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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  So so car, dont expect much - 2009 Hyundai Elantra
  By superedmundsf - January 24 - 10:47 pm

  The only reason Ive gotten this vehicle is because my wife trashed our 2007 Toyota Camry SE-V6. Cant afford the same level of car so we settled on Hyundai Elantra, 09, brand new at the time. Now, fast forward 70K miles and here are my reviews: The transmission starts to rattle a bit now as shifting up can be adventurous at times. Keep in mind I take care of my religiously so its not a matter of not maintaining it. Electrical problems starting to surface. TPMS will show up for no reason. Overall drive is stoic but comfy. Performance is ok (typically for a small sedan, dont expect much.) You get what you pay for, dont be fool by the marketing, adequate car but Civic it isnt.

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  2007 Sonata problems - 2007 Hyundai Sonata
  By simplysno - January 22 - 9:06 am

  I bought my care almost new, 9000 miles on it. Its my 2nd Hyundai. My last one, an Elantra ran 237,000 miles, literally problem free until the transmission fell out. Damn good car. So good thought I would buy another. She runs great but has severe electrical problems. Dealership said nothing wrong but I have replaced every single bulb in that car no less than 3 times in under five years. There was a recall for the brake lights and I took it to the dealership. Still happens. Paint job is the worst. Its obvious the car has NO primer on it. The paint on the hood and above the windshield has been peeling in chunks, literally chunks all this time. Car looks like its 15 yrs old.

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  Quality concerns the more miles we drive - 2011 Hyundai Elantra
  By matheson1977 - January 16 - 1:02 pm

  Car is OK at best, easy to like inside and out and a good value....but you sometimes get what you pay for. Weve had ours for a bit more than 9 months and find it has loosened up" quite a bit. We have noticed mostly in cooler wether several rattles from the inside and creeks and groans from the suspension. the engine also seem to be making much more noise than nomal, sounding very ticky at times. I have had it in to the dealer for that and they say its normal. Im also very dissapointed with the fuel economy, its nowhere near whats advertised no matter how or where i drive.

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  Mixed Feelings - 2008 Hyundai Sonata
  By mr_keating - January 3 - 12:14 pm

  I purchased the 2008 Sonata GLS about three years ago. I immediately noticed a lag or hesitation when the trans shifts from 1st to 2nd gear. Came to find out that Sonatas have tranny issues, and have for years. Interior build quality is cheap. Lots of squeking from the plastic sections of the dash. Not a lot of pick-up at lower speeds, but does fairly well at highway speeds.

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  Falling Apart!!! - 2007 Hyundai Sonata
  By nolagirl - December 28 - 8:51 pm

  Im at 57k miles now. Currently my car is sitting with a locked ignition and steering wheel waiting to be repaired. The car looks nice and does well on the highway. However, if it is plastic, it is broken or will break soon. So far, visors are broken, the front skirt is cracked, paint flaking everywhere, drivers seat only goes back, not up, the seat adjustment control falls off every time I get out the car, the passenger side view mirror housing is broken ($300 paint & replacement) and yesterday my back drivers side door handle fell off. This car is built of extremely CHEAP materials. The interior is very worn also despite being a 2007 that isnt heavily driven. Never again!

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  I Am Up And Down With My Car, But I Love It! - 2000 Hyundai Elantra
  By eddied1991 - December 9 - 3:49 pm

  I actually have an automatic. I bought this car completely on a whim, one because I was pressured to, and two, because it would have been my first car and I had recently got my license. The car ran great during the first year I had it, then I started noticing some transmission issues, but they are an easy but costly fix. I only had to replace the spark plugs and wires. I bought the car at 126k miles, and I now have 144k on it and it still runs like a charm. Both windows in the back have a shot motor, and the interior isnt the best, but I have driven this car everywhere and it still does me good.

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  Disappointed repeat Hyundai customer - 2012 Hyundai Accent
  By stanmansell - December 8 - 2:56 pm

  This is my 3rd HYundai and first disappointment.I bought it for the MPG. Just getting 33 with ECO on hghwy 28 in city and dealer said it was because its cold? Dealer said 40mpg and some people getting47?? Most trips at 60deg. Tried to buy extra key only at dealer for $100 and not available yet? NO sparetire just a run flat can with cig liter pump, which should be fun in cold weather, CHEAP. Hood release right by knee and I have hit it many times on exiting, pain in A. AC control in fan button and hit many times by accident. Poor vision for rear window and better to remove head rests to improve. Other little stuff but out of characters.Test drive well before you buy.

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  Catalytic converter problems - 2005 Hyundai Sonata
  By dartman7 - November 30 - 5:16 pm

  I bought a new Kia Sephia and had bad rotors after 2 years. Then, after 79000 miles, it had a bad front catalytic converter. I thought it might be a fluke, so I decided to buy a new 2005 Sonata, even though theyre made by the same company. After 2 years the rotors went bad and warped. Then, 5 1/2 years and 63000 miles, the front catalytic converter went bad. I will not buy any Kia or Hyundai again, no matter how good of a deal it may be.

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  NOT COMFORTABLE - 2012 Hyundai Equus
  By kfd1 - October 25 - 12:13 pm

  The long distance comfort of this car is of serious concern. I bought this car and took a 900 mile trip a day later. Three hours into trip, my back was screaming in pain. By the end of trip, I was incapacited, with shooting pains in legs, back and arms. I am a long distance driver and convinced the Hyundia Dealer to buy the car back after showing them the articles on Autoblog about the seats (google Equus Long Distance). The dealer purchase a Lexus LS460 (14,000 miles) and I traded up. I just completed a 600 mile trip in the Lexus. No back pain or any other pain. The front seats in the Equus are poorly designed. No way to modify them, I tried and even had a pad made with memory foam.

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  Bit of a dissapointment - 2007 Hyundai Sonata
  By forbor - September 29 - 7:41 pm

  Heres my story, all true. Love the way the car looks, & performs, but thats where it all falls apart. After about 2 weeks the drivers seat bagan to rock, & squeak, after many trips to the dealer for repairs, it now only rocks. The seat mount plastic cover no longer stays on. Stereo cuts out intermittently over bumps, this problem seemed to correct itself. More steering wheel mounted radio controls wouldve been nice (no tune button). Appx 50k mi. the timing chain tensioner hung up, & valve inbeds into piston, nice! Recall for this ended in 06. Paint thin, & flakes off. Seems like hyundai has a bit to learn about making cars, last one ill buy I think.