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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  Very good and practical - 2009 Hyundai Sonata
  By Eman - July 17 - 8:40 pm

  Im 48. After many years of sports cars and pick-ups, including my last Chevy S-10,which literally fell apart at 70,000 miles, I bought a new Sonata. I am a family man, with daughters 11 and 8. My wife drives a van. So, I decided to be practical -- buy a family sedan with good ratings and few frills. It came down to a Sonata or Honda Accord. I liked the Sonata better after test drives (the base Accord had a weird dash with giant radio call numbers) -- and it was $3,600 less. So far I like it, though there may be a thump underneath. I liked the S-10 new too for a while, but quickly problems arose and I was profoundly disappointed overall. No more union- made cars for me.

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  Love my Hyundai - 2004 Hyundai Santa Fe
  By Smurr007 - July 17 - 11:53 am

  Excellent car for traveling and around the city. Great for carrying a good amount of college supplies. Love it

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  Wow!! what a car - 2005 Hyundai XG350
  By Roy - July 17 - 11:10 am

  My XG350L is a wonderful car to drive. A little slow on the takeoffs but has a lot of upper end torque. Great gas mileage. My wife loves the heated seats in the winter months. After owning my share of Town Cars and full size Buicks, I never thought I would take to a smaller car such as this. But, its the best car purchase I have ever made in my 40+ years of driving. I looked at the new Azera for a replacement car, it has a lot of good features but really didnt like the body style. The XG350 needs to make a comeback. So, you folks at Hyundai.... "Listen to your public" Bring the FLAGSHIP BACK!!

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  Lovin it for 3 months now - 2006 Hyundai Sonata
  By Dan Abbott - July 17 - 2:33 am

  I remember seeing the 2006 for the first time in a post office parking lot and thinking about buying the car. Three months later I am exceptionally pleased at having done just that. My next car will likely be another Hyundai based on this last purchase. Easily the nicest car I have ever owned.

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  Great Car - 2001 Hyundai XG300
  By Chuck27 - July 17 - 2:00 am

  Not a single problem. Great ride.

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  Fun Driving - 2003 Hyundai Tiburon
  By GCPetersen - July 17 - 2:00 am

  Drives Great has lots of pickup takes turns good & is fun to drive.

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  Great car - 2011 Sonata Limiited - 2011 Hyundai Sonata
  By Great car - 2011 - July 16 - 5:30 am

  Driven car to and from FL - 2000 miles so far. Great road manners, easy to drive, comfortable and good visability. 39 and 35.6 MPG at highway speed. Odometer incorrect with the Hankook tires, need to adjust MPG up 2.4%.

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  Good Car for less money - 2008 Hyundai Veracruz
  By mike - July 16 - 4:26 am

  Seems like a good vehicle. We have driven just a few 100 miles, but so far so good. Decent mileage, very good comfort, attractive looks.

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  XG350 - 2003 Hyundai XG350
  By F ONeill - July 11 - 10:00 am

  This is an unexpected surprise! Clearly the best value in its class. I love it!

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  Best Ever Owned - 2001 Hyundai Santa Fe
  By S. Whitmer - July 9 - 10:23 am

  Easily the best SUV on the market for the price. Have owned for 4+ years, no problems. Get 24+ MPG combined w/ V6. Solid build quality, easy to maintain. Hyundai builds to Lexus quality at 1/2 the price.