Hyundai's Origin Car - the Pony

[@ProgresistaGuayaquil]

As an ecuadorian i can just tell you that those Hyundai Pony cars were beaten to death in the ecuadorian 80s roads... and they just keep on running..some until the mid 90s. Yes, rust was a huge problem, but the Hyundai motors keep on running. The Ponys were really loved by taxi drivers and people in general. Hyundai is still (with Chevrolet) one of the most respected brands, they even have here a very modern assemble facility called Neohyundai where they build the Hyundai Grand i10. Congratulation for this great mini-documentary.

[@Boksburg1982]

The engines were Mitsubishi made.

[@crashbandi53]

I have an '86 Canadian spec. Pony- it's primitive but it's been a fantastic car. It doesn't get winter driven so it's quite well preserved. It's incredibly efficient and very comfortable!

[@dannnsss8034]

Your car belongs in a museum. Kudos to keeping it in shape, I appreciate well looked after classic / old cars.

[@xminusone1]

Great news that some are still preserved. Mine was to far gone by 2001 to be preserved unfortunately but I keep good memories of that car. My grandfather bought it new in Montreal in 1983 or 1984 and I remember that the dealer wasn't even identified as a hyundai dealer. It was called Pie-IX pony and it was on the Pie-IX boulevard in Montreal. My grandfather was eastern European and it was the first car he bought new in Canada. He was used to drive Ladas and moskvitch. He really loved that car. We do montreal-chicoutimi ( now saguenay ) many times a year in that car with my mother and grand parents to family reunions. Than he stop driving and give it to me in 1994. I kept it till 2001 as a second car as I worked at 45 min of Montreal. It was cheap on gaz and on parts. It finally broke in half with more than 350 000kms on it. The motor and transmission still worked very well.

[@matt-tait]

They were always just a cheap basic car for us (in BC), but I don’t recall them being any worse than any other cheap car, they got from A to B reliably enough. Most of my experience with them was robbing parts cars for their carburetors, they made for an upgrade for other vehicles of the era like Suzuki Samurai’s

[@sungwook99]

Contact Hyundai. They might pay you very nicely for your vehicle.

[@rocosuavez]

i had a Canadian version of the pony , i loved that car mostly because of the rear wheel drive , this was so much fun in winter , i had a ball with that car , this car was super reliable in winter and never failed to start even on the coldest days ...

[@RideCamVids]

There's a lesson to be learnt here from this video. While Hyundai was taking all the necessary baby steps to become a fledgling car company, British Leyland was taking all the required steps to finally dismantle itself and become nothing. Well done.

[@Menaceblue3]

Didn't British Leyland become Weyland industries and was later bought then merged into/by Yutani Corp.?

[@laveritesurlestemoinsdejeh8522]

@@Menaceblue3 Oh, I'll bet you just ALIENated a lot of people with that comment...

[@baoquoc3710]

@Mathew Lee Mini is fine, nothing rough about it. He just said that unlike Hyundai which they are very eager to make their global presence by keep improving the production quality, British Leyland is always about internal conflicts and interest conflicts with union strikes that led to their demise.

[@gennivianello1165]

Cosa c'entra la British Leyland con la hyundai?

[@exNRGista2]

​@@gennivianello1165Furono alcuni ingegneri usciti dalla British Leyland a dare il loro importante contributo nella progettazione e realizzazione di questa vettura, che può essere considerata quello che per noi è stata la Fiat 600, ovvero una vettura che ha motorizzato un'intera nazione.

[@A2Wx8]

I remember Hyundai and Kia when they first entered the American market being the awful little things you bought if you couldn't afford a Honda or Toyota. They've come so far to be the rivals of anything coming from Japan or Europe. I have a co-worker that drives 70,000+ miles a year and just upgrades to the newest Sonata every few years. My Kia Stinger is an incredible car I absolutely love. If you asked me ten years ago if when people talk to me about cars my first answer would be "have you looked at Hyundai or Kia" but here we are.

[@HVAC_Jae]

What line of work?

[@A2Wx8]

I.T. - he just lives a good hour away from the office. He also drives 1,500+ miles each way to visit family a few times a year because he doesn't like flying. We joke that he drives 70,000 a year and I drive 7,000.

[@PhyuckYew]

These Korean cars only look good today but mechanically, it's still crap.

[@yunus_aros]

And 2022 Hyundai, Genesis and Kia beat Toyota and Lexus regarding quality in JD Power Reliability Index.

[@ryanthompson2893]

@@yunus_aros jd power is a pr firm who's income is from it's customers paying for awards. I'm a mechanic and I can assure a manual transmission Honda from a decade ago will easily outlast a new Hyundai. Jd power means nothing...

[@ChatterboxFM]

Is it weird to say that I’m really proud of Hyundai? Like, the leaps they’ve made is kinda incredible and I love that they still very proud of their humble beginnings, even if the Pony isn’t the most exciting car in the world.

[@abelq8008]

No, it's inspiring. They started late in the game compared to their competitors, they went about things smartly, hiring experts when needed, and continously improving.

[@paulbrady9454]

Back in the 90's a colleague ran an elderly Pony. White. Rusty. We used to share cars to go to lunch every Friday. I clearly remember piling in one day and the soundtrack to shaft "blasting" out from the cassette deck. He treated it badly, crashed it no less than 4 times, never serviced it but that damn thing would not die. Legendary. 60 mile commute every day for 4 years. If that Pony was the shadow of what was to come, its no surprise they are where they are now. Hail the Pony.

