The 10 most reliable new cars - and the 10 most likely to go wrong

 

Honda, the Japanese manufacturer, produces the most reliable motor cars, according to a new study by Which?

The consumer group surveyed more than 84,000 drivers to establish which new cars suffered the fewest breakdowns, faults and niggles. Honda was the clear winner with four of its models in the top ten.

The Honda Accord, which sells for just under £20,000, came top with a reliability rating of 98.5 per cent, while the Honda Jazz came a close second with a 98.2 per cent.

At the other end of the scale, the Audi A5 was rated the new car most likely to go wrong, scoring just 75.8 per cent for reliability, putting it bottom of the 121 models reviewed. Owners of the coupe reported significant problems with its electrics.

Here is the top and bottom ten in full.

The 10 most reliable new cars

1. Honda Accord 98.5%

2. Honda Jazz (2008-present) 98.2%

3. Daihatsu Sirion 97.5%

4. Hyundai i30 96.8%

5. Ford Fiesta 96.2%

6. Honda Jazz (2002-2008) 95.9%

7. Honda Civic Hybrid 95.7%

8. Citroën C1 95.7%

9. Toyota Prius 95.0%

10. Mazda 3 94.4%

The 10 least reliable new cars

112. Hyundai Santa Fe 82.2%

113. Jaguar S-type 81.2%

114. Volvo XC90 80.6%

115. Land Rover Freelander 80.1%

116. Ford S-Max 79.9%

117. Land Rover Discovery 79.5%

118. Alfa Romeo 159 79.0%

119. Jaguar XF 78.0%

120. Ford Galaxy 76.3%

121. Audi A5 75.8%

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Comments

[Kevin Sexton]

Is this for the new accord that was launched in the middle of 2008 or does it include the 2003 to 2008 model?

[John]

"Honda was the clear winner with seven of its models in the top ten." - but only 4 models are shown in the top 10. What is true?

[Ian Jones]

I have a 9 year old Toyota Avensis I bought from new. It has done 100 000 mile and I have just replaced the battery for the first time and I am still running on the original exhaust. I get 46mpg from a 1.8li petrol engine and it has never let me down.

This car was built in Derby

I don't need or want a new car

[Charlie St A]

Shame the top 10 are some of the most uninspiring, boring cars around. Wouldn't even consider buying any of them. While the bottom 10 conatain 7 or 8 of the outstanding cars in their class IMHO.

What does this say? Maybe their owners are out enjoying their cars rather than being bored to death and so fulling in surveys to pass the time. :-)

[Michael Mychaluk - Canada]

I have a 2005 Subaru Legacy with 400,000 km through Ontario Canada .

It has the original engine, clutch, radiator, exhaust, battery, steering rack and pretty well everything else apart from regular maintenance.

It is driven everyday through the harshest weather in North America from -30c to +40c. On 16 lane highways at rush hour, over dirt backroads, black ice and through snowy whiteouts.

There is no other car in the world I would trust my safety in due to its reliabilty and AWD performance.

[Mark]

I have a 1988 Toyota Landcruiser Sahara 4.2L Diesel
Similarly to Michael of Canada and his experience with the Subaru, it is still on original everything - except drive belts and the usual service items (brakes, oil, tyres etc)
Must be the nice weather down here in Western Australia - not a spot of rust, due to no salt on the roads no doubt
As for Charlie in St A, I would rather get to my destination boringly than not get there excitedly...

[Martin Allen]

I am really surprised that more Audi models didnt apear at the bottom of the pile. My 2007 RS4's 7000 mile engine smoked 40 per day, hessitated when cold and went through 12 shock absorbers in 3 months before I returned it under the Sale of Goods Act. Ill never buy VAG again after this and my experience with the R32's DSG gearbox...I now drive a Vauxhall Corsa and live a problem free life!

[chris]

Last year I said a sad farewell to my Toyota Corolla - 150,000 miles on the clock and never a problem. I now have an unreliable, expensive to run and rapidly rusting VW. I'll never buy European again - pretty badges on duff machines.

[Tiger]

My 20 year old nissan primera broke down. I mean almost smashed to pieces. Luckily, I wasn't the one driving it.

[Father Ignatius Brown]

Charlie St A has a point - driving should be a pleasure (although I too want to arrive safely). That said there doesn't seem to be a huge difference between the top 10 and the bottom 10 (and there seems to be a certain amount of self-selection going on in the reporting - again as Charlie St A suggests).

