Hyundai’s history

If you live in North America, you are probably very familiar with the Hyundai line of vehicles by now. In 1986, the first Hyundai, an Excel, was introduced to the market, and the company’s product line has changed dramatically since then. Hyundai produces much more than cars; in fact, at the end of the last century, Hyundai became one of the largest companies in the world. Let’s take a look at this Korean-based multinational corporation and the company behind Hyundai vehicles.

It was in 1946, just one year after the Japanese imperial occupation of the Korean peninsula, that a new company was born in what is now known as South Korea. Hyundai Motor Industrial Company was founded by Chung Ju-yung, the son of North Korean farmers, and in 1947 Ju-yung launched a second company, Hyundai Civil Industries. Self-taught, Ju-yung transformed the entire Korean economy with his tight control over his Hyundai companies.

Hyundai’s first business dealt with building automobiles, while Hyundai’s second business concentrated on construction. In fact, much of South Korea’s modern infrastructure was built by Hyundai in the period after the Korean War ended in 1953 and lasted until the 1970s. Hyundai Civil Industries built dams, a highway, a shipyard, and a nuclear power plant, while Hyundai Motors produced cars made primarily from Japanese components. Hyundai’s influence extended far beyond the Korean peninsula as the company won contracts to build a highway in Thailand and a major port in Saudi Arabia. Clearly, Hyundai dominated the Korean market and quickly became a major player on the international scene.

In the 1970s, Hyundai began building ships and shipyards, and in 1986, Hyundai produced its first vehicle made entirely of Korean components. Starting in the 1980s, Hyundai added additional specialties, including building semiconductors and maglev trains.

However, not everything has been bright for the company. Decades of labor woes culminating in new employee safety standards established beginning in the 1990s tempered the Hyundai mystique. In fact, up to that point the company was cited as having the worst security standards of any corporation in the industrialized world.

Automobiles were another source of trouble for what became known as the Hyundai Group. Although they now build their own vehicles, auto experts considered the quality of Hyundai vehicles during the first decade to be below average. Today, Hyundai vehicles and Hyundai parts are, for the most part, slightly above average in quality compared to the industry as a whole.

With Chung Ju-yung’s death in 2001, Hyundai was divided into three separate companies: Hyundai Heavy Industries, Hyundai Motor Group, and Hyundai Engineering and Construction. Today, the three Hyundai companies continue to compete successfully in the world market thanks to the vision of a farmer.

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