[@reallyrandomrides1296]

I was so happy to see a video on this unloved and almost forgotten car. I'm in Canada. In 1991, I was 18 and bought my first car, a fairly rusty special edition black 1985 Hyundai Pony 1600 GLS "Pony Plus" (the "Plus" was in the price, lol) with a 5 speed manual, factory installed Bosch front fog lights (that didn't work), rear window louvers (that melted in hot summer heat), gold wheel covers (three of them fell off), gold stripes (that cracked and faded), a sunroof (the handle broke) and an AM/FM/Cassette radio. But I still loved that car. It was an as-is trade-in at a Hyundai dealer. I paid CAD $600 (about CAD $1100 or USD $850 or £650 in 2022 money). Ridiculous depreciation on a six year old car! Already a cheap car, I bought it for about 17% of what it cost new just six years earlier. I drove it from Toronto to Vancouver (about 4500 km or 2800 miles). Only broke down once, in rural Manitoba. In the dead of night. In the dead of winter. But I still loved that car. It's been easily 20 years since I saw a Hyundai Pony on the road in Canada, though I know a small number are still in existence, from beat up parts cars to pristine examples. I knew the Hyundai Pony had some 1960s Ford and Mitsubishi heritage, but not quite that much. I love the amount of research and detail you put into your videos!

[@ReneDelfgou]

Hyundai Pony mk1 was my very first car. I bought a 1982 one in 1989. Had so much fun with it. Fond memories. My father bought a mk2 with a 1400cc engine, but with twin carburettors. Car was originally meant for Canada, but somehow ended up in the Netherlands.

[@marcos1669]

We need more Hyundai/Kia videos, their rise on the last years have been quite stellar (pun intented)

[@MaximilianvonPinneberg]

Oh god that hideous rebodied Cortina.

[@MrDuncl]

@@MaximilianvonPinneberg Hyundai actually had an advert making fun of the Ford Cortina's replacement the "Jelly Mould" Sierra, with the headline "We saw the replacement for the Cortina in a different mould".

[@mikekinloch6049]

Great info, thanks. When I was just 13/14 years old we started seeing the first of the Hyundai Ponies rolling on the roads of my Canadian town, this is back in ‘83/‘84. They looked no different at a glance to the average Datsun,Toyota,Mazda etc at the time…but I do recall in 1986, when I was 16 and looking to buy my first car, seeing a 1984 Pony for sale in our local buy/sell paper for only $800..a two year old car in my mind was practically brand new! Half priced or better than a 5-10 year old Japaneesy car! I considered it briefly but there were a lot of reports stating that they were junk and to be avoided so I went with the wise decision and went for a 1976 Chevy Vega…man did I learn quickly how to twist wrenches!

[@jonnycando]

You went from the frying pan to the fire! Actually Vegas were pretty tractable and reliable if you could keep them filled with oil….

[@mikekinloch6049]

@@jonnycando I agree..they were decent and good looking in a way, mine was a fast back in metallic dark blue, I quickly ditched the Iron Puke 4 cylinder/auto and jammed a 3.1 Buick V6 w 4 spd Saginaw w nice rims and a little subtle spoiler on the rear plus new carpets and a stereo, being 16 and a broke ass kid I was rolling quite happily around in a clean little car that I built and was proud of..I paid $430 for the car, 150 for engine found the trans for 70 and other bits and bobs, well and truly under $1000 bucks drive it for a few years dead reliable!

[@kimchipig]

I sold used cars when the Pony was around and in fact they were really reliable cars. When something did break it could be repaired with simple hand tools. As for the Vega 140 they were awful until 1974 when GM upgraded them to the "Durabilt" Being GM, they then promptly stopped making it. The cars were not well suited to salty roads, either.

[@jonnycando]

@@kimchipig well they were rust buckets….but back when everything was rustable we overlooked it so long as the heater worked and it ran…..firing caps on the plugs to keep them a little cleaner

[@セトラキアン-n2r]

Korean cars just imitate Japanese cars. Technology, design, and sales methods are all. And headhunting car brand designers from other countries and copy the design. Unlike other countries, Korea's Hyundai and Kia are actually state-owned enterprises. It uses state power and operates with an unlimited budget. It's not a car brand, it's a shameful national company.

[@bucharestbiketraffic]

We had an i20, few years ago. Great little car, reliable and very easy to drive. We called it "the bug" since is small but quite spacious on the inside.

[@tjnucnuc]

Wish we got some of those cool euro market Hyundai/Genesis here in the states.

[@nathancast]

The new concept brought me here.

[@RachaelSA]

I love Hyundai. I have owned, and driven many, many, cars, and I got a little 1600cc Hyundai Getz in 2004 and I have put over half a million Km's on it and it has never let me down once, other than plugs, filters, oil, brake pads and batteries I have never had to fix anything, and every part, every switch and every button still works. It has been perfect, and never broken or let me down. Thank you so much for this one.

[@karimtemri1664]

My father has a Getz and hates the primitive driving experience. Realiability has been ok though

[@ukcbtv]

Here in the UK, our family ran a Pony pick-up from 1984 to 1992 which was bought from new - useful little truck with just a new radiator needed in all the time it was owned. Needed a 5th gear, was tail-happy (needed a couple of concrete blocks over the back wheels!) and the tailgate rusted, but all-in-all fared a lot better than many other vehicles of the time. Cheers.

