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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  The hottest car you can get for 19k - 2006 Hyundai Tiburon
  By Chris - January 19 - 12:20 am

  I got sick of making repairs for my last vehicle, so I bit the bullit and bought new. Im glad I did. The Tiburon caught me by surprise with quality and style for the money (not to mention warrantee). Ive only had the car for a week, but it has a very comfortable ride, a hot looking interior with red stitched leather wheel and seats, and a great stereo. The 5 speed shifts nicely and the clutch is pretty forgiving. Since its a hatchback there is a ton of room for storage for a pretty small car, another big positive. The only things I could wish for are a standard 6 speed manual, a couple more horses under the hood or better gas mileage from the 2.7l v6 (rated at 19/26)

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  Hyundai Tuscon Great SUV for a first time SUV owne - 2016 Hyundai TUCSON
  By Amy - January 17 - 10:27 pm

  I was looking for a SUV to replace my 8 cylinder full time 4wd Dodge Durango that was aging. Consumer Reports and Edmunds both rated the Hyundai SUVs in the top 3, so they were on my shortlist from the beginning. From this line, I tested the Hyundai Tuscon AWD 4cyl, 4cyl turbo, and the Santa Fe 6cyl optioned up with the technology/safety packages. While I thought the handling and drive were smooth, the vehicles lacked power even in the turbo version. The luxury versions were nice inside and had all the great technology options of the more expensive vehicles in the class, but I found the seats not terribly comfortable in the middle and back rows. In addition, I had some difficulty climbing into the drivers seat at 51". There wasnt any step-up/running board, or handle to assist climbing in on the driver or passenger side. Considering I was coming from a much larger & taller vehicle, and didnt have these issues, I found this dissappointing. The price was attractive an competitive, with a great warranty. One thing I found odd is that all the local dealers ONLY had BLACK and WHITE on the lot available for purchase. Living in a large metro area, with 3 dozen or so dealers in a 30 mile radius, I found this a huge issue. If I wanted another color, I had to order and wait. Being that I needed a vehicle ASAP, this presented a problem. All in all, I preferred the Santa Fe 6cyl, but it is a significant amount more than the Tuscon for virtually the same vehicle/features. For someone going from a car to a SUV, the Hyundai Tuscon and Santa Fe are great vehicles for the money. If you are going from one of the other big SUVs, you may be underwhelmed. I ended up purchasing the Dodge Durango Citadel AWD which is the top rated SUV

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  2007 vera-cruz - 2008 Hyundai Veracruz
  By bernard n.edwards - January 16 - 7:06 pm

  We are on our 7th Hyundai and wanted to share our thoughts about. What ever Hyundai products they come out with it will be well built, highly engineered, extremely good quality, and currently own a 2007 vere-cruz with the ultimate package, and a 2007 sonata limited, not only are they beautiful they are very reliable vehicles, and I get 25 mph with our Vera-cruz two wheel drive, and get 28 mph with our v6 sonata. We are very proud of our Hyundais and will be buying the new Genesis sedan next summer, unless they put the v8 in the Vera-cruz. Now that would be something. I surely hope Hyundai at least make this an option. Some people critize a car no matter what. Hyundai rules in our house. Bernard Edwards.

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  Gas Mileage Off by 1/3, total misrepresentation - 2013 Hyundai Sonata
  By willyt007 - January 16 - 1:38 pm

  When I was shopping for a new car, I was only shopping because I was taking a new position, and mileage was a huge factor. Bottom line, Hyundai advertised 35 mpg on 2013 Sonata, driving like a granny with almost 100% highway miles, the best I ever got was 26 mpg, but usually 25 mpg or less. At almost 14,000 miles on it, Im looking to trade it even though I have a wrap around 100,000 mile warranty with zero deductible. I cannot drive a car for 100,000 when I was flat out lied to about mileage, for which theyve already settle one lawsuit, and they still do it.

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  An awesome, awesome vehicle! - 2005 Hyundai TUCSON
  By chadnskey - January 16 - 10:56 am

  I no complaints about the Tuscon. It is comfortable, very smooth ride, and the V6 performs very well. I bought this SUV because of the excellent 10 year warranty, the 5 year roadside assistance, the sporty styling, dual exhuast and its "bowed up" stance. It looks like it is ready to rumble! My wife loves the car as well. The engine compartment is extremely simple with all of the fluid dipsticks color coded and easy to check. There are so many standard features available. Other manufacturers charge for whats standard on this vehicle. So far, I am very, very happy with this Suv!