I bought a small (1.4s petrol) VW some 10 years ago - after a few initial problems (notably the engine moving in its housing because the bolts weren't tightened properly) it is still running smoothly (one clutch and windscreen changed plus usual servicing inc new tyres) after 70,000 miles. So not just a pretty badge. Have my eyes on the new Tiguan but it is way out of my price bracket!

Blessings for a small inheritance or a gift from VW for the plug!

Father Ignatius Brown

[Peter Lewin]

A word for Audi..
My A6 Avant has been absolutely trouble free over 4 years. Nothing, not even a blown bulb has gone wrong. With servicing every 2 years and 25 mpg from the 3.2 litre engine, I'm impressed.

[Colin]

My Subaru Forester is the best car I've ever owned. 2.5 litre turbo petrol flat 4 AWD and 30mpg on a run. Never broken, fast and safe.

[scott]

A lot of this is down to people's perceptions of the badge. A lot of skodas, VWs and Audis have the same engines/running gear yet the skodas always score higher.

Saying that, In this day and age when are people going to realise that buying a new car is almost always a ridiculous thing to do.
People fall hook line and sinker for the "Because your worth it" sales pitch. Only to watch half their money evaporate in 3 years. Mass stupidity!!

We have a trusty 10 year old Volvo. I could afford(cash) a brand new car of any marque but I have seen through the marketing and advertising.
95% of the "well off" people you see in new cars are living on credit and what they can pay each month. Their flash new car on credit is the perfect symbol of their weaknesses. And manufacturers feed on it.
Isn't this mentatlity what got us all into this financial bother in the first place???

[Red Robbo]

And 7 of the worst were from the Ford stable (before LR & Jaguar were sold off).

Even with Ford owning LR & Jaguar all those years they couldn't get rid of the inherited British Leyland unreliability issues.

[EWR]

I have a VW Passat that's done 328,000 miles (it's 10 years old) and it has NEVER let me down. It's still on the original clutch, alternator, starter, battery, exhaust, etc!! The family all drive Passats now and they're all ultra-reliable.
Watching a constant stream of Vauxhalls pass my window on the back of recovery trucks I know I'll stick to VW!

[Graeme]

There's something in the comment by @Charlie St A - what these surveys can't by definition take into account is the kind of people who buy the cars, how they treat them and how they drive them. Honda have a customer base which is older and more affluent than average - these customers will treat their purchase more carefully than other customers.

Honda's also tend to be bought by individuals, not as company cars, and will on average cover lower mileage than their apparent 'competitors'.

Land Rover's reliability isn't good enough, but remember that LR owners tend to drive off-road more than the owners of apparent 'competitors' such as BMW's 4x4s - and if you drive off-road it always increases the chances that something will shake loose or fall off over a period of time. The real concern is for Jaguar, as the XF is, so far, less reliable than the S-Type it replaces.

[PaulL]

This is just a survey of owners opinions. The devil is in the detail.
None of the Bottom 10 cars has been sold in volume.
If you read the article you find that for the bottom 3 cars fewer than 80 people responded.

A REAL survey would be from every manufacturer detailing ALL warranty work.
This survey isn't work paying any attention to.

[P Brasseur]

Well I have a 9 year old VW Passat and it had (and still has) many problems, often re-occuring problems.

Will go back to Japanese (probably Honda) after this one.

[Huge]

I have a Land Rover Discovery. It's the best car I've ever owned.

[Kenneth B. Smith, P.E.]

Editor: Autos Column of 08-01-'09.
The only thing that's new here, is the Honda Accord.
I have a Toyota Corolla, '93 with 70'ooo miles on it, with only one repair in the past nine years, It needed a new battery. No rust, and original exhaust system. In addition, I have a Toyota Camry,
year 2000, with 37000 miles on it. No maintenance repairs required,
even the light bulbs are still working. Why can't the U.S. Manufacturers get this message?
It would break your heart if I narrated the grief I have had with
U,S, Made cars. And I mean expensive grief. Some how, the U.S. Mfgr's. must get the message,We don't want "Planned Obsolesence".
Signed: K.B. Smith, P.E.

[russell morrison]

Since we're in self-congratulatory mode, let me say a word in praise of my Nissan X-trail. 6+ tough years and STILL to let me down. Service it, fit the new tyres when needed, and one new wiper blade...That's it!!
OOoohh...I feeel really clever for being a smarty and buying an X-trail

[CB_Brooklyn]

Some vital questions that require serious attention...

Why isn't CNN/FOX/etc making sure every American knows of the following?
Whose interest is being protected and why?

BBC NEWS VIDEO:
The Air Powered Car
http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=2228669770213573581

REUTERS NEWS VIDEO:
The Water Powered Car
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CrxfMz2eDME

[Jason]

Not a fair comparison.