[@sbcwinn]

I owned both a Pony and a Stellar. They were both under powered but reliable transportation. They also were the last cars I owned with a manual choke. That was one feature that actually helped the cars sell in Canada because the manual choke helped the cars start on the most punishing winter's day.

[@alvindavenport5657]

My brother was a salesman at a Buick dealership in the southeast US when they picked up a Hyundai dealership. They sold $4995 Excels as fast as they could get them prepped and on the lot. Within a year, they couldn’t give them away due to quality issues and numerous warranty claims. Obviously, Hyundai has come a long way since then.

[@chrispenn715]

We owned a Lantra and then an Elantra, both bought new in the 1990s as second cars. They weren't anything special to drive, but were well built and equipped for the money. We took both on several European holidays from the UK to Italy and they performed faultlessly. Not a car to get emotional about, but a very capable 'appliance'.

[@kerbsidemotors9249]

Top of range Elantra diesel bought 37k for £1400- gearbox failed 100,000 binned it and only repair a £12 abs ring.

[@PORRRIDGE_GUN]

I bought one 7 years ago for a £100 at an auction (plus fees) because no-one else bid for it. I wondered what I was letting myself in for. Not a particularly exciting drive but that car never broke down and was cheap to run. It had all the toys, bells and whistles inside and out and they were all still working when I gave it to my daughter at 159k miles. Oddly we both had problems getting it insured for a reasonable price. One well known company wanted £4500 up front, no installments to insure it!! I eventually got a specialist insurer and a reasonable quote but come renewal myself and subsequently my daughter always had to hunt around for a good quote. I could never work out why that was. She sold it at 214k last year and even then, everything on it still worked. She had a breaker collect who said he might try to sell it as a whole car as it was still a good runner.

[@erik_dk842]

@@PORRRIDGE_GUN From an outsider's viewpoint, the British insurance market is a scam. Crazy high rates on third party coverage considering car prices.

[@PORRRIDGE_GUN]

@@erik_dk842 It not just an outsider's view. Many UK motorists don't drive cars they could afford or desire because the insurance is too high. Also insurers operate as a cartel. Price comparison websites offer little difference and the website charges a commission too. UK insurers are far too ready to write off repairable cars,offering next to nothing in payouts.This affects the repair trade too. It's almost impossible to find anyone offering minor accident repair at affordable prices now.

[@SaturnCanuck]

Thank you my friend. A someone who sells Hyundai's in Canada, the Pony is near and dear to my heart. I think every Elantra as the Pony DNA, and we have come a long way, baby.

[@datathunderstorm]

I recall seeing the first Hyundai Pony in Nigeria and actually scoring a ride in it. I was very impressed with the vehicle’s design - and the fact that Airconditioning was included. I was so impressed, I genuinely wanted to buy one brand new! Unfortunately, they were sold out before I got the chance! I still have an extremely soft spot for this vehicle and Hyundai as a whole. My first EV will more than likely be a Hyundai.

[@isend2c]

I'm a big Hyundai fan, I've had 8 and my wife has had 4 Kias. I dream of being able to own one of their first models as a tribute and to keep as an example of how far they've come. It's so difficult though because, as you mentioned, they've all but rusted away. I hope to find one in time. One part that you glossed over was that another reason Hyundai didn't look east towards Japan was because the Koreans as a whole detest Japan for the occupation, oppression and horrible history that goes between them.

[@jamesengland7461]

... except some early Korean products were actually license- produced happens Japanese ones.

[@dannnsss8034]

It's a love hate relationship, and the hate is against the Japanese government (who still essentially honors war criminals, gloss over or deny WW2 atrocities, provoke Koreans by claiming Korean territory, and the list goes on...). The initial love is a mutually beneficial one - business with a wealthy neighbour.

[@grandcarriage1]

Great video as always. I remember the Hyundai Excel (whichi just learned here was basically a Mitsubishi )as our driver’s ed cars in 85 were laudably terrible. The smartest thing they ever did was that wonderful warranty to improve their image.

[@xminusone1]

My grandfather was one of first few who bought one in 1984. The dealer wasn't even identified as hyundai dealer in Montreal. The dealer was called PIX-IX pony and it was on the PIX-IX boulevard in Montreal. I gave it to me as second car in early 90's and kept it till 2001. After that many winter in Canada it finally broke in half 350 000 kms later. The drivetrain still worked well. It was the first car my grandfather bought new in Canada. My grandfather was from eastern Europe.

[@mrjockt]

Since 1995 between my wife and myself we’ve owned a total of 10 Hyundai cars, 2 Accent’s, 1 Elantra, 1 Galloper, 2 Tucson’s, an iX35, and 3 Santa Fe’s, and never had a problem with any of them.

[@yasi4877]

In the early 80's the Hyundai Pony was the most common taxi that you would see on the streets in Seoul. Green and yellow were the most common colours. When trying to hail a taxi early one morning I a gaggle of about 50 of them come past from the Namsan tunnel. They must have been on their way to work because not one stopped for me. For passengers with large feet it was sometimes almost impossible to get out from the back seat as one or both feet would be stuck under the seat in front. An average ride would be about 350 won. They were wonderful days. I don't miss the 11PM curfew however. Daehan min-guk 대한민국.

[@luviskol]

Hyundai Stellar was the weapon of choice for minicabs in the UK at around the same time. Very few if any left as they were low cost, driven into the ground then scrapped. As I recall quite comfy in the back.