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  I wish they could build SE i-4 manual... - 2009 Hyundai Sonata
  By Ross B - January 15 - 4:30 pm

  I am 6.3" 300 lbs guy with a normal driving style. Here is my first impression from my first 200 miles: The good: - great value ( cant beat 14,975$ price) - good interior ( dual color comes with cherry read color) - solid build quality - good fuel economy (200 miles on less than 1/2 tank) - manual tranny is Ok, except the clutch bites too soon The bad: - very soft suspension and numb steering feel - seat is too soft, no adjustable lumbar support or telescope steering wheel for GLS trim The Ugly: - SE trim would probably address most of my complaints but Hyundai simply doesnt manufacture SE I-4 despite the fact it is listed even in their brochure. I would gladly pay 2000$ for SE.

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  A Wonderful, Affordable Vehicle - 2005 Hyundai Accent
  By Anne Martin - January 15 - 3:01 pm

  This car is great - everything promised and Im very pleased with the mileage and performance. The warranty cant be beat!

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  2000 tiburon the real review - 2000 Hyundai Tiburon
  By brads3111 - January 14 - 11:36 pm

  Ok little car. It will be the last hyundai i buy. Problems with it. every 60,000 you must replace the altenator. It causes powersurges and blows headlights. ive had three wheel bearings go out. I baby my car and have nothing but problems. it over heats even though i have changed my radiator, thermostat and water pump, and i change my fluid every year. It rattles like crazy.. Dont get one. i do have 160,00 on it

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  Doesnt feel or look anything like old compacts - 2017 Hyundai Elantra
  By Steve W - January 14 - 6:41 am

  First thing is the SE trim is amazingly well equipped inside if you add the tech package. This is the best infotainment I have seen in an economy car or really any luxury car that was 2013 or prior. Large prominent full color display with seemless Pandora integration using Bluetooth or Android auto. Full phone navigation on the display is great as well even if potentially buggy depending on the phone. Cloth seats in 2017 models have come a long way even in the last few years. Usually cloth looks cheap and a little out of place. In this case the cloth looks durable and well suited to the clean new look of the car. The patterns are taste full and sharp while the added leather center console and wheel on the upgraded SE make the overall interior feel rich for such a budget car. The base sound system is also surprisingly punchy. My wifes 2013 sonata standard system doesnt have nearly as much body or as clear highs. The sound may not touch a premium set of speakers, but having turned down the limited trim with its upgradable speakers I have to say I am plenty happy with the base system. It seems like they must be pushing more wattage than older base head units because it gets loud enough to make your ears ring with only minor distortion. It reminds me of the difference of adding aftermarket speakers and a custom head unit without an amplifier. So better than expected. This car drives a lot more like my 2013 sonata with better electronic steering, than what I used to consider a compact car. I really happen to love the new feel of their steering and also the very quite ride compared to older models. I feel like the car has plenty of power especially in sport mode. I have no doubt a civic especially a si would destroy it but my car only cost 18k after tax and tag and both base packages with the base trim. Honda doesnt offer any breaks to compete with that price. Though I will say the car can cruise at 80 to 90 and still feel smooth and ready to go. Sport mode gives you passing power enough to feel confident in normal city driving so you are not a punching bag. The only time I would want more passing power would be to drive like a jerk. The car also feels very solid on high speed banks. Overall this is the most refined budget compact car I have ever driven. I also find the new civic extremely appealing but the price on the hyundai is infinitely better with all their incentives.

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  A Value Leader Among the Compacts - 2003 Hyundai Elantra
  By NoMoreAmericanCars - January 13 - 7:22 pm

  My car has 16500 miles on it, and it hasnt started squeaking, rattling or falling apart after 5000 miles like an American car would. Mine is a 5 speed with every option including traciton control and ABS, which is rare and hard to find. I test drove an automatic, but it was too sensitive to throttle inputs and kept reving up to and past 4500 rpm, which is useless since my 5 speed pulls even the steepest hills in 5th. Quality is much better than any American car of this size. Some cheap interior pieces, but they are all put together very well. Even the tires are an expensive Michelin model, which rides comfortably and qietly in the summer, but are useless in the snow (see below).