The Japanese manufacturer topped the annual survey of 37 manufacturers, which analyses 50,000 live Warranty Direct policies on three to eight-year old vehicles.
Once again, Japanese manufacturers dominated the top of the annual study of the most reliable brands, with Suzuki, Toyota, Mazda claiming second, third and joint-fourth place respectfully. Encouragingly for other manufacturers however such as Ford and Skoda also fought their way into the top 10.
At the opposite end of the scale, luxury and prestige marques Bentley and Porsche are the most likely to break down.
What Car? editor Jim Holder said: “Honda’s success in the reliability index is chiefly down to low failure rates. However, when things do go wrong, the cars are also relatively cheap to fix.
“Reliability is always one of the key attributes buyers look for when considering a used car purchase, so manufacturers that consistently demonstrate durability will always do well with the consumer.”
Warranty Direct’s Reliability Index analysed by What Car? experts, calculates each vehicle’s reliability using a complex formula that takes into account its failure rate, age, mileage and cost of repair. The lower the RI number, the more trustworthy the car.
Overall, the most reliable models are the Honda Jazz and Mitsubishi Lancer, both of which also carry reasonable average repair costs. The least reliable model, the Audi RS6, is also the most costly to fix, with an eye-watering average repair bill of £1003.25
Electrical faults are the most common across all cars, acting as the catalyst which sends almost a quarter (22.34%) of vehicles to the garage. Axle and suspension faults are also common, affecting 22% of cars. Air conditioning is the cause of least concern to motorists, being reported by a minimal 3% of owners.
Reliability rating of all manufacturers
The TOP 10 & The Bottom Five
The Irish importer/distributor of Honda cars is Universal Honda and their managing director Adrian Cole said: ‘To win an award for reliability is always a great honour for us at Honda, as it speaks volumes about the quality and durability of our cars. This study is made all the more important by the fact that it is our 9th year in a row to take the win, demonstrating the consistently strong performance of Honda in the area of reliability over so many years.
Source: Motorshow