[@TzadikTheManic]

You’re channel is really something special, I’m so pleased I found you recently :) I didn’t know the Pony existed; I grew up in the States, in New York and as a teen my slightly older friend with a license had a red Hyundai Excel. It was outrageously rough & seemed to wag like a dog’s tail at speed. I will say we had good fun it, often taking it to roads with hilly sections in an attempt to “catch air” which was comedic, a tad stupid & certainly not safe! -Cheers

[@nickpage2949]

Fascinating, why does knowing the history of a car make you want one when you would have never previously even thought of it ?

[@manofthehour6856]

WOW!!! This really puts the Pony into perspective. It wasn't available stateside, but nearby to me in Canada. It was one of those forbidden imports that were a curiousity to me growing up, like LADA vehicles, especially the Niva. Once Hyundai entered the US market, my now brother-in-law had an Excel he bought new and owned for years, and although I have no idea what the driving dynamics were, I am sure it was adequate for the 1980s, and it certainly was durable. Even circa 2000, Hyundai and especially KIA cars were looked on with disdain by many despite getting a foothold in popularity, and in retrospect, the Koreans did a brilliant job at ascending to a top position in the world car market. The British experts in key management positions who are interviewed obviously at the time had an obvious appreciation for the dedication of the company's Korean to the job. The humility in knowing where they needed help and who to ask contrasts with the arrogance of a GM or BL that each declined and failed in time. Was the Pony any worse than many BL cars, the Vega, or the Pinto? This shows how real teamwork between industry and the government's desire to build a national vehicle and feed the economy pays huge dividends. The Pony was a milestone car for what it was. Fantastically interesting presentation!!!

[@WillGallagher1]

Fascinating video! I quite like the “vintage-meets-modern EV” styling of that concept Pony. It is a bit similar to the what Honda is doing with the Honda E, which I sincerely wish they sold in the US market. Hyundai has such an incredible backstory. Thanks for sharing!

[@RemcoLamberts]

Very much enjoy your mini docco's on mainstream cars that are interesting but would not get a lot of attention normally. Great detail and knowledge brought into it, and entertaining to watch. Love it. Thank you!

[@simonhodgetts6530]

Top marks for the Techmoan t-shirt!

[@koobert]

My parents picked up a 1985 Hyundai Pony in Quebec, and by 1991 its doors had fallen off and they were on the second automatic transmission. They kept with Hyundai for their next two cars, though - a 1992 Sonata and 2000 Sonata, both of which lasted far longer.

[@lundsweden]

I remember the first Hyundai I saw, a gold colored Excel in 1986. This was a 5 door hatchback, and looked quite stylish at the time. Yeah, it may not have dated well, but at the time it was considered quite smart. The problem with the early units though was very poor build quality, lousy parts, one guy told me the radiator hoses failed quickly as they were very thin! However, by the early 90s quality had improved vastly, and the Excel and Sonata sold shedloads, and lasted quite well too!

[@stevieboyNI]

Id love to see a Kia story video Mr Big Car. Love your work as usual, keep it up 🙂

[@erroneouscode]

My family combined had around twelve of the 1990's X3 Excels (Australia). Accents/Pony elsewhere. Both single and twin cam versions. These cars were very basic but 'extremely' reliable. I retired my last one around four years ago (1998 manual twincam 2 door). That car had done 230,000K's being thrashed around Victoria's gravel country roads most of it's life. In the end all the ball joints, bushes and struts were flogged out and the clutch was starting to slip so I called it a day and cancelled the rego. That car only ever let me down once when the water pump one day just seized up making a god awful screech with rubber smoke coming out from the bonnet due to the belt being unable to turn the pump. They took abuse and neglect in their stride.

[@gtm_1131]

Just want to give you a compliment for creating these documentaries for us about all these very interesting cars! These are by far the highest quality well researched video's on KZbin about car history. And mostly common cars too. Which are the most interesting ones to me.

[@BigCar2]

Thanks - it takes a lot of work, but satisfying to get to the bottom of what happened (or closer anyway).

[@brianfearn4246]

Being a former Hyundi pony owner going back to around 1988 it was a bit plasticky on the inside but within the 5 years of ownership I found it very reliable. The only part that needed replacing was the drivers external door handle which I soon learned was the same part as used on the ford cortina mk4 _ 5 .

[@nadeemchaudhry6585]

Another great video and amazing to see how far Hyundai have come in a relatively short time frame. Remember the pony and its big brother the stellar coming to the UK and EVERY taxi driver buying the Stellar. Thanks for the great content as always.

[@rajoosamy201]

Thank yo Igor these wonderful videos.. I’m 54 n I relive my life through your amazingly wonderfully researched scripted n presented videos.

[@JakobKsGarage]

One of the most generic car shaped cars ever! And in that way quite iconic 😎 Very informative with the contemporary interviews. Good content. And I just love your Techmoan T-shirt 👍

[@christophercutajar4020]

Agree a generic shape can be iconic and nostalgic of an era... Like eg the casio square watch... It is the cheapest watch any one can buy but it is an iconic thing that even the rich guys have one... Same with a car ir anything else...

[@DM-hw4cr]

Generic is a 78 ford ltd

[@bobmirdiff2043]

Excellent video! I can remember watching Tom Mangold's 'BBC Panorama' programme when it was first broadcast. I am now on my fourth Hyundai - Reliable and Economical - Well done George! Incidentally, George Turnbull was instrumental in persuading Toyota to begin manufacture in the UK.

[@deadfishparty]

Watched this episode twice. Love seeing utilitarian cars and how they progressed. Would love to see a KIA video as well.

