Cars that won’t let you down! Reliability has never been more important

Many motorists buying or leasing cars have a significant checklist — which starts with their budget.

Good looks, road presence and performance are also up there, even more so if it’s a sports car.

 If it’s a family runaround, then space, practicality, flexibility, fuel economy and load-lugging ability tend to be more important.

But whatever your choice of motor, two factors remain pretty constant for most: satisfaction and reliability.

Of the two, reliability is more straightforward to measure — and many surveys do, asking drivers directly about their experience or assessing how many times cars have been into garages for repairs.

Satisfaction is more nebulous. Customers buying hyper-expensive cars have extremely high expectations, so it may take only a small glitch for their satisfaction to plummet. By contrast, those buying a budget car — a Dacia, say — may be delighted when it exceeds their more modest expectations.

So which did motoring surveys rate the most reliable and satisfying cars?

Which?

Last month the Sunderland-built Nissan Qashqai was crowned the UK’s most reliable car by consumer champions Which? (which.co.uk), after feedback from more than 49,000 car owners.

The SUV, priced from £26,405, not only topped Which?’s annual survey of dependability but achieved a five-star rating from the consumer group, whose expert testers praised its practicality, family appeal and near-flawless dependability.

With 42,704 sales in 2022, the Qashqai was the UK’s best-selling new car last year — the first time a British-made vehicle has topped the sales chart in almost a quarter of a century.

But the Lexus was still awarded Which?’s most reliable car brand.

What Car?

Indeed, Lexus also topped the latest What Car? report (whatcar.com) on reliability cars. 

Based on responses from 24,927 owners of 248 models up to five years old from 32 brands, Japan’s premium marque, Lexus, achieved a rating of 98.4 per cent, followed by its sibling Toyota (97.2 per cent).

They were followed by: Britain’s Mini and Japan’s Mitsubishi (97 per cent); Korea’s Hyundai and Japan’s Suzuki (95.8 per cent); Korea’s Kia (95.5 per cent); Japan’s Mazda (95.2 per cent); China’s once-British MG brand (95 per cent); and Renault’s Romanian-based Dacia (94.4 per cent).

The least reliable brands in the What Car? survey were: Jeep (77 per cent); Land Rover (81.4 per cent); Fiat (86.4 per cent); Alfa Romeo (87.3 per cent); Peugeot (87.4 per cent); Ford (87.8 per cent); Jaguar (88.7 per cent); Nissan (89.3 per cent); Vauxhall and Mercedes-Benz (89.5 per cent); Volkswagen (90.2 per cent) and Audi (91.1 per cent).

What Car said: ‘There isn’t an unreliable model in the entire Lexus line-up.’

Owners were asked to catalogue any faults over the previous two years in such areas as air conditioning; bodywork; brakes; engine and its electrics; exhaust and fuel system. 

They were also asked how long their car was off the road and how much it cost to fix.

Hybrids were named most reliable. The current Audi A3 and Mercedes-Benz A-Class spent longest in the garage (76 per cent for more than a week); and diesel versions of the BMW 3-series cost most to repair, with 33 per cent of bills exceeding £1,500.

Honest John 

Lexus was also named the most satisfying and reliable car brand of 2022 in the latest Honest John Satisfaction Index survey of 6,000 owners (HonestJohn.co.uk), which assesses car brands and vehicles on reliability, build quality, fuel economy, repair costs and performance.

Ride comfort, handling, ease of use, practicality, technology and safety are also considered.

Lexus was No. 1 for owner satisfaction — with an overall score of 92.37 per cent — and reliability, with an average rating of 9.89 out of ten.

The Lexus NX (2014-2021) was rated the UK’s best model for reliability.

For owner satisfaction, Lexus was followed in second place by Dacia (92.16 per cent), with all-electric Tesla just behind (92.12 per cent), followed by Porsche (90.91 per cent) and Jaguar (90.53 per cent).

By contrast, the least satisfying manufacturers were: Vauxhall (82.69 per cent); Renault (84.42 per cent); Mitsubishi (86.33 per cent); Citroen (86.42 per cent); and Mini (86.55 per cent).

After Lexus, the most reliable were: Suzuki (9.75); Subaru (9.72); Toyota (9.70); and Dacia (9.68). Least reliable were: Land Rover (8.93); Peugeot (8.93); Fiat (8.94); Volkswagen (9.04); and Citroen (9.05).

As to individual cars, the most satisfying is the latest Hyundai Tucson (96.64 per cent), then the Kia XCeed (96.40), Hyundai Ioniq (94.55); Hyundai Kona Electric (94.14) and Kia e-Niro (94.09).

Least satisfying were the Mercedes-Benz GLC-Class (80.98 per cent); Toyota RAV4 (85.07); Ford Fiesta (85.62 per); Vauxhall Mokka X (2012-2019, 85.81) and Honda CR-V (2012-2018, 86.54).

Most reliable cars were the Lexus NX (9.98); Hyundai Tucson (9.96); Kia XCeed (9.96); Skoda Superb (9.95) and Jaguar XF (9.90).

The least reliable were: Mercedes-Benz GLC-Class (8.52); Peugeot 3008 (8.61); Ford Kuga (8.70); Land Rover Discovery Sport (8.91) and Skoda Octavia (8.91).

A new electric challenger on the block 

BYD is probably the biggest car company you’ve never hear of.

But that’s about to change.

For the Chinese electric car giant with the catchphrase ‘Build your Dreams’ has just appointed the first tranche of UK franchised dealers to sell its cars in Britain.

The first include: Pendragon; Arnold Clark; Lookers; and LSH Auto Holdings.

Ready for launch: BYD’s Atto3 crossover hatchback has a claimed 260-mile range and charging to 80 per cent takes 29 minutes

BYD (byd.com) says that UK dealerships will start receiving cars soon, with sales commencing in the first quarter of the year.

Further new model introductions will be made later in the year. The UK follows Norway, the Netherlands, Denmark and Sweden.

The first car to reach British showrooms will be the electric Atto3 crossover hatchback, which I saw being launched at the Paris Motor Show in October. It recently achieved the maximum five stars in European Euro NCAP crash tests.

It’s powered by a 60.48 kWh battery, and rest to 62 mph acceleration takes around 7.2 seconds. It has a claimed 260-mile range and charging to 80 per cent takes 29 minutes.

Expect UK prices to be from about £40,000, with confirmed pricing to follow soon.

The BYD Atto3 also features a host of safety features including forward collision warning, autonomous emergency braking, rear collision warning, rear cross-traffic alert and rear cross-traffic brake, lane-keep assistance, lane-change assist, and emergency lane-keep.

Michael Shu, the general manager and managing director of BYD Europe says: ‘We look forward to working with our partners as we build the BYD brand in the UK.’

Insurance rockets by £100 a year

Insurance costs: Average premiums soared by £100, up 19%, in just 12 months

Drivers are paying near record levels for car insurance, as figures show the average cost for a woman is £557.

Average premiums soared by £100, up 19 per cent, in just 12 months, reports Confused.com. It means male drivers now pay an average of £672.

The average overall cost of car insurance stands at £629, just £34 (or 5 per cent) less than the most expensive price it has ever recorded.

‘This is the most expensive prices have been since before the coronavirus pandemic, when they reached a peak of £630 on average,’ the new report concludes.

Its survey of 2,000 UK drivers who renewed in the past quarter found that half saw their renewal price increase, compared with the previous year, by an average of £46.

Younger drivers have seen their premiums rise by more than £200, with some 18-year-olds facing a £307 hike over the past 12 months, putting the average premium for drivers in this age group at £1,715.

Shopping around can still save cash, says the website.