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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  Own 2001 hyundai and put on 25000 miles - 2004 Hyundai Accent
  By Rhinocryno - February 12 - 2:00 am

  I dont own the current year model, I bought a 2001 year model brand new in 8/01. I put 25000 miles on it. I just wanted everyone to know that Hyundai accents are really good cars. It hasnt caused me any problems at all since I got it 2 and a 1/2 years ago. It has started up every time and it is really a good car in the winter. I got my car for $8400 new ( GL with A/C) with free oil for life. I liked the echo but I didnt want to spend $3500 more. The Hyundai accent is a great deal. The warranty is for 10 years. Just shop around for your car. Buy at year end or when the new years cars come in. Youll get good bargins.

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  Very impressed - 2006 Hyundai Tiburon
  By HIII - February 11 - 10:16 pm

  The six speed is very fun to drive, makes me feel good at 70mph to know I have another gear to shift to. Looking forward to the 2008 and 2009 models.

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  Awesome - 2005 Hyundai Tiburon
  By FuNFuN - February 11 - 7:43 am

  Dont know about these critics of the SE version. I have over 30000 miles on mine and have had zero problems with it and Im a very spirited driver. The six speed tranny is precision so maybe thats the problem some are having. They dont know how to drive it. All Ive ever owned are manual shift sports cars. Even had a Camaro and the Tiburon SE is faster to 60 and has a faster top speed (145 with no mods at redline). Not too bad when there is over a litre of difference in the engine size. Not much more to ask for. And to those knocking the performance compared to other V6 cars, I can keep up with a Mustang GT with no problem. Just got to know when to shift, and how to drive!!!

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  Ode to my Hyundai - 1996 Hyundai Accent
  By geegee - February 11 - 2:00 am

  My little car that could. I have had it for almost 8 years from new, drove GREAT! for the first 5 years, had two major repairs after that (when it rains it pours) engine head, and computer went out, but no small problems at all! couldnt bring myself to trade in because no other car could match it for veratility, or gas mileage. I got 33MPG on mixed driving. I will miss you!

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  Feeling Screwed Over - 2013 Hyundai Elantra
  By Joe - February 10 - 3:37 pm

  I purchased a 2013 Elantra new. I immediately had issues with the mileage. It is stickered for 41 mpg highway. I have never gotten more than 34 mpg after adjusting for the 2.7 mpg the gauge is off when compared to the odometer and actual fuel purchased. The compensation card issued by Hyundai due to the court settlement doesnt even come close to compensating me for the lower mileage. This is the first car I have ever had that has gotten less than the sticker. After 15k or 20k miles there were issues with the pollution control system that took 4-5 trips to the dealership to resolve. Now at 107k (virtually all highway miles) the car engine started making rattling noises that turned out to be a bad piston. The dealer estimates the repair cost to be over $5,600. This is in spite of regular maintenance checks and oil changes. Finally the two sets of 80k mile tires I have had on the car after the initial set that came with the car have each lasted less than 45k miles and developed significant road noise after about 25k miles even with regular rotation. Never again will I purchase a Hyundai and I discourage everyone I talk to from purchasing one too.

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  nice car - 2009 Hyundai Sonata
  By jmathew926 - February 10 - 5:00 am

  very nice drive, the tan interior looks great, smooth ride, no complaints about the car

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  Amazing Looks, Very Reliable, Sporty - 2000 Hyundai Tiburon
  By Roger Lake - February 10 - 2:00 am

  Well at first I questioned the reliability of Hyundai, so I went around and asked local garages. I found out that in the past pre 90s hyundai was not good at all, but now they make all their parts and rarely have any problems. I owned a Toyota celica previously, and I rate the Tiburon much higher. Much better handeling and accleration. In the summer you will have not a problem with this car, but come winter make sure you have DRY gas. These cars hate the winter. Engine is strong, transimission shifts super quick, handeling is a dream with the suspension being designed by Porsh. I really love this car!

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  I love my car, but... - 2002 Hyundai XG350
  By little red hen - February 10 - 2:00 am

  I love my car but I hate the amount I paid for it $26,000 plus a 2.9% interest rate. My saleswomen and her manager laughed all the way to the bank, Im sure and I would never refer A2 Hyundai to ANYONE. I love driving it but it has a couple of significant problems interior noise on the X-ways causing you to have to turn up the volume to hear radio, CDs or tape,the CD player needs to have warm CDs before it plays well and just recently I noticed a very harsh sound from the engine but it has been extremely cold lately.

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  Sante Fe - 2001 Hyundai Santa Fe
  By wmpatton - February 10 - 2:00 am

  I was originally hesitant to buy a Korean car but the warranty was so appealing I thought it was worth the risk. After almost two years and 44,000 miles Ive had zero problems and no warranty work whatsoever. Quality so far is incredible. Great fun and reliable.

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  A very good experience - 2003 Hyundai Santa Fe
  By mjt3rd - February 10 - 2:00 am

  Its a fun car to drive. A bit underpowered, but not so much as to make it undesireable. There is some body roll in hard cornering, but it is still acceptable. The ride is car like and the seating is quite comfortable. Standard features go on and on. Monsoon stereo is awesome.