Cars listed at the bottom have a lot more features both technical and cosmetic that are generally more cutting edge than the cars at the top of the list. The more features you have the more chance you have of something failing.

[Faustino]

Australia's Which equivalent, Choice, does annual carowner surveys, in brackets of 1-3, 4-6, 7-10 years old. Toyota, Mazda and Honda have consistently been the top three makers for reliability, locally made cars (Ford, GM-Holden) at the bottom.

Hyundais were for many years terrible, I'm interested to see the i30's high ranking as the motorists' organisations in Aus rated it Car of the Year. I think the Getz was the first car Hyundai got right, and my wife's is reliable.

[mjr]

The "least" breakdowns, faults and niggles?
Come on Times.

[Inquisitive Squid]

I recently bought a second hand car from a travelling circus and it's very unreliable.

Yesterday both doors fell off at the same time and last week all the wheels fell off too. And It makes a funny parping noise.

People laugh at me when I drive it.

[David Lee]

One interesting test is to see which cars are used as taxis - taxi drivers want reliable cars that don't cost a fortune to run.

I drive a diesel Skoda Octavia, a popular make and model for taxi drivers in many UK cities.

Mine has gone over 125k miles and was bought in Nov 2001 - never gone wrong. Does over 70mpg at a constant 56mph and I find it very comfortable to drive. Mind you, I have had it serviced every year...

[Richard Thorn]

These surveys never cease to amaze me. What criteria do they use and do they factor in the owners' responsibilities such as taking their cars for a regular service? I'm glad I didn't take any notice of these when it came to deciding the car I should buy. I own a 2006 Freelander which I bought new. It's done almost 94,000 kilometres in that time. I've been off-roading in it, waded through streams, driven through wildfires and in extremes of temperature (I live in Spain). It's never let me down once - I'd like to see any of these smug owners try the same in their ridiculous Hondas, Fords and other city boxes.

[Alison Wheeler]

Take a second look at the cars in each list and their average prices.

The more you pay for something the more you are likely to find some little 'fault' which someone in a cheaper car might ignore.

(I had a service gap for my Mazda MX-3 of six years a while back but it runs perfectly then and now)

[Glyn]

Scotts comments about people who buy new cars are very self rightious and condescending. Most people who buy a new car know full well that their car will be worth half in three years, their money and their choice.
Where does Scott think Used cars come from, the used car factory!

[Jon Leek]

Anyone who uses ANY car nowadays is a selfish idiot. Smokers wreck their own health but drivers wreck the planet's.

[Tony Savage]

Yet again I question the quality of a Which report. All of the cars in the bottom 10 are up market vehicles with a high level of electronics and features. As a long term Jaguar S series owner with a 5 year old vehicle that has only one minor fault - the courtesy mirror has a broken pin - I cannot believe I am the only one with a reliable vehicle that is a joy to drive on both country lanes and motorways. Rather the small niggle for a quality car then some of the vehicles in the so called top 10 for reliability.

[Errol Taylor]

"Anyone who uses ANY car nowadays is a selfish idiot. Smokers wreck their own health but drivers wreck the planet's."
Live in the real world. What a ridiculous statement...if you have no interest in cars, then why bother to read the motoring section. You are essentially calling 90%of the population idiots.

[Dicky]

'Anyone who uses ANY car nowadays is a selfish idiot. Smokers wreck their own health but drivers wreck the planet's.'

Mr Leek, and so you're suggesting I cycle the 40 mile round trip on the M6 to work each day are you? Back in the real world....

[scott]

Glyn:
"Scotts comments about people who buy new cars are very self rightious and condescending."
Nope, my comments were truthful, did I hit a nerve???

"Most people who buy a new car know full well that their car will be worth half in three years, their money and their choice."

I would argue the exact opposite. Most people DO NOT think about that when buying a car. They fall for the marketing, "keeping up with the neighbours" syndrome and salesmen's spin associated with new cars. My sisters boyfriend used to be a car saleman and he said 90% of people only cared about was how much a month the car was costing. No idea about interest rates or depreciation. And the 95% of purchases of cars using credit was spot on as I remember.
Living on the never-never, but look at me in my "posh" new car. A massive contradiction. I can't believe people fall fot it.

"Where does Scott think Used cars come from, the used car factory!"
I know where they come from but we dispose of many cars which have not reached the end of their working lifes. Cars have become disposable objects and are thrown away for the slightest thing nowadays. It's an absolute disgrace and very bad for the environment.
Modern cars (last 10 to 15 years)have become very reliable. My point is that we do not need to fall for the smokescreen that everyone believes they are "worth it" and runs out to buy a new car.

