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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  best new car - 2003 Hyundai Sonata
  By john 2 - November 16 - 2:04 pm

  I love my new car.It was a great deal, lots of car for the money

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  my hyundai - 2003 Hyundai Elantra
  By john 2 - November 16 - 1:57 pm

  good price and very good service.

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  gls 2.7 6cyl - 2006 Hyundai TUCSON
  By 06 tuscon - November 16 - 9:00 am

  Bought my tucson in june of 2006 with careful consideration, I love this car, it has great handling, manuervabilty and easy to drive. I like the rear seats fold flat for hauling things, and the rear window opens as well as the door. the tucson has five star crash test for the front as well as the sides. although the tucson can use little bit more horse power, I am quite happy with the performance after 10 thousand miles. I am getting 19.5-20.5 mpg in town and 23-24 mpg on highway going 80 mph+. I also like the mirrors that fold both ways to prevent someone walking by and breaking them.

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  King of the road - 2005 Hyundai Santa Fe
  By fmark - November 16 - 12:46 am

  Best bang for the buck

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  WOW!! - 2007 Hyundai Entourage
  By s_yma - November 15 - 10:16 pm

  We NEVER thought that we would buy a Hyundai. We decided to look at this one originally because of the warranty and all of the problems we were having with our then-current minivan. After driving the Entourage all we could say was WOW!, and were do we sign. We bought an SE with every option except leather. The build quality, seating, standard features, optional features, ergonomics, ride and drive, and anything else related to a vehicle are as close to perfect as you can get. Anyone looking to buy a van will be doing themselves a huge injustice if they dont drive a Entourage before making a purchase.

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  Hyundai Tucson, LX 2005 - 2005 Hyundai TUCSON
  By Rawal - November 15 - 4:43 pm

  Really wonderful vehicle to own with an excellent driving experience. Dealer ready to discuss pricing and very comfortable buying experience. Awesome features. Atleast 4-5K more on any other brand model. Wonderful warranty. Must check out if in market for a compact SUV. I am getting a mileage of 26-27 miles a gallon.

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  BEST CAR ON MARKET - 2007 Hyundai Tiburon
  By JOE L - November 15 - 4:56 am

  This vehicle is amazing. It rides nice and everyone will look at you when you are on the road. There are not alot of them on the road which makes them unique. If i got to choose to buy this car again I would its the best on the market. I have not found anything to complain about this car.

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  This is not Your Fathers Hyundai! - 2006 Hyundai Sonata
  By Shawn D. - November 15 - 4:53 am

  Not only does this car look like a luxury car, the actual features makes it feel like a luxury car! I compared the Camry as well as the Accord, and for the money, the Sonata comes with more standard features for the money. At first glance, many of my friends and family cant believe its a Hyundai, with many mistaking it for different cars such as the Accord or Benz, looking at it from a glance. The sound system is great, the space is really impressive, especially the back leg room, as well as the trunk space. The only drawback Ive found so far are the "break-in" period is opposite from anything Ive ever heard before. For the first 1200 miles, youre not supposed to drive over 55MPH.

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  Love this car - 2002 Hyundai Elantra
  By Manton863 - November 15 - 1:32 am

  This car is great it is roomy and fun to drive and holds up well with day to day driving. Like the rear disk brakes but only if you have abs. I have found that if you put fuel injector cleaner and a stp 4 cylinder oil treatment every time you do the oil, (which is only another couple bucks) you get alot better gas mileage out of the car.

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  Hyundai Sonata Review - 2016 Hyundai Sonata
  By Brian Kenison - November 14 - 5:46 pm

  Sleek styling, comfortable ride, adequate pick-up and plenty of room for passengers and cargo. Environmental (heating) takes a bit longer to warm up the cabin, but gets there. Could use more air flow to the feet. Handles firmly on the road, but road noise is louder than expected. Overall good value for the money.