[@orderofmagnitude-TPATP]

3:30...im in the UK & I grew up in one of these. I was born in 82. It was an S reg (old S obviously 78 i think???) - it was white. 2 door. I have only ever seen 2 of them in real life and one in the credits of the old program 'minder'. - the other one was also white- we lived in corsham and the other mitsi lancer was in corsham too. My mother had the car since new all the way up till 1998 when unfortunately a mechanic started it up in 1st gear on the ramp where it fell and got smashed. It was then sold for parts to the other person who owned the other white lancer in corsham.... I really wanted it as my first car and loved the steering wheel and smell let alone the fake 3rd party white tiger skin seats.... much missed.

[@Flies2FLL]

I grew up in Michigan, south of Detroit and Canadians were always driving though our state in the most bizarre cars: Hyundai's in the late '70's. Me and my dad pulled up to a gas pump in Monroe one day and the car on the other side was a Skoda. On more than one occasion I saw Lada's broke down on the side of the road. Heh! Try getting a Lada Samara fixed in Monroe, Michigan in the late 1980's......

[@thinkpadBentnoseTheBlind]

Thats funny stuff man. I live in Canada and get it totally. Them small Renault r-5's,the LeCar. Some had rollback softop sunroofs

[@johnbroomer3285]

We purchased a ‘90 Excel 2-door brand new, which served us well until family requirements led to its sale. It ran well and only ever required maintenance, nothing ever broke on it. Later, we purchased a ‘10 Sonata which ran well and only needed maintenance during our ownership, with the exception of a driver’s door window regulator. I will always recommend Hyundai to anyone who asks.

[@qkwon]

Considering the situation in South Korea at the time, the development of the original model was a really bold decision. As you said, Hyundai started developing the original model 6 years after its foundation. When Hyundai Motor was founded, Korea's automobile distribution rate was about one car per 500 people. There was one car per two people in the United States, one per 50 in Japan, and one per 200 in Taiwan. Taiwan’s automotive industry was way more advanced than South Korea in 60’s and 70’s At the time of Pony development, the South Korean parts industry was not really established well, and with the development of cars, suppliers were also developed as well. In the blue print of the Ital Design, only the shape, size and mounting location of the part were displayed just like design blueprint for other European manufacturers at the time. Where automotive part industries are well developed, you can just outsource these easily, but in South Korea, the detailed design of the part had to be done in-house. For example, if the blue print showed that the double round headlights in the square frame with certain the length, height, and width, Hyundai and suppliers had to design all the components such as lenses, reflectors, sockets, brackets, etc. Just like Hyundai at the time, those suppliers never designed their original parts before. Through this, Korean auto parts companies also grew together, and it became the basis for the development of the Korean automotive industry. For some additional comparison, there was Yue Long Motor Company in Taiwan, and now it is called YULON. It was founded in 1953 and the first original model (Feeling 101) was released in 1986. Founded in 1950, SEAT also assembled FIAT cars for over 30 years and released IBIZA in 1984. Hyundai Pony was developed under much more difficult situation than these cars.

[@davidbarnsley8486]

We never received the pony our first Hyundai was a excel in the late 80s and they were real cheap But now they are first class Hyundai have so much to thank Mitsubishi for all their engineering work The Hyundai electric car would be the only electric car I would buy

[@jamesstuart3346]

Great video. Nailed the Canadian experience with Pony...nobody imagined Hyundai turning out the excellent vehicles it does today

[@gabrielriveros4284]

Hyundai and Kia grew really fast in the early 2000’s, specially here in Chile were japanese cars begin to get more expensive for the same equipment, but now, the Korean option just became the same: low security equipment, poor engines, higher price, etc. The reason why they are still selling a lot is because the cars have large screens that attract low class people. Meanwhile, in the US and Europe, they offer the best price/quality configuration. Its a shame that, Latin America, being one of their most important markets, trusting in their products, just receives the worst indian manufactured cars 😔😔😔

[@jonathanLToronto]

Id imagine for South America, Brazil plant would supply Hyundai productions.

[@hitekroyoutube]

I'm South Korean and even in 90s when I was little, Pony was already a endangered species 😢 The recent air pollution act that got passed over here, made pre 1988 cars to get 100USD fine if it enters cities. So driving a 'Designated cultural property of South Korea No.533', which is Hyundai Pony... comes back with a hefty fine. I really envy UK or other EU countries with classic car act! Great video! Really enjoyed watching it. Has been a fan of you since few years ago. Keep up the good work!

[@BigCar2]

Glad you enjoyed it!

[@restyleband5522]

Another fantastic and very interesting video. Keep up the great work!!

[@quadruple_negative]

My driving school car was an early 2000s Accent. The thing that I remember about it was a clutch pedal completely devoid of feel. It was wonderfully light but you couldn't feel the friction point. As a result I never truly mastered it and took the driving test in my Mum's '91 Corolla.

[@ScottTooley]

Wow, I didn’t think I’d enjoy this specific video as much as the others, but this was super interesting! I had never considered how Korea got their auto brands off the ground. Here in the States, Hyundai and Kia have been doing awesome with the Telluride, Palisade, Kona, Sorento, and Genesis brand. Some embarrassing recalls, but with a 10yr, 100k warranty, those are easier to swallow.

[@xminusone1]

I still remember the firsts kia models who were sold here in Canada. It was the 1994 kia sephia and the sportage. I looked to bought a sportage new at that time because I was young and had little money to put on a car. I didn't bought one but I remember the test drive and it was rugged little truck and much much smaller than the one they sell today.

