Hyundai Excel
Designed to compete at the very bottom of the market, Hyundai's original U.S. entry, the Excel, was priced lower than everything except the Yugo. Based almost solely on several-year-old Mitsubishi technology, it was basically a Mirage with Italian-designed bodywork and made in Korea. On the surface it was an honest, basic car that promised to deliver more miles per dollar than most of its competitors, but warranty problems interfered with sales.
1991
The Excel was available as a 2-door hatchback or 4-door sedan. The hatchback had two models (base and GS), while the sedan had three (base, GL and GLS).
1992
The GLS sedan was removed from the lineup, leaving behind the other four Excel models.
1993
Except for some slight styling revisions, no other changes were made to the Hyundai Excel in 1993. This was the last model year for the base sedan.
1994
The 4-speed manual was dropped from the base hatchback, and in its place was a 5-speed unit. After 1994, the Hyundai Excel was replaced by the Hyundai Accent.
Hyundai Sonata
The original Sonata began as Hyundai's version of the Mitsubishi Sigma Galant, at that time Mitsubishi's premier offering in America. The idea of a premium car at a bargain price was a good one and the 1995 version, a largely redesigned car, continues that theme and is Hyundai's version of the Mitsubishi Diamante. The Sonata compares to the Toyota Camry, Honda Accord, Ford Taurus, Nissan Maxima and the redesigned Chevy Lumina. The 2.0-liter Four has been redesigned with increases in horsepower, torque and fuel economy. The entire body, platform and suspension are new as well, with improvements in front/rear balance, center of gravity, road feel, turning circle and ride. There are three trim levels, all sedans: base, GL and GLS. The base and GL have the 2.0-liter Four standard, the GLS a 3.0-liter V6 (also optional on the GL with the leather package). Air conditioning is standard on all levels, as are a clock, cup holders, rear-window defogger, rear-seat heater ducts, tilt wheel, front and rear stabilizer bars, power steering, body-color bumpers and door handles, variable-speed intermittent wipers and the usual fuel-filler door and trunk releases. Base and GL have standard 4-way adjustable driver's seat in cloth, and GLS has a 6-way seat in deluxe cloth with leather optional. GLS also gets a 60/40 split rear seat with fold-down center armrest. ABS is available on GL and GLS, the V6 option on the GL brings with it 4-wheel discs. The GLS has a power antenna to go with its standard 6-speaker stereo (10-speaker stereo optional). Base and GL have 4-speaker stereos standard.
Hyundai Scoupe
The Scoupe was Hyundai's first attempt at building a car for something other than just transportation. The Scoupe fits neatly into the market vacated by the original Honda CRX, and sells against the Toyota Paseo, Mazda MX-3, and new Pontiac Sunfire. The Scoupe was also the first Hyundai with that company's own Alpha 3-valve-per cylinder engine design, rather than the Mitsubishi-designed engines used in other Hyundais. For 1995, there are again three levels of the Scoupe: base, LS and Turbo. All three share the same basic body, chassis and engine. Air conditioning is optional across all three model lines. All three have standard rear-window defoggers, front map pockets, full instrumentation (the Turbo has an additional boost gauge), trunk and fuel-door releases, passenger-side walk-in seat positioning, rear 60/40 split seatback, electronic multipoint fuel injection, body-color bumpers, tinted glass, variable-speed intermittent wipers, and antiroll bars front and rear. The LS and Turbo add AM/FM/ cassette stereo with four speakers (others upgrades are optional, including CD player), better-quality carpeting (compared with the base Scoupe), dual cup holders, driver's 6-way/passenger's 4-way adjustable seats, power windows, power steering (optional on the base car), body-color door handles and side cladding. The Turbo has special cloth seats, leather-wrapped gearshift knob and steering wheel, alloy wheels (optional on the LS), foglamps and sport-tuned suspension package. Both LS and Turbo have an optional pop-up moonroof.
Hyundai Elantra
The Elantra does not fall neatly into any category. It costs less than a similarly equipped Toyota Corolla or Geo Prizm, and it has a larger engine (with 16-valves, dohc and balance shafts) than a Honda Civic or Nissan Sentra. Its closest competitors are the Ford Escort and Chevrolet Cavalier. For '95, the Elantra continues fine-tuning a good basic package. Slight sheetmetal revisions to the taillight area identify the new model, which also now has a driver's-side airbag and optional ABS with rear disc brakes. Available only as a 4-door sedan, in either well-equipped base or upgraded GLS trim, all Elantras are front-drive with all-independent suspension. Both trim levels use antiroll bars front and rear, power brakes and steering, cloth trim, variable-speed intermittent wipers, full carpeting, rear-window defroster, digital quartz clock, tinted glass and the ubiquitous cup holders. The base model has a 1.6-liter engine. The GLS has the 1.8-liter version of the same engine, which is also in the base Elantra when equipped with the optional automatic transmission. The Elantra comes with gas shocks, power windows and door locks, power mirrors, bright window trim, tachometer, map lights, door lamps, center console, tilt steering wheel and 40-watt stereo cassette with four speakers. Both cars have stereo options with the ultimate 100 watt 6-speaker CD player in the GLS. When ABS is ordered on the GLS, rear drums are replaced with discs. Both cars have the option of air conditioning, a power sunroof, automatic transmission and cruise control.
Hyundai Accent
Ever since the Hyundai Excel was discontinuing, Hyundai fought back with new products and improved quality control for the cars it has introduced since then. The new Accent promised to be a complete break from the Excel, although it still competed with the Geo Metro, Mitsubishi Mirage, Ford Aspire and Toyota Tercel.
Hyundai has paid more attention to what Americans really buy and reduced Accent models to just a 4-door and an attractive notchback coupe that disguises the fact that it's a hatchback. Preliminary information is that the three trim levels on last year's Excel, base, GL, and GS, will be retained. The wheelbase is longer than the Excel's, but the suspension appears to be a refinement, with struts up front, but an independent multilink rear suspension has been retained, which is unusual in this price category.
The engine is part of Hyundai's new Alpha family, which is designed and built in Korea and is no longer a Mitsubishi hand-me-down. It has lower maintenance requirements, lower noise and over 11% more horsepower compared with the Excel. Despite improved performance, EPA fuel economy has remained about the same.