U.S. History
1968-73
Hyundai apprentices with Ford Motor Company
1985
Hyundai Motor America is established in Garden Grove, California with 227 employees
Hyundai American Technical Center, Inc. is established in Chino, California with four employees
1986
Hyundai exports the Excel to the U.S. market
1988
Hyundai opens a $21 million, 300,000 square-foot parts distribution center in Ontario, California to facilitate parts deliveries to our budding network of dealership
Hyundai opens a $16.6 million, 342,000 square-foot office complex and parts distribution center in Aurora, Illinois with 21 employees
1989
Hyundai Motor Finance Company is established in Fountain Valley, California with an initial capital investment of $15 million and 22 employees
1990
Hyundai Motor America opens our North American headquarters with 400 employees on an18-acre site in Fountain Valley, California for an investment of $18 million
Hyundai opens a $12.2 million port facility in Portland, Oregon, featuring a large dock area, a 45,000 square-foot processing building, a holding lot for incoming cars, and an area for rail car and vehicle transport
1991
Hyundai is the first automaker to provide buyers with regularly scheduled maintenance on top of a standard warranty at no additional cost
1994
Hyundai introduces the Hyundai Protection Plan to protect customers against the cost of repair after a vehicle’s standard warranty expires
In the J.D. Power Dealer Satisfaction Index, Hyundai rises from 19th to 11th place and shows the highest rate of improvement among all automobile manufacturers in the J.D. Power Sales Satisfaction and Customer Satisfaction Survey
1996
Hyundai rises 49 points over the prior year in the J.D. Power Initial Quality Survey
1998
Hyundai launches the innovative Hyundai Advantage, America’s Best Warranty, with all new vehicles, including 10-year/100,000 mile powertrain protection, 5-year/60,000 mile bumper-to-bumper coverage and 5-year/unlimited mileage roadside assistance
Hyundai picks up 28 points in the J.D. Power Customer Satisfaction Index survey, the largest point gain of any automaker in the survey
1999
Hyundai enjoys an 82 percent sales increase over the prior year, the industry’s largest jump
2000
Hyundai passes Mazda to become the number 5 selling Asian brand in the country
In a product clinic conducted by Allison-Fisher, the Elantra is picked number 1 by consumers over the Ford Focus, Honda Civic and Dodge Neon
Strategic Vision’s new car buyer survey ranks Hyundai’s Sonata sedan fifth among 16 cars in the compact segment and the Elantra sedan seventh among 20 competitors in the small-car segment
2001
Hyundai Motor America receives the J.D. Power Chairman Award for our commitment to quality improvements
2002
Hyundai breaks ground in Montgomery, Alabama for our first U.S. automobile assembly plant, Hyundai Motor Manufacturing Alabama, valued at an initial $1.1 billion investment
The Sonota is ranked first by J.D. Power in performance, driving experience and design research
2003
The $30 million Hyundai Design and Research Center opens in Irvine, California with 100 auto designers, engineers, model makers and technicians, and is fitted with the world’s most advanced visualization, graphics and clay-modeling technologies
2005
Hyundai Motor Manufacturing Alabama celebrates our grand opening and begins to produce vehicles, employing an initial 2,300 team members
Hyundai creates 2,000 jobs in opening an $11 million vehicle testing facility in California City, California, covering 4,300 acres with eight different driving courses, including a 2.75-mile winding track, a 3.3-mile hill road, and a durability loop with a range of special surfaces, from cobblestones to potholes
Hyundai American Technical Center, Inc. moves to a new $117 million, 190,000 square-foot headquarters in Superior Township, Michigan with 140 employees
2006
Hyundai Motor Manufacturing Alabama is recognized by the J.D. Power Initial Quality Survey as a Top Ten Automotive OEM Plant in North and South America – after just one year of operation
2007
Hyundai Motor Manufacturing Alabama is recognized by the U.S. Department of Commerce Minority Business Development Agency as the Atlanta Regional Minority Business Advocate of the Year
Hyundai Motor Manufacturing Alabama receives ISO/TS 16949:2002 certification, the highest automotive quality standard in the world
2008
Hyundai invests $270 million in the construction of a second engine plant to produce 2.4-liter 4-cylinder Theta engines at Hyundai Motor Manufacturing Alabama, ultimately adding more than 200 jobs to the plant
Hyundai Motor Manufacturing Alabama receives ISO 14001 certification for our environmental management systems
Hyundai Motor Manufacturing Alabama is recognized as Member Corporation of the Year by the South Region Minority Business Council and Alabama Emerging Manufacturer of the Year by the Business Council of Alabama and the Alabama Technology Network
2009
Hyundai spins off our parts division to form Mobis Parts America, which is responsible for the development and distribution of parts and accessories for Hyundai in the U.S.
The Genesis is awarded “Car of the Year” in North America by a panel of 50 automotive journalists and places first in J.D. Power’s “Vehicle Launch Index”
2010
The Sonata receives the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety “Top Safety Pick” and the National Highway Traffic Safety Agency’s five-star safety rating
The Genesis and Elantra are recognized as “Best Car for the Money” by U.S. News & World Report
The Accent places first among small cars in the J.D. Power Initial Quality Study
For the third consecutive year, Ward’s Auto World picks Hyundai’s Tau engine as one of the industry’s “10 Best Engines”
2011
Hyundai invests $150 million in the construction of a new North American headquarters in Fountain Valley, California
Hyundai Motor Manufacturing Alabama earns the state’s Large Manufacturer of the Year recognition by the Business Council of Alabama and the Alabama Technology Network
Hyundai Motor Manufacturing Alabama donates $1.5 million to the Governor’s Emergency Relief Fund in response to the Alabama tornadoes
The Sonata receives the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety “Top Safety Pick” and is runner-up for North American “Car of the Year”
Hyundai Motor Manufacturing Alabama invests $173 million to expand an engine shop, adding 214 new jobs
Hyundai Motor Manufacturing Alabama builds its one-millionth Sonata
Six Hyundai 2012 models earn the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety’s “Top Safety Pick” honors
The Veloster is named the “Best Economy Car” by Bloomberg in its “Best Drives of 2011” report
Hyundai’s 1.6-liter Gamma engine is named one of the “10 Best Engines” by WardsAuto World
The Elantra earns a “Residual Value Award” from ALG, the industry benchmark for residual values and depreciation data
The Tucson is featured in the Kelley Blue Book’s “Best Resale Value Award” top 10 list
The Hyundai brand achieves the biggest long-term gain in ALG’s Fall 2011 Perceived Quality Study, moving up nine spots to No. 9 over the past three years
Hyundai maintains its No.1 spot for brand loyalty in Kelly Blue Book reporting
The Equus is named the most appealing large premium car in the J.D. Power and Associates’ Automotive Performance, Execution and Layout study
The Sonata leads the mid-size car segment in Strategic Vision’s Total Quality Index
2012
Hyundai Motor America is named number one in fuel economy and CO2 emissions in America by topping the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) fuel economy rankings for the 2010 model year
Hyundai America Technical Center invests $15 million in world-class weather dynamometer test facility, adding 50 new jobs over next three years
Hyundai offers a Lifetime Battery Replacement Guarantee for the Sonata Hybrid
The Elantra is named 2012 North American Car of the Year