Has Hyundai Been Able To Reshape Their Image?

Has Hyundai Been Able To Reshape Their Image?
By Joshua Rose

It doesn't seem that long ago that Hyundai was getting more chuckles than customers. However, sales growth in recent years indicates that Hyundai has perhaps found their footing and won some respect.

The fact that Hyundai's reputation and market acceptance has risen is actually a fairly notable achievement, given their history of producing ample fodder for laughs on the likes of the Tonight Show and Letterman. Today, however, they're taken quite seriously. The times have changed for this South Korean automaker with U.S. sales now surpassing the 5,000,000 mark.

Hyundai entered the U.S. market in 1986 with a compact sedan called the Excel. Actually, sales were surprising brisk, as they sold 100,000 units in just 7 months. There was a problem, however. Hyundai was not yet prepared to provide adequate service for the number of cars sold. This really hurt their image for quality and their reputation suffered significantly.

Adding fuel to the fire were subsequent models that didn't stand up to American standards for expected levels of quality.

The turn around began in earnest in 1999 when a new Chairman, Chung Mong-koo, stressed quality as the company's #1 priority, while investing heavily in new product designs. And the results have been impressive.

In 2006, for example, J.D. Power ranked Hyundai #1 for non-luxury brands, beating out Japan's Toyota Motor Corp. And when including luxury brands, Hyundai was ranked No. 3.

And edmunds.com says, Hyundai is known for producing vehicles that offer great value at low prices.

This emphasis on quality has fueled Hyundai's U.S. market share up to 3.4%. And last year, Hyundai sold 450,000 vehicles in the U.S.. It's target for 2007 is 550,000 units.

Hyundai has also become known for attractive pricing, plenty of features, and a 100,000 mile Factory Warranty, one of the longest in the industry.

It's for these reasons that people, still laughing from the old days, may want to add Hyundai to their list of new or used cars to consider the next time they're in the market.

Joshua Rose is an Auto Broker at Auto-Broker-Magic.com. For information on negotiating a great car deal, please see his tips at Car Buying Advice.

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