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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  Lots of fun for the money - 2004 Hyundai Elantra
  By waterdog - August 26 - 2:00 am

  I have owned this vehicle about two months and really love it. It is fun to drive and the stereo is great. The hatchback gives lots of cargo room. The leather seats are a real bonus. There are only two shortcomings: the gas mileage is not great (but it is so fun to drive that is minor) and there are no cupholders in the rear. But for the price, I dont think you can beat it.

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  My First NEW Car/ No Regret! - 2003 Hyundai Elantra
  By dlfilcek - August 26 - 2:00 am

  I bough this Elantra as a reliable car and the warranty was the major selling point. I purchased the extended bumper to bumper warranty. The car was standard except that the dealership added a CD player as part of my deal. Over the past 10 months I have grown to love my Elantra for more than the warranty. It is a very comfortable car (I am 63" and cannot even sit in a Camry with electric seats) with a nice sporty look. I have also been very impressed with the acceleration of this car (I chose the 5 speed manual). Hyundai is definitely making impressive cars that are beginning to challenge Honda and Toyota.

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  BAD! - 2008 Hyundai Santa Fe
  By hvinroe_2006 - August 25 - 11:26 pm

  I cant help it this SUV suffers from just plain bad transmission! It makes the driving experience horrible and the dealerships make it worse. They are unwilling to recognize that this transmission slips and has problems. Go figure! Do not buy this until Hyundai is willing to replace this transmission with one that is effective on this powertrain.

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  Come and Get It! - 2006 Hyundai Azera
  By ABG - August 25 - 5:43 pm

  Has famous Honda like steering, chose this over Sonata(which i loved.)felt extra price worth it over a five year period. love interior. Extremely quiet got 28 on highway and 22 city first tank. very smooth ride. Quality is without question, this company is the real deal with long term vision. I have owned nothing but euro cars for twenty years. this car has japanese feel.Will be buying Hyundai brand from now on, cannot beat warranty. looking forward to blue tooth and matching dash lights. love the sunshade and 60/40 folding back seats.solid, safe, good-looking, and best car for money.

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  Waste of Money.. A LEMON!! - 2010 Hyundai Santa Fe
  By buyalemon - August 25 - 12:57 pm

  My car has now been in the shop for 44 days and have not had a call from the dealership for a week. purchased the car from West End Hyundai in Edmonton On Oct 20, 2010 and have had nothing but problems since. drove the Coquahalla in severe weather conditions only to find there was no wrench to change the tires if we had a flat.. contacted the dealership but never got a reply.. then the troubles really started,the window would not go down, the truck would not open, car would not go into gear, no reverse, took the car to service centre for the 5th time. More tests.They said 1O Days to have part come from Korea BY BOAT! now 44 days later no car, no loaner, huge disappointment!!

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  A good value but at what price? - 2009 Hyundai Sonata
  By CADixon999 - August 24 - 11:43 pm

  Overall, my 2009 Sonata GLS has been a dependable car for a very good price. I, like many others, have the dash/windshield creaking problem. This did not fully develop until around one year of ownership. The noise is present with every movement of the car (light acceleration, braking, undulation) not just over speed bumps or potholes. Call me OCD but it is so annoying, that I am about to dump the car at a loss. The dealer did try to fix the problem by re-seating the windshield but the noise is even worse after their "fix". If you can live with sub-par build quality and rattles, then the Sonata is a good deal. I am going back to a REAL foreign car like Honda or Toyota!

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  Love My New Santa Fe LX 4WD - 2002 Hyundai Santa Fe
  By Granny - August 24 - 10:00 am

  Just bought a Santa Fe LX 4WD with V6 engine. Its great to drive and the most comfortable of the small SUVs. My husband is 67" & weighs 250. This is the roomiest small SUV. Forester was the smallest.He couldnt drive it. Also drove Jeep Liberty, Saturn VUE (nice), & RAV4. I wanted a RAV4 or a Jeep, but this car beat the others out. Didnt try Honda CR-V (couldnt wait, which also ruled out Saturn, but we still liked the Santa Fe better). This car is loaded. There are virtually no options on the LX. Bbought for $550 over invoice. Gas mileage is OK (at least as good as my 95 Taurus wagon). I love this car. Plan to drive it 100K mi.

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  Really impressed after 82,000 miles - 2009 Hyundai Elantra Touring
  By pistolpete10 - August 24 - 7:55 am

  Bought it new in 2009. Of all the imports I bought before, (Mazda and Honda) this car had by far the most comfortable driving seat. Well padded and a lumbar support, with every which way adjustment, which was important for my frequent long drives. Very reliable, amazing storage room which Ive used time and again. Minor glitch in that speakers had to be replaced twice, under warranty and replaced brake pedal once for squeaking. Love the steering feel especially in tight city driving. More then enough power on highway etc, even though its buzzy. So far less problems than Ive ever had with previous other cars. Wouldnt trade it in for anything else though Ive been asked to, many times.

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  Its A Funday In Your Hyundai - 2004 Hyundai Accent
  By MoMichael - August 24 - 2:00 am

  My Hyundai has been fun and relieble. The gas milage is terrific. (35 mpg) After I put some good snow tires on the car it clawed through some really deep snow. The car really reminds me of the earlier year Honda Civics. I am 61" and the car fits me comfortably. For the money this car is the best bargain out there. I plan on driving it until the wheels fall off. For commuting it is fun and nimble and the warranty is terrific. My car is pretty basic but it does the job and does it well. If you are looking for a good sub-compact car it should definitely be a consideration.

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  Love this car. - 2007 Hyundai Santa Fe
  By l0vedriving - August 23 - 8:47 am

  This car was passed down to us from my grandparents, then to my parents, now us. It was originally purchased as a grocery/errands car and now is our everyday driver. This car is fantastic. Never had any major problems. Just one, our sunroof wind deflector came loose and we had that fixed by the dealer. We purchased a brand new 2012 Mazda Cx-7 with similar options minus leather and this car blows it out of the water. More power, better gas MPG, seat warmers are warmer. My daughter has much more room and it has much better trunk space. The Mazda has been nothing but issues since 30k miles. We are at 93k on the Hyundai with NO problems. Buy Hyundai it is totally worth it!