[@mhordijk0871]

My first car was a Hyundai Pony, registered from 89. Followed by an 88 the following year, after a crash. I drove it for about 5 years. Nice enough car. Quite similar to the Mitsubishi Colt i had my lessons in, in 91/92 It took me to the places i wanted to go, in relative comfort. My next car was a 91 Honda Civic. That step up was so high, i have still not come down from that. And i am driving an 04 Honda Jazz/Fit now.

[@RabbieGrouse]

I remember passing a Hyundai garage in Edinburgh when I travelled through to collage in 1982 and seeing the original ponies lined up outside the garage and thinking that they looked nice at the time. Never had a Hyundai but have had it's sister a Kia (Optima) for the last three and a half years and love it.

[@kevmicjen]

In the mid seventies I was working as a press tool designer for British Leyland in Oxford. One morning my boss introduced me to a Korean guy that had come over to learn about press tooling design. He worked for Hyundai. Nice bloke. I worked, he watched and asked questions. I've wondered over the years what became of him.

[@Tiger351]

The connection with Mitsubishi is interesting, it's the 1st time I've ever seen one of these and the styling looks somewhat similar to mid 70's Colt/Galant/Lancer's from certain angles. The 1st Hyundai's to land in Australia were the gen 1 Excels, they were dirt cheap (not much more than a secondhand Corolla at the time) and felt that cheap as well, it wasn't until the gen 3 Excel they started getting popular. They earned the name Bic car over here as they were so cheap compared to the Japanese models you drove them until they died then threw them away and bought a new one.

[@tng2057]

Yeah! Great work! Very good footages and information. The first generation Pony faced very tough competition with Japanese equivalence such as Datsun Cherry outside S Korea. No price to guess which model won that sales battle. Hyundai gained valuable experience though. Incredibly Ponies did feature in a car chase in a movie. It was a S Korean movie of course, a 2017 made political thriller called A Taxi Driver 택시운전사 . Towards the end of the movie (set in the early 80s) there was a scene of a number of Pony taxis fighting a number of Jeeps from the secret police.

[@MartinLegare]

I baught my Pony from the first boat shipment to Canada in 1984. My first new car :) 6650$ with taxes. I remember how mutch attraction it recieved for at least the first 6 months, mainly because Hyundai didn't do any TV publicity. So people only saw those cars on buildbords or magazine. Many relatives were impressed by the appearance of my car and baught their own. But I only kept it two years, the car was starting to rust badly and I did ran into several mecanical problems. Fortunatly I was able to trade in my car before it got too bad (recieved 3300$ for it). My relatives werent so fortunate hihihi... Baught a Santa fe in 2003, kept it 10 years without any problems, did 280000Km and it still runned fine. My wife recieved her 2022 Elantra this fall after the end of her 2017 lease of an other Elantra. So yeah, defenatly better cars than in the 80's

[@frog382]

There were a lot of pony/excel cars made in the 90s and they were great cars. They used older engines from the mitsubishi but they were even more reliable than the new ones. Todays hyundais can only dream of going for 200k miles without major services and those cars could do that. They were on par with toyota corolla and mazda 323.

[@darrensmith6999]

Excellent video thank you (: I love the BL and Marina connection also the Ital design Haha I have owned 3 Hyundai i 10s and i love them the build quality is astounding for the price. Apparently Hyundai means Modernity in Korean.

[@davidhinkson8856]

So amazing how far Hyundai has come over the years! That's the first time I've seen their version of the Mark 3 Cortina, definitely has some unique styling modifications, but I didn't know they had done a version of the Granada as well. Haven't seen any generation of Pony on the road for years, but I do remember when they were new in the early 1980s. IIRC the Stellar was partially based on the Cortina with the Mitsubishi engines, with the two liter version, known in some markets as the Stellar Prima, being seen where I live in Barbados as a viable alternative at a lower price to the Toyota Cressida and Nissan Laurel. It also was very popular as a taxi.

[@Noex63]

My Kia Sportage AWD is 12 years old and still smooth, powerful and good looking... I know I need to trade up one day... but with only 66 thousand Km's... it's still so good!

[@cianboy97]

Another great video! I’d love to see you make a video focused on the failure of British Leyland! I know it’s a bit different to your usual video but a deep dive into its fall would be great I think. I’ve always been surprised that the British car industry fell apart to that extent. Great work as always

[@MrDuncl]

I have seen a TV programme about that which featured some of these BL managers at Hyundai clips. I guess at Hyundai they didn't have to cope with 523 worker walkouts in 30 months. As for the British car industry falling apart, car assembly in Britain is still doing O.K. (touch wood) at factories like Nissan Sunderland.

[@goncalo33]

I second that.

[@Infrared73]

I remember Hyundai Pony showing up in Canada. Rust problems is putting it mildly and It took them quite awhile to get past it. A friend of mine had I believe an excel in the 90s. Body held up, but had other problems with the drive train. Still he was happy enough with the warranty and support on that car to get a second Hyundai when the time came.

[@MrLurchsThings]

I had no idea Daewoo made a version of our Torana! I guess it would have been pretty close to the rough testing they would have needed.

[@BigCar2]

So many untold stories!

[@alejandroalessandro7820]

You always make this information so interesting. Delighted that you're a fellow techmoan fan!

[@BigCar2]

We're both Patrons of each other's channel. He messaged me when he saw the shirt. 😀

[@Justin_0241]

that was unexpected

[@rajkumarvpost]

Truly impressive - the video and Hyundai!

