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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  Two Hundred Eighty Seven Thousand Miles and Runs Great - 2007 Hyundai Accent
  By warren_j - July 11 - 2:53 pm

  First the bad. The hatchback latch spring gets stuck so after pulling it to open the rear door, I have to manually place the latch/handle back in place. I REALLY wish there had been cruise control on the Accent. The good. Everything else. This car has been driven an average 300 miles a day and it has been awesome. Outer paint looks new, engine runs great. Inner trim still looks great (but showing scratches and some fraying on the seats). Just took it to the dealer for a checkup, engine light on issue and an oil change ... $250 total bill. Ill drive it to Florida next week. Averaging 36-37 mpg with the 5 speed, compare that to my 31 mpg avg driving a 2007 Versa 6 speed.

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  2011 Genesis 4.6 - 2011 Hyundai Genesis
  By joefrank46 - July 10 - 10:27 am

  Ive had this car for 7 months, 8000 miles of both local and highway driving. Replaced an 06 Acura TL...no comparison! Performance and ride are great. Averaging 27 mpg hwy, 22 in town. The ride is comparable to the 525 I had prior to the TL. For the money, this car cant be beat! Maintenance costs (oil chgs) to date average $40! Biggest flaw I can find is the trunk interior is not the most lavish...better (trunk) carpeting would be an improvement. This car makes you want to take the long way!

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  Update - 2012 Hyundai Elantra
  By thfrazer - July 8 - 7:14 pm

  Sorry about the last review. The editors at Edmunds didnt quite get it right. I admit it was long. Exterior: Unique, eye catching, not mundane. Interior: Well appointed, well laid out. Very nice fit and finish. Excellent leg room in back. Relatively quiet. Motor: Powerful and responsive for a 4 cylinder. Somewhat noisy when pushed, but provides the power you need. Does well passing on the interstate. Other Mechanical Items: The brakes are good, the steering is responsive, and the knobs and buttons do not feel or look cheap. AC works great here in Florida. Radio w/ XM is nice, but I wish it had more power to push the speakers.

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  Very pleased - 2012 Hyundai Accent
  By t_lecuyer - July 7 - 2:27 pm

  Ive now owned my Accent for 2 weeks and I have nothing but good things to say about my purchase. The styling is impressive and they have definitely stepped up in terms of overall quality and features for this model. I love the Eco and the MPG feature that helps me with gas mileage and all of this without affecting the torque. They added the features that are available on the higher end models in their smaller model and it makes for a great little car. The engine has the same power as my 2006 Elantra had and it drives smoothly all around. The only issue I would pass on is the comfort of the headrests, which I got used to quickly. My wife not as much, but all in all the comfort is there

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  2009 Elantra - 2009 Hyundai Elantra
  By johnyuhaschek - July 6 - 2:06 pm

  Fun Car to Drive, Smooth Ride, Comfortable Seats, Spacious for a small car, Great Sound System

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  Great car. One major flaw!!! - 2011 Hyundai Genesis
  By motorgolf - July 5 - 1:14 am

  I love the car. Second Hyundai and no complaints other than one. Air bag passenger Off Light glows a bright orange at night even when no one is sitting in the passenger seat. It is very disconcerting since everything else is a very nice blue. I contacted Hyundai corporate. A very nice lady said there was no solution and she asked me if I could avoid driving at night. I told her not really. I didnt buy a luxury car that I wouldnt drive it at night. She realized she asked a dumb question. My solution is to scotch tape a penny over the Off Light at night. I wonder if a Lexus has the same kind of flaw.

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  Nice styling and yes you can get the advertised MPGs - 2012 Hyundai Elantra
  By acaneb1164 - June 29 - 9:05 pm

  I have the GLS with Preferred package (auto trans, a/c, bluetooth, steering wheel controls, etc.). I chose the Elantra after also driving the Cruze, Focus and Mazda 3. I have 1,200 miles on it. Regarding mileage: I see some with the 2011 model (same vehicle) saying they dont get the stated 29/40 mileage. I would guess that they didnt follow the break in period instructions in the manual - for the first 500 miles drive at a variety of RPMs between 2-4,000 RPM as much as you can. If you have the auto transmission you can do this with the shiftronic mode. After break in, I can get over 42 mpg at 75 mph with the a/c on. The 29 mpg in city is tougher but can be done.

