Least reliable and most reliable cars

[ukracer]

Is this actually a measure of reliability: what you can claim on a warranty is often not related: wear and tear not covered or corossion.

I had a 3 year old Ford Escort mk5 start jumping out of gear after 10k miles from new, garage stripped the gearbox and advised it was from wear and not a manufacturing defect. I got into dispute with Ford and they eventually agreed to pay half the bill. 2 years and 15k miles later starts doing the same. Car part exchanged and I will not buy another Ford. (Well except a classic).

No Japanese cars in the top rated either!

Should be Nissans up there...

 

[CompoSimmonite]

We've had our Skoda Fabia 1.4TDi and Smart Fortwo for 9 years and both have been 100% reliable with no serious problems.
Skoda has now done over 160,000 miles yet will still do 50+mpg in normal driving and far more on a run. Other than service items, broken springs, tyres, two battery and clutch the only other problems have been two brake light switches (design changed for second), indicator stalk, headlight (frosty lense that wouldn't polish out) and heater fan. Even the exhaust system is still original.
Smart has done 75,000 miles but only needed service, tyres, two batteries, springs (6 !), wiper linkage, reprograming / new key fob after original got "washed" and nothing else. I'm not counting the crunched rear wing that I brushed against a wall as it's plastic so a replacement in the same colour was very cheap and just clipped into place.

 

[ronan]

Subaru Forester is very reliable, they just keep on going.

Yeah, i remember the rustic horsey set always had them, you would be at a country show and there would be dozens of them towing horseboxes and trailers. I always assumed the accountants at Subaru would cheapen them and ruin them, but it must not have happened.

 

[frank horton]

Dacia are old model Reno's, well last year or 2.....who electronic's I don't know......more Reno's in the junk yard cos of "E" problems that crashed cars here.......
what does that tell U.......!!!!!!!
I will never buy a car newer than 1999......but got my forever car now.......99, VW T4 combi, 1.9TD......cavity waxed from new......
just converted the front seats to full elec and leather with swivels.....now gonna recover the rears in the same colour leather.......
modified 5th gear conversion now done, so u can now talk at 100k's and get much better mileage.....this mod has cut the rev's down by almost a 1000 in 5th gear compared to the old ratio.......
newer cars are xxite.......

 

[Robbie260]

Most reliable car i had was a nissan micra from 1998 it was a brilliant little car. Very quick of the mark to.

My land rover has always been relatively reliable while stuff has broke and needed fixing nothing apart from a 2nd hand fuel tank full of rust that wasnt checked by a garage before fitting and then clogged the fuel filter on ranoch moor leading to it dying at the side of the road of fuel starvation has been the only real thing to stop it in its tracks. Oddly enough it has only ever properly broken down when my dads been driving it and he hates it I think its doing it to spite him.

I had a 2010 vw golf 1.6 tdi it was the most unreliable car i have ever owned it was in the garage every week with a new problem.

Have a 2002 golf gti just now its been pretty decent lots to repair but 16 year old car what do you expect.

 

[8ob]

Not so sure about the Land Rovers being unreliable, fair few of them here and they have all been well behaved.

Most reliable and cheapest motor to run that I have ever owned is the Mitzi delicious, aside of service items its had absolutely nothing spent on it in five years. That said someone reckons there is a brake light not working so best l put in a warranty claim

Bob

 

[eLuSiVeMiTe]

Subaru Forester is very reliable, they just keep on going.

But cheaper repair costs are offset by the shocking mpg.

Not much cheaper than running a imp sti on fuel.

 

[slim_boy_fat]

But cheaper repair costs are offset by the shocking mpg.

Aye they DO like a drink.

 

[ronan]

I have to laugh when i see under the bonnet of old stuff like morris minors and old fords etc. Loads of room around the engine, just the lump itself, and a few bits like the dizzy, alternator etc. No black boxes connected by hundreds of wires, who do god knows what. No wonder people could fix a car at the side of the road.

