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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  2017 Elantra SE Man - 2017 Hyundai Elantra
  By Jonathan Bird - November 30 - 6:49 am

  The value on this vehicle is amazing, very easy to drive and comfortable. I work For Hyundai and to be honest i never even considered owning one until I took a customer on a test drive in the 6 speed manual. I was hooked. The ease of shifting and how simple the SE is. I was looking to get into an SUV or something a little bit Larger but I ended up loving the Elantra. the 10 Year 100k Mile Power-train warranty keeps maintenance simple and the 5 year 60K bumper to bumper makes it even better.

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  reliable and fun to drive - 2000 Hyundai Elantra
  By Andy Schutte - November 29 - 6:13 pm

  I really enjoy my Elantra and would recommend it to anyone. I am good about maintaining it at the dealer, and in return it has been good to me - one mechanical breakdown in almost 5 years and 90k miles - which was covered under the warranty.

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  GT a fun car!! - 2003 Hyundai Elantra
  By sd0315 - November 29 - 3:14 pm

  great car reliable, fun, good power.

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  Great Car, Here are the things I would fix - 2006 Hyundai Sonata
  By GregNice23 - November 28 - 9:13 pm

  Great Car. I wrote my review already about this car, here are my suggestions towards a better car. They need to fix the front seats, they are very very uncomfortable. Needs break away mirrors. Take that damn seatbelt warning off, it drives me crazy. The ride is choppy, its not as smooth as a accord or camry. If they fix this the car would outsell toyota and honda hands down. Also, change the rear lights, it looks to much like the 05 accord, it needs its own identity.

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  dont buy it - 2008 Hyundai Sonata
  By green - November 28 - 8:43 pm

  Just bought this car for less than 2 months, and wanted to get rid of it everyday. There are several problems: (a) a lot of rattles on the front side of the car. This is ridiculous for a car with only 1500 miles, and says something about its build quality. (b) the infamous rear suspension problem seems not fixed even for this 2008 model. When I drive it at a imperfect road at 30-40 mph, I simply cannot bear it. I have to choose a longer route to work because of this problem. (c) when the oil tank is full, it makes noises, and the dealership told me that the cure is not to get a full tank. Will I buy a hyundai again? you bet not.

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  Best Bang for the Buck - 2011 Hyundai Genesis Coupe
  By merft - November 27 - 3:47 pm

  Ive been watching the GC for a couple years and waited to see first year impressions. After test driving the equivalent Camaro and Mustang, by price, what sold me was the handling of the Genesis. Going fast is nice but where other than the track can you do it legally? However, get the Genesis on some curvy mountain roads and the competitors pale in comparison. I am in love with this car and have no regrets or complaints.

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  Industry"s best kept secret - 2006 Hyundai Sonata
  By VJ Kazaka - November 27 - 12:16 am

  This is the best equipped, best built, best designed, AND best priced car on the market. Body integrity is outstanding. Design completeness is apparent thru out. I looked at all the available cars in the competitive arena and kept coming back to the Sonata.

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  So far so great - 2008 Hyundai Elantra
  By jason - November 26 - 11:50 am

  First 200 miles: 34mpg mixed city+highway. As an 1998 Honda Civic owner, I was really impressed with Hyundai offers for the price. I wanted to buy another Honda, but I kept on seeing things that Hyundai was doing better at a lower price. Only BMW offered a better package+story in my opinion... but at a much higher price. -- I love the satel. radio. I dont want to leave my car now. -- I dealt with several dealers. Know your vehicle because the sales staff might not. "Trust and verify" -- The _relatively_ quiet ride and good acceleration is going to cause me to get a few speeding tickets. :-( correction: I said it was getting 34 - 35mpg. That was a mistake. Thats the avg speed that the trip computer shows. It shows a mpg of 29.2.

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  A lot of car for the money!! - 2015 Hyundai Sonata
  By Derrick W. - November 25 - 1:17 pm

  If you ae in the market for a quality mid-sized sedan, then this car should be at the top of the list. I just purchased my Sonata yesterday, & I was pleasantly impressed. The car, when I got in it, had a very good quality feel. It didnt seem to be cheap, & the tech package was impressive. But what blew me away is the way the car drove & handled. After the test drive I hardly believed it was a 4 cyl car; @ 185 hrs pwr you have enough to get the job done - if you need more then of course youll foot the bill for that, but I dont find it necessary unless you plan to go street racing. The mix of fuel economy, elegant design, & appointments make this car really competitive against choices like the Honda Accord, Toyota Camry, Kia Optima, Nissan Maxima, etc., but checks in way below the belt pricewise of them all. To me the this is the most bang for your buck.

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  Didnt buy a Lexus - 2009 Hyundai Sonata
  By Test Driver - November 24 - 2:10 pm

  Having driven the Sonata for less than a month and married with 3 kids, this car seems to deliver. Most of the cars I owned were Toyota but with the worse economy since the depression, Hyundai is right for our budget. I would suggest to visually check every nook and cranny before signing. this car is roomy and interior design is up to par, the dash board placement of gauges and knobs are intuitive. Great gas mileage. No buyers remorse yet, update you all next year.