[@qkwon]

Great video!! It is true that Hyundai Motor Company was created with the capital after Hyundai Construction grew, but the root of Hyundai Construction was an auto repair shop. Hyundai founder had a high understanding of cars by running an auto repair shop. And the first car produced by Hyundai was Cortina Mark 2, not Taunus 20M. Mk2 Cortina came out in Ulsan Plant in 1968, Taunus 20M was on 1969. Both models had front bench seat with column shift instead of floor shift with bucket seats. As you mentioned, Mark 2 Cortina came in Korea without any design changes or reinforcement of structure and often broke down on unpaved roads in Korea. Based on that experience, Hyundai Motor Company brought in three test cars before production of Mk 3 Cortina and conducted intensive road tests on unpaved roads. Analyze the weak points in advance and reinforce those areas. Thanks to that, Mk3 Cortina once had a market share of about 3/4 of the Korean passenger car market.

[@johnbee7729]

WOW. I had totally forgot about the Pony until this video. It was so ubiquitous back in the 80's and I came close to buying one. Instead I ended up with a 1981 Dodge (Mitsubishi) Colt. It was a great car for me. Am thinking the Pony might not have been so good.

[@jasperdomacena6491]

I bought a Kia Ceres 4x4 back in the mid 90s it has a 2,200cc NA DIESEL engine that makes around 60-70hp with a 5 speed box with a 4x4 Transfer Case the interior is absolutely barebones just the basic speedo, fuel and temp gauge and a basic AM / FM Radio to keep you entertained it was so basic that the glow plugs isn't even activated automatically! you'll have to press a button and wait for about 20 seconds in order for the plugs to heat up. but it got the job done.. I still have the truck, still starts up without hesitation, doesn't overheat and it still gets 8-12L/100km's even after 27 years

[@gerarduspoppel2831]

this is very impressive. what those men have accomplished is simply amazing.

[@fbt25]

No wonder why South Korea is among the Asian Tigers.

[@dannnsss8034]

@@fbt25 South Korea has EXCEEDED the original Asian tigers. Now it's a world top 10 economy, GDP per Capita (PPP) surpasses Japan's, and is a leading donor of aid.

[@fbt25]

@@dannnsss8034 I believe you. South Korea were among them (probably already leading) when I was in high school, and that was a long time ago.

[@Pietervdv]

I remember the cars well. My father did PR for Hyundai in the Netherlands in the early 80s. On summer holidays, I used to clean the just off the boat cars at the importer.

[@CrankThijsUp]

Great, love seeing some content on the Korean car industry. Would love to see a video about Daewoo as well

[@MrDuncl]

I would love to see Americans reactions to a Chevrolet Matiz (a car so good there were two separate Chinese knock offs of it).

[@mci6718]

An educational video about the Hyundai Pony that I cannot stop watching. In Hyundai early years, the Pony was offered as a wagon which is my favourite car segment. When it was time for the Pony MK1 to be replaced, the station wagon was gone - I wonder why Hyundai axed the wagon?

[@PaulinesPastimes]

Excellent video about a car that has long interested me. We didn't get the Pony in Aus but did get the first generation Excel which sold very well and Hyundai cars have sold well ever since. I admire the South Korean attitude and their cars are excellent. 😊

[@jetcity18]

Love Hyundai’s. The first one I ever drove was a mid to late 90’s Accent, and I won’t lie it was pretty terrible. My first owned Hyundai was a 05 Coupe which I adored, now have an IX35 and a Veloster. What I like about them is that they are comfortable, capable vehicles, and as someone who still works on their cars on their driveway, they are fairly easy cars for the home mechanic.

[@shealaking8557]

A great video, appreciated learning more about the history of Hyundai. Thanks from Canada!🙂

[@richardbrayshaw570]

Wonderful, entertaining and informative as always. Thanks!

[@joeychaseable]

In 1992/93ish I purchased a 1986 or 87 Hyundai Excel with 30,000 ish miles and it was junk! I begain having problems soon after I bought it. I lived in the State of NY at the time and it just couldn't handle going up the hills on the interstate. I would have to get a good run up to the beginning of the hills if I were to have any chance of making it to the top with enough speed to not have to turn the 4-way flashers on and not slow semi trucks down. One of those days by the time I got to the top of said hill, the engine had overheated and the bottom end had let loose... Fast Forward to 25ish years later I purchased a 2010 Hyundai Santa Fe Limited AWD with 70,000 miles. I've been impressed over the last 3ish years now with 110,000 miles on it. The 40,000 miles we have put on it have been relatively painless. Other than wheel bearings and brakes, it's been trouble free!

[@squidapuss9448]

Nice video you should do a video on the lancia beta

[@BigCar2]

That would be a fun one to do!

[@madeleinehamel7728]

One of the best, most interesting car stories so far!

[@DatGuy960]

I was stationed in Korea in the early 80s, what a great place it was! If I could ever enjoy dual citizenship it would be US/ROK.That being said, at that time just about every taxi was a Hyundai Pony and the biggest emblem on those vehicles blew my mind! Wait for it......it was the Ford oval! Yep! I also remember the FORD Pony from my high school days in suburban Detroit. I always wondered why that was never acknowledged by Ford Motors. GM also had their emblem on a vehicle there, a Pontiac arrow and I think it was on a Diahatsu(?)

[@macdaniel6029]

I really like the Pony and Hyundai´s old logo. The HD looks way better and more modern than what they have today.

