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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  Excellent vehicle - 2003 Hyundai Santa Fe
  By willenius - October 16 - 10:00 am

  We had previously owneda Dodge Caravan Mini Van. We loved the vehicle but it was 6 years old and out of warranty and things were starting to break down. We could not afford another Dodge Mini Van. We had a Hyundai in the past that lasted us 11 years and 140,000 miles and had a 7 year warranty and it was wonderful and affordable, so, we went back to Hyundai and bought the Santa Fee, we feel it has more standard features that are extra on other makes. We love it!! Keep up the good work!

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  smoothlikebuttah - 2003 Hyundai Santa Fe
  By steviek - October 16 - 10:00 am

  drives like a sports coupe, high enough without being in he clouds, great pick- up, with the push bar and side steps the coolest looking SUV on the road- every assumes it cost 40-50k! great storage and engine design very quiet ride - added dvd for rear passengers.

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  Love This car!!! - 2003 Hyundai Santa Fe
  By fdicostanz - October 16 - 10:00 am

  All I can say is wonderful vehicle. Very pleased!!

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  awesome car for the price - 2003 Hyundai Elantra
  By ThriceSparta - October 16 - 10:00 am

  I absolutely love this car. I test drove all the competition and no other maker could offer so much for the Hyundai price and I actually prefered the looks and handling of the Hyundai over the higher priced competition. The hatchback is awesome and has a ton of room when the back seats are folded down, like a mini SUV. The car is very fun to drive, all my friends are impressed. It handles as nice as the Subaru WRX but about 5K less in price. Has way more horsepower than a Honda Civic and a much better look. Hyundai has made a believer out of me and I highly recommend the hatchback.

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  kehren - 2003 Hyundai Elantra
  By kevin173490 - October 16 - 10:00 am

  bowser helped us with a problem we had with our new car and got us in a new vehicle for a good price even offered us a payment protection plan that only cost us about 5.00 us. not bad considering that we were upside down in our previous loan, they did us good by putting us in a vehicle that has the best warranty on the market thanks to bowser and to hyduani for their vehicle. sincerily, kevin and patricia

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  Few Faults With This One - 2009 Hyundai Azera
  By Lawton R. - October 15 - 2:35 pm

  Ive had the car 5 months, put over 5,000 miles on it, and have found two faults. Sunlight falls on the navigation/audio screen with near blinding effect, and substantial road noise occurs at interstate speeds. Thats it. I enjoy driving the car so much that I usually regret reaching my destination. Initially the ride was hard but the cause was simply over inflated tires. Unexpectedly at 5K miles I have had a significant uptick in mileage and now get well over EPA average. I am so "sold" on Hyundai now that I expect to move up to the very quiet Genesis with my next purchase.

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  The Azera-Look out Infinity and Lexus - 2006 Hyundai Azera
  By Brad Hart - October 14 - 5:53 am

  I have 1500 miles on my Azera LE with the Ultimate package. The car is extremely quite even at speeds of 80 MPH. Smooth ride, tight handling, excellent acceleration,great sterio, refined interior design, flawless paint job and loads of space in the cabin and the trunk. Around town mileage 22, highway 25. Needs better front seat bolsters for curves. You cant beat the value of this car no matter what the Manufacturer or model.

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  Great Car - 2007 Hyundai Elantra
  By ibnagy99 - October 13 - 2:26 pm

  After owning a BMW that was expensive to upkeep, buying this car was great. I love the gas mileage and it is fun to drive. The sound system rocks!

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  Great Style and Value but.... - 2011 Hyundai Sonata
  By Hillmc - October 13 - 10:20 am

  The car is awesome for the price.. its not as quiet as some say, seems to have less sound deadening material than the previous model..too much tire noise. XM radio should be ditched in favor of Sirius. I didst want to spend another 40K on my next car with how much I drive (25-30k)annually. This cars style, warranty, room and fuel economy won my over. The Engine does have some decent power. Most of my commute is up and down a 20 mile stretch of highway that encompasses a 2000ft change in elevation..even on the grade I still get 31mpg.. my last car got 18 so I am loving this more than anything else right now.

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  Great Car - 2010 Hyundai Genesis Coupe
  By Daryl - October 12 - 12:33 pm

  Ive had this car for a month, and I have nothing bad to say other than, unlike John below, I have run my front bumper up onto a curb or two.