 

[optima21]

Most reliable:

1. Volkswagen Polo
2. Ford Fiesta

1. 
   
   

nothing new with that, from the 1980's

​

 

[Gragson]

I buy super cheap old ford focus's for the wife, I know what goes wrong with them and what to look for, £350ish usually gets 2 years+ of the short running around she does before its more than its worth, and she cares less as the car is always a tip inside. I find the old 2000ish ones dead reliable although they are rotting out now..

My company car is an A5 quattro sport, totally necessary for my line of work - NOT!
Popped the bonnet the other day, just changing a plug would be like performing surgery on an alien!

 

[ronan]

I buy super cheap old ford focus's for the wife, I know what goes wrong with them and what to look for, £350ish usually gets 2 years+ of the short running around she does before its more than its worth, and she cares less as the car is always a tip inside. I find the old 2000ish ones dead reliable although they are rotting out now..

My company car is an A5 quattro sport, totally necessary for my line of work - NOT!
Popped the bonnet the other day, just changing a plug would be like performing surgery on an alien!

I was reading somewhere that Audi's were not all that they were cracked up to be either.

 

[CompoSimmonite]

A spring is not a service item... if it breaks at 70mph on the motorway your gonna have a bad day compared to a spark plug failing and pulling iver

Have you ever had a spring break ? It's never a dramatic "Oh my god I'm going to die" type of event. Often you don't notice until service or MOT unless the car droops noticably.

 

[eLuSiVeMiTe]

Have you ever had a spring break ? It's never a dramatic "Oh my god I'm going to die" type of event. Often you don't notice until service or MOT unless the car droops noticably.

Sometimes you get the clonk as they go. Notice the handling change and occasionally a clonk when turning full lock for front springs.

 

[W.olly]

I see cars as all unreliable some time or another and luck in the draw which you get. My wife has always had either Citroen or Peugeot and so many folk said they are unreliable and rubbish, In the 6 cars she has had all 8-12 years old have been great, nothing at all failed seriously but for an alternator and cluth bearing.

Looks like that will change now as just got her an 08 plate mini Clubman for he birthday lol.

So all cars are a risk to the second hand older car purchaser.

Give me a twenty odd year old car any day although i do like the clubman

 

[stuvy]

A spring broke off road in my disco and it threw itself on the floor and was a sod to pick up and recover

Having had three magazine features and built endless cars I know my own opinion that a spring is not a service item

 

[winchman]

I have been using french stuff for the last 10 years Peugeot 405 (£500) lasted about 5 years, then a 406 this was much more expensive £750 as it has 150,000 on it lasted to 226,000!
Current low milage Picasso (£600 109000 when I bought it on about 150000 now, what can I say done over 40,000 in it constant 45MPG, had a back box, tyres and bulbs. Its going to need a couple of bits for the next MOT but its just a mobile skip done near 1000 miles in the last month, cant fault it and I would buy another.

 

[HughF]

My mercedes 190 was superbly engineered, the only thing I've seen with similar quality is what I drive now, a 2013 vauxhall ampera (Chevy volt)... Quite simply a wonderfully engineered product with a superb reliability track record.

 

[TechnicAl]

Wifes had a Toyota Corolla Auto for 14 years,,,,,,,it was 4 years old when we bought it,,,,,,W Reg.......its still only done 34000 miles........last MOT was 230 miles more than previous one....but she hasnt been well.....in all that time weve spent 200 quid on new brake pipes and just spent another 200 on 4 tyres.......she said they didnt need changing but they were the originals......and rotten

 

[Gragson]

I was reading somewhere that Audi's were not all that they were cracked up to be either.

I've had 3 from new, A5/A6, 3 years a pop and usually around 100k when I need to renew, reliability wise I can't grumble but its just my experience and every manufacturer has "lemon story" owner nightmares. Value wise... well thats another thing, I think they are over priced