[Cheryl]

I have a 12 year old Honda Civic which I have owned for 7 years. It does a lot of short distances which hammers the exhaust so it has had a new one recently which I made sure was a genuine Honda one. Also a rubber suspension bush needed replacing after going flying after hitting a really bad pothole. Apart from that nothing above the usual oil filter etc has needed doing. I have no idea at all how to replace a light bulb because I have never had one go. Fancy a change but not sure I want to chance getting trouble.

[Ken Pork]

I am a handsome man and I bought a 1937 Cord 812 Phaeton convertible 12 years ago. Apart from new tyres, regular servicing, the odd pint of oil and a complete rebuild in 1998, it has been very reliable. Do I win something?

[Louise]

I own a newish Fiesta and a 2002 Discovery, which replaced a 2000 Freelander and 1992 Discovery respectively.....it is true that the Land Rovers cost a lot more to maintain (this year we spent exactly 10 times as much on the Land Rover as the Fiesta) but also true that the Landrover is used and abused much more, and no other vehicle could cope with snow, ice, floods, logs, dogs and long motorway trips with a student's luggage in the back too....I love it for what it does and hate it whenever I have to pay the bills or fill it up with fuel. Oh, and for those who say we shouldn't drive at all, how do we live without a car when the nearest (twice weekly) bus is 6 miles away?

[mR zAMBUSI]

This is bullshit.
Ooohhh, it's not reliable, oooh it's reliable. Come on people, we all know that the Dacia Sandero is going to be rubbish, and it's not even on the list. I rest my case... Buy a VW and your sorted, you don't even need to look any further down this list. I thank you !

[mR zAMBUSI]

Oh, and also Freelanders are really terrible. I have known sevral owners whom have ahd nothing but terrible problems with the Freelanders. They really are the worst from of trash. One of my bestest aquaintances had a Freeloader (as we like to cal them !) and as he meandered down the road the wheels litterally fell of the damn car ! Seriously ! It was like some crazy clown vehicle, but without any laughs ! .... and I am not laughing because it could have been most terribly and awfully dangerous for the poor creatures who were driving it ! So I say No No No to terrible Free Loaders !

[Den Flamingo]

I have a Dacia Sandero.
It has been the most reliable car I have owned for 15 years. I have owned in that time, a BMW a Mercedes, a Lamborghini and a De Tomaso, a Maserati and a Gordon Keeble. The Dacia has been excellent. The ride quality is fabulous and the handling sublime. But what reallt attracted me to this vehicle apart from the style and quality was the power. I have read somewhere that the 1.5 engine in my vehice has 90hp, but it feels a lot more, defnitely more than the Maserati Quattroporte that I owned. I have had the wheels spinning in 4th gear (in the wet of course) but believe me the Sandero has power to spare (I think the term Sandero means 'of much power' in Spanish) and I can clearly see why when powering away from the junction. So all I can say is don't be a snob ! Yes, and I can get something like 128mpg from my 1.5 Sandero, (Unnofficial figures, but hey, this is the real world not some test on Top Gear!)

[Cee Calivargo]

I can only agree with the comments on the Sandero.
I have had my Sandero chipped and a handling pack put on the suspension... Wow, this car now leaves everything for dead at the traffic lights. I have has it rolling road tested at a local garrage at 298BHP at the wheels ! Now I don't know anything about cars, but I know that is good ! It definitely leaves BMW 330i's for dead at the traffic lights. I have no reliability issues at all. The dashboard material feels a bit cheap, but the leather seats are better than my old Audi RS4, and it more then there is the extra power since I had i chipped which is nice ! The only problem I would say is the fact that the tyres are wearing down to quickly 1 But you could hardly blame the Sandero for that !

[Spencer Tracy]

These surveys are very misleading. Volume carmakers will naturally have more faults. The Honda Accord is sold in very small quantities in Europe. Its a very expensive car to buy service and repair.
The new AUDI A5 has been criticised in the press for a particular fault in the first production run.
That has now been rectified.
Ask better questions...how many days off the road?
Parts availability?
How long to fix?
And was the dealer willing to concede that there was a fault?

[Spencer Tracy]

The problem is that if TOYOTA make affordable cars that work for 30 years....nobody will buy new cars!
Seen the losses at TOYOTA recently?
Note: Thats also due in part to the collapse in sales in the USA.

