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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  Wow - 2003 Hyundai XG350
  By goodman - August 18 - 2:00 am

  This is such a great car! Luxury, comfortable and nice design.Seats are comfortable and very smooth engine.Seats are comfortable and very smooth engine. No other car can provide this much with just 25K!

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  Excellent Car! - 2001 Hyundai Elantra
  By compensate - August 18 - 2:00 am

  I have driven this car for two years and have had very few problems (all minor, so far). The car is very balanced with respect to gas mileage and performance. Build quality approaches the Japanese makes. This is easily the best compact car for the money!

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  Great Little Car, Better Dealer Service - 2001 Hyundai Elantra
  By billcarr2 - August 18 - 2:00 am

  I have 47,000 miles on car with no problems to date. Have enjoyed car so far. But the best part seems to be the excellent dealer service. Dealer will get car in and out quickly, and will provide a loaner car if my car will not be immediately available! With the new JD Power survey results (Hyundai is number 2 for quailty), Im hoping that the resale value will start to hold better. As for me, I will drive this car for at least another 100,000 miles or more(unless I trade it for a new Sonota).

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  Comfortable Vehicle, Underpowered 2.7 V6 - 2008 Hyundai Santa Fe
  By skoob38 - August 17 - 10:00 pm

  Have had vehicle for almost a year and have 13,500 miles on it. I get compliments on the vehicles look and comfort from almost everyone who rides in it. Very quiet vehicle on the road. Love the blue lights at night. Only issue so far was buzzing noise underneath, which turned out to be a heat shield near the muffler. Happened again a few months later. I just got under the vehicle and bent the shield away from the muffler, which fixed the issue. Not sure how it happened again! Maybe snow underneath pushing on it? Biggest complaint is the power of the 2.7 V6. I should have got the larger engine. Feels pushed every time I drive it. I avg. only 17MPG. Not good. Never get 23 on HWY.

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  A lot of SUV for the money - 2008 Hyundai Santa Fe
  By TBPA - August 17 - 7:10 am

  We drove several comparable vehicles in this category (Subaru Forester, Nissan Murano, Subaru Tribeca, Mazda CX-7, Chrysler Pacifica) and for the money the Santa Fe has them all beat, hands down. The features and options list would have cost thousands more in the other models. Driving off of the lot during the test drive, I felt as if this vehicle was in a completely different league compared to the others we had driven. FAVORITE FEATURES (too many to fit below) The interior materials, fit and finish are absolutely top notch. The Navigation option, while sometimes not the greatest at getting you where you need to go the fastest, definitely works well and intuitively.

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  I highly recommend it - 2003 Hyundai Accent
  By kiitana - August 17 - 2:00 am

  I recieved this car as a graduation present from my parents and I will be taking it to college in the fall. I had looked at a lot of options and am so glad my parents picked this one.

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  First Hyundai - 2008 Hyundai Sonata
  By George - August 16 - 10:50 am

  Traded in 2007 Mazda for this Hyundai. Best move ever. the Sonata is probably the best vehicle Ive owned yet and I trade every year. Sonata is well made quiet and smoother than the other cars I tested prior to buying. This car will probably end my yearly trades. Its a keeper.

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  best value on the market - 2002 Hyundai XG350
  By Stan B - August 16 - 6:46 am

  This our second Hyundai with about 15 years and several new cars between Hyundai purchases. We have had her for more than 4 years, I still feel that our Hyundai XG350L is the best value on the market. We presently have 51,000 miles and will seriously consider buying another Hyundai because of our experience with our dealer, the cars reliabilty, comfort and safety features.

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  EX G.M. OWNER - 2005 Hyundai Elantra
  By dan catozella - August 16 - 3:40 am

  Ive worked for G.M. for 38 years and have always had GM vehs. This car is the first foreign car I have ever owned. The fit and finish is excellent and the quality of the waorkmanship is excellent. I was very supprised and very well pleased.

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  Excellent Car! - 2000 Hyundai Elantra
  By Happy Elantra Owner - August 16 - 2:00 am

  I have had this car for just over 3 years (bought in July 200) and have had no problems at all. There are a few quirks. The location of the cup holders is annoying, as is the fact that if you open the passenger door, there is no way to open any other locks. That said, I really enjoy driving my car. I find it more comfortable and MUCH faster than my wifes 98 Altima SE. However, while the Elantra is smaller and has a smaller engine than the Altima, the Altima gets the same or slightly better gas mileage. Go figure. Overall I say that Hyundai has built a great car, especially if you consider the cost.