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  2012 Elantra GLS - 2012 Hyundai Elantra
  By thfrazer - June 28 - 2:25 pm

  2012 Hyundai Elantra GLS Black with gray interior and Automatic transmission, preferred package, carpeted floor mats, ipod cable, electrochromatic mirror with Homelink, and emergency roadside kit. This will be a long and detailed review. I must preface everything by saying that I have been driving a 2000 BMW 323ia for the past 11 years. It now becomes my sons. It is impossible for me to review any car without reflecting back on my experience with my BMW. If BMW’s weren’t so damn expensive I’d never buy another brand. I will try to point out the areas where my BMW experience has impacted my review of the Hyundai. My job requires that I carry a catalog case with about 35 pounds of paper in it and I am reluctant to toss it in for fear of breaking the floor, but I’ve never actually tested my theory. It would be nice if there were some trays in the floor on the side of the trunk to put things you don’t want sliding around (a la BMW). The doors are also light and easy to open. I am very impressed with how wide they open. Especially the front doors. It makes it very easy to enter and exit the vehicle. Compared to my BMW this is very impressive! When opening the doors from inside the car there is not a defined click or sound/feel when the door unlatches. I’m 53 so I like my AC/DC, Tull, and Zeppelin loud. The Ipod cable and connection work great. Once the system has “loaded” your Ipod you can control it from the radio stack or the steering wheel. Very nice! Seats: The drivers seat is easy to position and it alone has an up/down feature. For me the sides of the bottom cushion push in on my thighs too much even though I’m only 5’ 10” and 170lbs. After a while it begins to annoy me. I’m sure my legs will get accustomed to this, but for now I notice it. I am one of those people that can’t sit anywhere without my lower back being uncomfortable so my comments about the seats should be taken with that in mind. Air-conditioning: The controls are easy to see and easy to manipulate. The air is ice-cold, as it should be. One small issue is that if you use Max AC then you cannot have the air blowing anywhere but from the upper vents. The fan noise is minimal. Miscellaneous: The center armrest in the front slides forward which is nice. However, once you’ve done that it is not easy to push the latch to lift it up to reveal the storage area below it. The side pockets of the front doors have a tilted bottle holder. These will NOT work for cups or anything else that doesn’t have a lid that seals well. They will work well for baby bottles, but not for cups from a fast food restaurant. I haven’t had to put the brakes to any kind of test, but they have stopped me quickly when I just wanted to see what would happen. This car is light so any kind of brakes would do a good job. Fuel Economy As I’ve pointed out the Elantra was built with lightweight materials in an attempt to increase gas mileage. The lack of a spare tire is for weight savings as well as cost savings. You will notice the bumps and jolts in this car more than you would in an SUV or heavier car such as a BMW. That is the price you pay for better fuel economy. Unfortunately, you are NOT going to get the mileage you see posted on the window in my opinion.

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  Great car just no power at all - 2009 Hyundai Elantra
  By mr_nevotti - June 25 - 8:51 am

  I love the car gas is great just has no power like when i go to Tahoe i really have to get all the way in the slow lane and go like 50MPH in the slow lane its horrible.......

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  286,000 Miles and Almost Like New - 2007 Hyundai Accent
  By warren_j - June 25 - 6:49 am

  I am actually the second owner. The first commuted 300 miles each day from PA to MD four 4 years (80K miles /year x 4 years). I just drove from MD to Atlanta to pick up my daughter over the past three days. From the look of the car, you would think I just went to the 7eleven. Ive owned 2 Fords, 2 Nissans, 1 Mitsubishi, 1 Toyota, 1 VW and 2 Audis. This is the coolest little car Ive ever owned. It gets about 36 miles per gallon average, turns on a dime, runs perfectly, is super smooth in traffic and up to 80 mph on the highway, and looks pretty good. The 6 CD stereo sounds really good, although it skips when running without AC in summer heat. In short, its an amazing little car.