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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  HYUNDAI - 2001 Hyundai Sonata
  By JannaH - May 19 - 2:54 pm

  I purchased a used Hyundai last year after my Ford Explorer gave out on me. I was skeptical at first because I didnt know much about Hyundai after my test drive, I was sold. The power and the sleekness of this car has really been worth the remarkably low price I paid for the car (9,000 with a 4 year 75,000 mile total warranty). I am very pleased with my car I just wish I could have found one with a sun roof at the dealership! :)

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  Sonota Odor - 2010 Hyundai Sonata
  By vin - May 19 - 10:00 am

  When I purchased my 2010 Sonota I was told that a chemical odor in the car was associated with a metal protector applied to a new engine at the factory and it would burn off shortly after driving it awhile. After a year, the odor did not go away. In that year, I brought the car back to the dealer on several occasions to complain about it. The dealer acknowledged the smell was present and tried to remove the odor once by cleaning the car. They admitted they could not remove the odor. Except for odor, the car has been great (just like my previous Sonota). Unfortunately, I no longer recommend buying Hyundai cars. Hyundai does not stand behind their product after they make the sale.

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  My Search for a great Mid Size value - 2011 Hyundai Sonata
  By JBiss - May 19 - 10:00 am

  I looked at and test drove the Sonata,Jetta,Camry,Accord,Fusion, and the Mazda6. My runner ups were the Jetta and Mazda6. The others were boring or too pricey for me to get the features I wanted. Most of all I liked the Sonata for its looks both on the outside and inside. I loved the way it handles, and I love all the features that come standard with the SE model. The Mazda6 was very responsive as well but did not have the features I wanted in the model and price compared to the Sonata SE. The Sonata looks the best to me of all the others that I test drove. I looked at the Buick Regal but did not test it because of the price. I am now a very happy owner of a new 2011 Hyundai Sonata.

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  Swing....and a miss. - 2015 Hyundai Sonata
  By KenB - May 19 - 4:38 am

  For the first few months, I was happy with my purchase...then I started noticing little things that made me wonder if I made the right decision. One of my early concerns happened on the first rainy day that I needed to get something out of the trunk. The design of the area around the trunk channels the water INTO the trunk when its opened...think wet bags of groceries. The more I used the car, the more I realized that some things were just dumb. Id start the car and back up, only to see that the backup camera cuts out after 5 seconds as the entertainment system boots up....the black screen lasts about 10 seconds. Occasionally I wont be able to use the entertainment or navigation systems at all for about 2 minutes as it goes through its initialization. Ever leave the radio volume turned up when you turn off the car? Now, imagine not being able to turn it down the next morning until the system is good and ready to let you do that. The safety system is questionable...is that a hill ahead? Better sound the collision warning! Ive been pulled over by a State Trooper because the auto-high beams turned on as our cars passed each other. (I dont use that feature any more.) The Blue Link system is spotty at best. The remote start seems to work fine during nice weather, but it fails about 50% of the time in the winter, when I really need it. (This is NOT an exaggeration...I have the "Remote start is not available at this time." emails to prove that.) The Blue Link features a great car locator, just the thing I want to be able to check that my daughter made it to the mall or to a friends house. However, it works only on the Mobile app...not from a browser...and, get this, the car has to be within a mile of your phone! Useless, useless, useless. Ive had to take it to the dealer a couple of times because the front rotors became warped and one of the brakes units failed....both when the car has had less than 18000 miles. Every day I detect a new rattle....in the door, behind the dash board, in the back seat. I plan to get a new car in a couple of years and you can be sure that it wont be a Hyundai.

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  Extreme tire wear - 2013 Hyundai Sonata
  By rodeo5 - May 18 - 7:03 pm

  Car is designed with tire lean that is not adjustable. Be prepared to buy new tires every 15,000 miles or listen to them thump as you drive down the road.

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  Like my Hyundai Wagon - 2000 Hyundai Elantra
  By Dave52 - May 18 - 5:44 pm

  After 4-1/2 years and 116000 miles, I still like it. It does everything, and has been incredibly reliable. I do my own work, other than the timing belt changes. I use synthetic oil at 6000 mile intervals, and have gone thru two sets of tires, but no brakes yet nor exhaust. Mileage averages 31-33 for normal commuting, I got down to 24, but that was towing a thousand pound camper, car fully loaded, with A/C on, doing 75 mph. I expect to own this until it dies, so I dont care about resale. Usual gripes about cupholders, lightweight plastic in the door panels. Roof rack is rugged, no problem with canoes or ladders or furniture.

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  One Fine Car - 1991 Hyundai Sonata
  By arnold mosher - May 17 - 11:10 pm

  When I bought this car I could see the look on some peoples faces ( junk ). But I was hopeful and up to the challenge to prove them wrong . The car has been very good to me and never gave me any serious or expensive trouble . It still holds its original paint and looks good . 272000 k and still going strong . It still does everything it did when it was new and I plan to keep it until it dies . It is driven winter and summer every year shows absolutely no rust and has no holes in the underbody . The person who does my annual safety inspection cannot believe it year after year saying you should sell this car back to Hyundai . I did offer , they declined . So I dont know what else I could ask for

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  Wife Loves her XG - 2005 Hyundai XG350
  By BetterSafe - May 17 - 4:40 pm

  Surprisingly nice vehicle, with good dealer support. Best luxury car for the money, with awesome warranty. Drives like a dream, very comfortable, yet with good handling. A whole lot cheaper than the Jaguar S-type that we were considering!

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  not happy - 2002 Hyundai Santa Fe
  By 2002 hyundai santa f - May 17 - 11:43 am

  my hyundai santa fe stopped running in 2006 and i had to have almost three thousand dollars worth of work done on it in which the hyundai dealer ship did not honner the waranty. 2009 it stop running again, this time it cost five hundred dollars. now 2010 its not running again. same thing wrong with it. i am a older lady that has always taken care of my cars and just wanted something i did NOT have to keep putting money into,and also i cant afford to get it fixed so here i am without a car to drive.the body and the interior look like new.this has not been a dependable car and i would never buy another one again and would never sell the idea to anyone else. VERY UNHAPPY!!!

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  JUst blown away! - 2006 Hyundai TUCSON
  By Ken - May 16 - 5:23 am

  I was looking to purchase the Santa Fe originally but once I saw the Tucson up close and drove it, I had to have it! I anticipated the vehicle to be as small inside as it is on the outside but boy was I wrong! It has a big truck feel for sure! There is ample room inside for hauling whatever within reason. The 2.7 V6 has nice power and acceleration plus the tranny is smooth and tight. Mine is the 4x4 model which operates at 90% front wheel drive and 10% rear unless you go 50/50 with the push button. The traction contriol system with the 4 wheel ABS works great! It keeps the truck very stable. The overall look of the vehicle is outstanding! Ive had people think it was a BMW X3 already!