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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  2011 Sonata Hybrid after 7 months - 2011 Hyundai Sonata Hybrid
  By srcooper - July 13 - 3:54 pm

  Weve owned this car for seven months now. Im surprised at some of the negative reviews. My wife and I love this vehicle. We have been been stopped and questioned about the car. Everyone thinks it looks really cool. But that is not all. We have maintained 33-35mpg in local driving...and 35-42mpg on the highway. If you are going up hills, the gas mileage is less. If you have a heavy foot it will be less. However, it is not hard to increase the mileage with some smart driving. I have had the car go into the electric mode for several minutes at 70mph.

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  Korean Made Sonata 2007 V6 - Premium - 2007 Hyundai Sonata
  By Bijan - July 13 - 3:50 pm

  My choices were not too many; Camry I4, and Sonata V6, about same price, but feature-wise Hyundai was far ahead. The car is not my ideal of course, as I am more tuned to European styles, and this one is mde for Americans! If with replacing shock ansorbers, I could acheive a stiffer suspension, I would have done so, but I am not sure where to find this! Maybe in Hyundai Germany!? Otherwise, everything else is just about Perfect. Maybe too early to say, as I am drivingthis only for 2 weeks, and sill in break in period (till 2,000km). Seats are comfortable, Audio system excellent, very silent indeed (in idling you need to look at RPM to see if engine is running!) Ill update this in 2-3 months

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  Great car for the money - 2011 Hyundai TUCSON
  By roll_tide_geek - July 13 - 8:00 am

  Ive had my Tucson for a couple weeks now and Im loving it. The fuel economy is pretty much exactly what it states in the window sticker (rare for a vehicle nowadays). I chose the Tucson for the looks and for the price and after one test drive I knew it was the car for me. Its comfortable, visibility is good, and comes with a lot of options standard that some auto makers do not include. I would definitely recommend this vehicle!

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  I cant wait to trade in my Santa Fe - 2004 Hyundai Santa Fe
  By Shane - July 13 - 4:21 am

  I would not recommend buying this vehicle. The car has many leaks such as the power steering fluid and the A/C refrigerant. I constantly am buying more fluid for the car. Every summer I have to recharge the A/C. My headlights are faded and my car is slightly rusted. The seats arent very supportive. The dealer offers $816 to trade it in. The car does not get very good fuel economy. I hate my Santa Fe

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  Veracruz at 25,000 miles - 2007 Hyundai Veracruz
  By jrsactown - July 12 - 8:20 pm

  My wife and I purchased 07 Veracruz AWD Limited Natural Khaki on mothers day May 07. We know have 25,000 miles on it, and it has been the best car we have ever owned. Our friends always ask "is that a Lexus?" The car is great on highway and in the snow, the only problem we have had was the TPMS light staying on, it was a module that needed replacing, no other issues.

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  Last Sonata for me - 2009 Hyundai Sonata
  By leahcim - July 12 - 6:26 pm

  The car is decent on smooth roads but is no fun to drive on city streets that are not smooth as a table top. Too much suspension noise. When going over road patches and other road irregularities, the rear wheels/suspension make a noise that sounds like something is loose and the body is bouncing off the struts. Very embarrassing to have friends in the car with all this noise. All the dealer will say is that the stiff suspension is the cause. I say Nonsense. Also the radio on the AM dial has much static. Also the speakers are very poor sounding.

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  So far so good! - 2011 Hyundai Sonata Hybrid
  By ded99 - July 12 - 1:40 pm

  I have about 2200 miles on the car. I have taken the car on a couple three hour highway trips, along with many miles around town. I can get the advertised mileage if it is driven carefully. I find that the highway mileage is a little lower when the cruise control is set. To be fair I was traveling between 70 and 75 during the bulk of the highway trip. I got about 38 to 39 mpg. I find that with the cruise control off I can keep the car in the electric mode longer, and seem to get mileage of over 40 mpg. I must admit however that I have always had a heavy right foot so this is actually very good. My wife has gotten 35+ mpg in town. So far very pleased.

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  Surprised - 2002 Hyundai Elantra
  By jeanhwong - July 12 - 10:00 am

  Initially I was a skeptic. This was the one car my then-fiance (now husband) reviewed without me, so when he purchased it, without me, I was rather upset and also concern about not knowing much about it. However, since then, I have been amazed at how the Elantra has "handled me". Weve since recommended the Hyundai name to many of our friends.

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  Review of 03 Sonata GLS V6 - 2003 Hyundai Sonata
  By Hyundailover - July 12 - 2:00 am

  We have had our 2003 Hyundai Sonata GLS V6 for just over a year now and we could not be happier with it.This car is great and so reliable.Before this we had a Ford Focus which was declared a lemon.We then went back to Hyundais (this being our 5th) and test drove the sonata.We couldnt be more happier with our purchase.Everyone asks us if its a Jaguar.A relative in my family was so impressed with ours they went out and bought one.Hyundais are great cars and we are very happy with the purchase we made.If your looking for a midsize car go for the Sonata.You wont be dissapointed.

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  2002 Accent - 2002 Hyundai Accent
  By Bron - July 12 - 2:00 am

  I love my Accent! It is fun to drive, great on gas and nice to look at. Its peppy and I highly recommend purchasing one.