 months) - 2010 Hyundai Elantra
  By hale1 - August 2 - 11:14 am

  I was a little suspect with Hyundai because of their reputation from their early years, but when I was car shopping the civic, toyota, and chevy cobalt did not compare in bang for the buck. I just wanted a gas friendly car to replace my z71. The worst mpg I have ever got is 29mpg with 36mpg on my recent trip from sc to fl. I made it from olrando to columbia sc on one tank of gas! interior is excellent given the class of car and the ipod hookup is great. The only two concerns I have had are: the light colored seats stain REALLY easy.. even from a water spill and my transmission has done a few quirky things while accelerating. Nothing to make me think it is going to break, just a hard shift.

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  Tough Couple of Years - 2007 Hyundai Sonata
  By mike334 - July 31 - 9:26 am

  I bought this car late 2008 with 31K miles, thinking it was worth not spending the extra 4 grand for an Accord. Issues with interior pieces, rattles, ignition lock, etc. Issues with rear brakes and suspension noises. Junction (fuse) box shorted out. Noise from failing timing chain tensioner that will eventually fail. Hyundai parts are very costly, and local repair shops in my corner of the world are mystified by Hyundais. These cars are probably fine for someone who drives 10,000 miles per year, but the components just dont hold up for someone like myself who uses the car for business at 2.5 times that mileage. FYI, all the required maintenance was done, and promptly, to no avail.