[@boldorboy08]

I did not know that about our LJ Toranas! Very Interesting. Thank you.👍

[@worldtraveler930]

Kudos for sporting the Technomoan T-shirt!!! 🤠👍

[@mamboprado1234]

I too am a technique subscriber! My girlfriend use to have a Hyundai pony, had a glass ashtray stuck to the dashboard

[@Robinallenyukon]

we watched them rot out before our eyes here in Canada, but they were fun to drive ... my father bought the 1987 Stellar with the million mile transferable warranty ... the dealer hated it when he still had that warranty many years and models later lol ... they've come a long way since then !!

[@PocketAces500]

Yes!!! Thank you for telling this car's story!

[@cjmq1970]

In my country the Pony was used as taxis and for the working-class people. It was an automobile very reliable, dependable, high endurance, deserving the popular adjective of ‘meat of dog’ to signify any item with those positive features. Nowadays it’s known as the Accent, at least in this part of the world. And it continues its tradition of reliability, endurance, convenient maintenance costs, very popular, and as such, various maintenance workshops available through the country. Well, my sister has one of these, smart choice.

[@fabulousprofound]

I still remember the Pony in Canada. In fact I saw one still on the road the other day. They were crude in comparison to other more established brands of that era, but they were not complicated or expensive to keep running and only rust/neglect would kill them.

[@Utbr88]

Yup! That was my family’s first car. Pony II was a second family car. That was more than 40 years ago. Look where they are now.

[@johnedwards3198]

My Uncle had a 2004 Accent GSI brand new for £6000, it had horribly cheap grey plastics inside but it was very well equipped and reliable for the time and price. My first car was a poverty spec Accent but spacious and reliable (if offering no street cred) it's outstanding how far Hyundai/Kia have come

[@NLBassist]

What a great video. It's like the last car I want to learn about, but the story is so interesting! Thank you, as always!

[@BigCar2]

Yes, Hyundai seems like it should have a humdrum story, but when I found this one I knew I had to do it.

[@blakegriplingph]

Reminds me of when grey-market importers dumped a gazillion old Korean-market Hyundai and Kia vans in the early 2000s. They're serviceable for the most part, but the build quality issues are glaringly obvious like plastic brake and turn signal lamps which easily yellow up. Hyundai has clearly stepped up their game since then.

[@SiemensIQ700pro]

Excellent content. Very interesting.

[@spectrumworksllc3921]

Great 👍 took me back when I was a kid my father had a Hyundai pony . In Chile 🇨🇱 good information about the car and company the first stages of them and how hard they work to get to where Hyundai is today.

[@asphalthedgehog6580]

My father bought a 1.4 in 1980, after owning one of the first Mitsubishi's Galant. This Pony did have something that made it fun to drive. RWD and not much sophistication in the underpinnings made it a laugh on wet roads. I clocked it several times under 11 seconds 0..100kmh, so it was not that slow: as fast as an Opel Ascona 1.9SR (89HP) as I proved. At that time I owned a BMW 2002 and that stopped in a very cold winter. The Pony however kept driving, however the doors could not be closed due to frozen locks. A shawl tied up between the left and right doors however kept the doors closed till defrosted by the heating. The biggest issue of course was rust. My father was busy almost every weekend fighting rust, but the Pony won. Looked for one several times, but seems to have completely disappeared.

[@I.AM.BIG.J]

Hi Mr Big Car! I've been watching you since the very beginning! A lot of things have happened in my life since I recall your first videos about the Metro, Mini and Range Rover. I remember watching them all, quite vividly. I am not surprised you have achieved the growth in subscribers to the point you are, now. I subscribed when you had only around 1.6k if memory serves me correctly; before you had to faf around with moving channels. Since that point, I have keenly awaited every instalment in your automotive history series like this one, and I appreciate the amount of research it must take to gain all the information and present all the facts, alongside editing and finding all the right images and promotional footage. It gives me something insightful to watch; a break from the short-form content I usually consume. I suggested you do a story on Saab a long time ago, and I was wondering if you'd be interested in doing a video on the 2011 Lexus LFA, or indeed Lexus as a whole. The former half of my comment isn't intended to sway you into producing this suggestion, rather, I thought it was about time I took a couple minutes to say I'm a big fan of your content and It's been a pleasure seeing your channel growth. I keenly await your future videos, and to see if a video on the Lexus brand will pop up. 😊

[@BigCar2]

Thanks for watching! I’d like to do the original Lexus - the LS400. One day.

[@Googly243]

my first introduction to Hyundai was a 1998 accent that if you looked at it the wrong way a part would fall off but after 20 years on I can say that the quality and what you get for your money is way better than anything made domestically today and well worth considering for your next new car or first car for your child

[@nonamesplease6288]

I test drove the first US Excel for my first car out of college. It was not a good experience and I bought a mildly used Accord instead. I was very happy with the Honda and kept it for years until it wore out. Anecdotally, I had friends who owned Hyundais who were unhappy with fit and finish and reliability, so I was surprised to hear about that million mile Pony.

[@PORRRIDGE_GUN]

Hyundais can be tricky to service, especially if you get a know-it-all mechanic who thinks they can be treated like other cars. Oil filters absolutely have to be OEM. So do cabin and engine intake filters. Oils generally all 10w40. 5w30 won't damage it, but will make it noisier and negatively affect performance. Silicon grease instead of red rubber grease in caliper slide pins will cause them to seize and ruin the handbrake which leads to an MoT fail. I have to remind mechanics of these rules regularly.