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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  Love it ! - 2003 Hyundai Sonata
  By TylerJames - September 7 - 7:04 pm

  Well, I bought my car 2 months ago. Im 16. Its kinda big for a 16 year old. But I like it b/c it suits me. I like the exterior design and the interior is tan and shows stains. Car takes off slow u must put your foot into it. Other than that I love the gas mileage and the way it looks. My friends also insist we take my car when we go somewhere. So overall I love it. It also looks brand new when its 5 years old.

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  Love my XG - 2001 Hyundai XG300
  By Bruno - September 7 - 5:16 am

  I had never even seen one of these until I saw the ad for mine online. My car had broken and instead of repairing it, I purchased this one at $5,800 which given the condition of the vehicle I thought was more than fair. I love the way it looks on the outside. The front grill looks like it was designed by Lincoln, and the rear reminds me a little of the acura 2.1 CL or even a jag! The interior makes you feel like youre riding in luxury as well. I had the same problem with the trans. sensor but was a quick fix. Other than that I am satisfyed with the XG. For my money it doesnt get much better. Now that I have it I find myslef noticing how great other hyundais are! Those guys make nice cars!

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  fuel economy - 2006 Hyundai TUCSON
  By tucsonneil - September 6 - 11:26 pm

  on recent trip to winfield kansas 1500mi with cruise control set at 65mph with very good driving conditions average gal.per. mi. was only 19.4 mpg. can you tell me why? fuel economy info says 19 city 24 highwayimp

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  09 limited V6 - 2009 Hyundai Sonata
  By noelclark - September 4 - 3:56 pm

  Just ended a lease on an infiniti m35 and picked up the 09 limited v6 with nav. So far I have put 1800 miles on it including one 800 mi. Trip. I looked at the Camry, accord and altima but went with the sonata based on reviews and price. I was out the door for just over 23k and that was with every option. The sticker was over 30k. I am getting just under 30 mpg on the highway and low 20s in town. Considering my last infiniti was just over 50k loaded and I could have bought 2 of these with money left over its an amazing deal. Just like Hyundais advertisement says "think about it" I am glad I did.

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  azera - 2007 Hyundai Azera
  By ron - September 4 - 10:02 am

  Love the car overall, however, lettering on headlight and windshield wiper switch very faint and almost illegible compared to other vehicles in Hyundai line, such as the sonata--trying to find out why--dashboard also replaced as it cracked.

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  Amazing Value - 2010 Hyundai Elantra Touring
  By Daniel Wagner - September 4 - 7:33 am

  Ive driven my new car about 1,250 miles & love it. Its comfortable, handles well & is fun to drive (and Id been driving a MINI Clubman). Its brakes are excellent; its headlights are better than the MINIs; the controls are easy to operate. On the downside, you really feel road bumps (which I expected), the engine is a bit coarse (no surprise either), and the sunroof whistles loudly when fully open at 40 mph and above. But at a price of $19k+, w/ a lot of room, reputation for reliability & standard features, the competition cant come close: integrated iPod, XM radio, heated seats & mirrors, sunroof, fog lights, trip computer. Youll need to add Bluetooth, however, as a dealer option.

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  3 yrs: zero repair -- $300 maintenance - 2005 Hyundai Accent
  By WIprofessional - September 1 - 3:33 pm

  I commute 45 miles each way for work on country roads. This car has been comfortable and fun to drive for the first 3 years. Gets 40 mpg at ~50 mph ave speed w/o using air conditioning. 36 mpg highway w/o air 34 mpg highway with air. Hauls canoe well. Plenty of power without heavy load: feels sluggish with 5 passengers and luggage. Also sluggish on big hills even with only 1 passenger. Like every Hyundai Ive owned (3) very reliable and no repair costs.

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  Please Read - 2004 Hyundai Elantra
  By swtness0924 - August 31 - 5:33 pm

  Ive had my Hyundai which now has 46k miles now for just under 3 years now. Up until this year I was absolutely in love with my car, until it started giving me problems. Ive replaced both front and back brakes twice within a year. Ive had my transmission fluid flushed (shouldnt have had to do this). Ive had problems with it stalling, the RPMs jumping like no other. I no longer feel safe in this vehicle nor would I ever recommend it to a new buyer. Ive had it to the dealer 3 times and no one seems to know whats wrong, and everything that they "think" is causing it IS NOT covered under warranty. Paid for a warranty that doesnt cover a thing. Im highly disappointed & looking for a new car!

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  My sonata is rusting after a year - 2007 Hyundai Sonata
  By Timat21 - August 31 - 2:40 am

  I have a 4cycl Hyundai sonata 2.4 liter, when I first purchase the vehicle it had only 20 miles on it after a year I have over 42000 miles on the vehicle, it is a fun vehicle to drive and it handle very well on long trips, the vehicle does not burn much gas what so ever, the only problem I have with this vehicle at this time is that it is rusting out the rims and the hood of the car, this should not be happening to a one year old car.

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  Fun little car - 2008 Hyundai Elantra
  By Amanda - August 31 - 1:28 am

  We purchased our Hyundai Elantra around the middle of June. We already have over 5000 miles on it, and we have not had a single problem. We love almost everything about the car. It gets decent gas mileage-we are averaging 29 mpg city/highway combo. It has an excellent safety rating in Consumer Reports. It comes in some way cool colors. There is one issue we have: the back window is too small, so sometimes Im nervous changing lanes, especially on the freeway. Anyway, its a cute little car that does what it says it will do. In the Valley, youll pay a little more-ours 14000 with no extras.