[Peter]

The word 'Sandero' means absolutely nothing in Spanish. In any case, the closest it comes to the Spanish language is 'sendero' (path). Talking of funny names, the Mitsubish Pajero has been changed in Spain to Montero, as 'pajero' means wanker in English. As for Mr Zambusi's bizarre remarks, I also have a Freelander and can confirm it's been totally reliable - check your own brain for missing parts.

[anthony]

Where is the Lexus?, from all reports they are the most reliable my experience with one has been less than favourable, suspension arms, clutch, water pump, steering rack and power steering pump to,the contrary at the same mileage my 2000 Ford Focus has been a delight to own,hardly a thing has gone wrong in 155000 kms where is it?

[Roger S]

Had my Audi A5 for a year - not one single fault. I agree with others that the more sophisticated the car the more things to go wrong.

[Tony Gayle]

It amazes me how people will defend something in the Press just because they have spent their money and bought it. Abysmal Landrover especially springs to mind here. Anyway, the most significant detail of this top ten is the inclusion of Citroen (wow!). We all know that Toyotas, Mazdas, Hondas are reliable. Can be awfully bland and uncomfortable too. Citroens are neither.

[Raymond]

Quote "We have a trusty 10 year old Volvo. I could afford(cash) a brand new car of any marque but I have seen through the marketing and advertising.
95% of the "well off" people you see in new cars are living on credit and what they can pay each month.
Isn't this mentatlity what got us all into this financial bother in the first place???"

And I suppose you keep your shirts until the collars wear through and then unpick them and sew them back on with the unworn sign on top!
When I started work that was the norm. Thankfully times have changed.

[Np]

I see Hyundai hardly get a mention, but they have come on in leaps and bounds. They have been scoring well in JD Power for some years now. My wife's Lantra was a family workhorse for 7 years, and I'm on my second Sonata. These cars are great and will creep more into the mainstream in time, you know, you can't keep a good thing down. They are more plentiful in the states, so the Yanks like 'em.
Residuals at the mo could be better, but new price is very competitive. I was at my Hyundai/ Citroen dealer yesterday. There were 22 Hyundai on '59' plates ready for delivery and not one Citroen.

[Ghost of Fangio]

How come there are no American cars in the 10 worst list?

I have been driving since Stirling Moss was knee-high to a wheel nut and wouldn't touch an American car with someone else's bargepole.

[chris d]

I thought that "which" magazine is sipposed to be full of truthfull knowledgable people. If so answer me this.
When did the NEW jaguar XF replace the S-type?
I believe it was March 2009. So whoever wrote this artile needs to get thier facts right. The Jaguar Has not been a New Car since before March 2009. So why the hell it appeared in a NEW CAR LIST is wrong. And before you all question my knowledge on this. At that time I was selling New and Used Jaguar's then. And the only S--types available were used or ex demo.
So if you are going to insult a quality vehicle like the Jag, get your facts right.

[chris cunningham]

I bought a new Honda Accord in July 2007. It has been backwards and forwards to the dealership with numerous problems since the day it was delivered. The dealership are excellent but Honda's attitude is very poor. They just tell me that "our cars are reliable and yours is just a fluke". So just replace it then!!!!!!

[Denjoy]

ADAC, the german car users association, publishes every year statistics of car drivers of most makes ans models left high and dry on the side of the road. As the stats take in consideration the age of each car it's possible to compare rates of failure of cars in the same category and, you can suppose, comparable milage. So it has much more value that all comments of the kind "my mother in law's car is very reliable". Even if one does not speak german (like me,french)it'is easy to understand the results (see adac.de, then panenstatistiks).
Conclusions to draw is that if some makes are regularly more reliable than others ( often japs but not always) , in a same brand a model can be very reliable while an other is not,and that a given model can have huge improvements in it's life after some initial failures have been corrected. Reliability is much more in the detail that one think

[David Keighley]

Most reliable - the Subaru Impreza I have had for the last three and a half years, a delight to drive, and no problems at all. And no-one has mentioned Volvo's, my wife will never drive anything else. This after being rear-ended while waiting at a stop-light (the 940 wagon she was in was totaled). She, luckily was not hurt, only shaken up. The comment from both the State Trooper and fire-medic were "Good job you were driving a Volvo!"

[Philip Berry]

Just owning a car doesn't mean it's an adequate sample of every single type of that car sold. And to be honest, apart from British "strike" Leyland cars, most cars made in the last few years are fairly reliable anyway!

[I SAWAR]

Had a brand new Audi A4 2008 diesel.The most rubbish car ever.Worst off the dealer refused to accept the fault.
NEVER BUY AUDI AGAIN.