- Found out what the most reliable cars on the market are
- Is your car reliable?
- How to research a car's reliability record
Simply put, a reliable car doesn’t break down. Finding out whether a particular car is reliable or not is a lot less easy. For every car maker or owner that claims a brand is supremely reliable, there’ll be an owner somewhere – probably on an internet forum – who says otherwise.
But there are a number of independent surveys that help us to see which cars perform dependably in real life, and which don’t. We’ve looked at the Auto Express Driver Power Survey, the JD Power Survey, the WhatCar? Reliability Survey, and the Reliability Index, all from 2019. Here are four best-selling classes of car with the models that come out the best.
Most reliable small cars
According to all the surveys, there’s only one place to look for a reliable small car and that’s to the east. None of the models mentioned here is big on thrills for the driver. But when it comes to dependability, they’re at the top of the tree. Included are the tiddly Toyota iQ, its stablemate the Yaris (which features strongly in three of the four surveys), and the Hyundai i10. Suzuki also stands out with the tiny Alto and its replacement the Celerio. The Honda Jazz is commended for its reliability too.
Most reliable mid-size car and SUV
Two manufacturers top this category: Skoda and Toyota. Czech brand Skoda’s Octavia and Rapid models are highly regarded for reliability, as is its ageing Yeti SUV. Meanwhile the Toyota Auris is another small car that owners herald for not letting them down. And if you’re looking for reliable hybrid cars, Toyota’s Prius is the one that gets praised, as does the Lexus CT that it shares mechanicals with.
Most reliable SUV cars
The Korean companies do well. Hyundai and Kia share technology so both brands benefit from the same strong reliability. The Kia Sportage is a steadfast family SUV while if you want to turn on the style, the Soul tops the tables for trustworthiness. However, the tasty Volkswagen Tiguan SUV is also well regarded for reliability.
Most reliable large cars
The bigger the car, the more complex they tend to be and therefore the more reliability is important. Once again Hyundai/Kia do well with their i40 and Optima models. However, the slinky Jaguar XE wins plaudits too. And the Vauxhall Insignia features at the sharp end of some surveys as does its bitter rival the Ford Mondeo.
Most reliable luxury cars
Manufacturers that play in the large car space tend to be the premium brands. One that stands out is the Mercedes-Benz E-Class. But its rival the Lexus IS is also commended by owners for trustworthiness and the Lexus RX is acclaimed as the most reliable used hybrid SUV.
Do your own research
None of these reliability surveys are perfect. For a start, the dependability of the same type of car may differ depending on the year they were made. A more modern version could have ironed out some problems in its predecessor – or conversely, introduced them.
But all these surveys do go back over the years so you can dig into past results to see how any particular car does. While we can build pictures of how different models perform in reliability terms, surveys also let us build a picture of the most unreliable cars out there.
If you have narrowed down the used cars you’re interested in, it makes sense to take to the internet and search forums to see how various cars rate for reliability. Again, it can give a disproportionate view of a particular car if there happens to be some very vocal forum posters. But it’s better than nothing.
How well has it been maintained?
It doesn’t matter what people’s individual experiences with cars are, if they haven’t been properly maintained, even the highest quality car could be teetering on the brink of trouble. That’s why it’s important when buying a used car, whatever it is, to make sure that it’s got a full-service history. That way you can be sure that it’s been well looked after and the various fluids and parts have been replaced when they need to be in order to keep things ticking along as they should.
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