whatcar.com^ April 2020 41
FiatPanda(2012on)Reliabilityrating96.0%
ThelatestPandaisprovingprettysturdysofar,withonly8%of
carssufferingafault.Repairbillsrangedfrom£100to£200andthe
batterywastheonlyafflictedarea.Thesamecan’tbesaidforthe
previous-generationmodel(seebelow).
SkodaCitigo(2012on)Reliabilityrating92.8%
ThisSkodacitycarfaresbetterthanitsstablemate,theVolkswagen
Up,forreliability,althoughtheUpisn’tfarbehind,infourthplace
with90%.Ownerstoldusthat16%ofCitigoshadanissue,with
suspensionbeingthemostcommonproblem,followedbythe
gearbox/clutchandnon-engineelectrics.Allcarsremaineddriveable
andhalfwerefixedunderwarranty,butsometookmorethanaweek
tofixandcostupto£750.
HondaJazz(2008-2015)Reliabilityrating94.3%
TheJazzisnotonlypractical,thankstoitscleverdouble-folding
‘magic’rearseats,butalsohighlydependable.Brakeswerethe
mostfrequentlycitedissue,withasmallpercentageofownersalso
reportingproblemswiththeair-con,battery,bodyworkandsteering.
Mostcarscouldstillbedrivenandcost£100orlesstorepair.
ToyotaYaris(2011on)Reliabilityrating93.9%
TheYarismaynotbeasroomyinsideastheHondaJazz,butit’s
almostassturdy.Only14%ofcarssufferedafault,withissuessplit
evenlybetweenthebattery,bodyworkandgearbox.Although
two-thirdsofthestrickencarscouldn’tbedriven,themajority
ofthemwerebackontheroadthesameday,whilerepairbills
rangedfromfreeto£1000.
Fiat Panda (2004-2012) Reliability rating 71.0%
If you want a Panda, we’d advise you buy as new as you can, because
this little city car doesn’t age well. Owners said 32% of cars had a
fault, with the gearbox and suspension being the most common
gripes, followed by the battery. Although no repair bills topped £750,
a third of the cars were rendered undriveable.
Toyota Aygo (2005-2014) Reliability rating 77.3%
With 45% of cars suffering a fault, the Aygo isn’t as bulletproof as its
twin, the Citroën C1, which gained an 84% reliability rating and had
fewer faults (25%). The most commonly reported problem area on
the Aygo was bodywork, followed by the exhaust and gearbox. Most
cars could still be driven and were fixed the same day, but a small
proportion of owners were stung with bills of up to £1500.
Hyundai i20 (2009-2015) Reliability rating 67.8%
More than a third (35%) of i20 owners said their car had been
afflicted by a problem, with the gearbox and suspension each
accounting for 10% of faults. Although three-quarters of the
faulty cars remained driveable, repairs were relatively costly,
ranging from £101 to £750.
Mini hatchback (2001-2006) Reliability rating 73.7%
Only 17% of older Minis suffered a fault, but some of the problem
areas were serious: 11% of issues were related to the suspension
and 6% were to do with the engine and gearbox. More than half of
the afflicted cars couldn’t be driven, while repair costs ranged from
£51 to more than £1500.
City cars Small cars
Peugeot 107 (2005-2014)
What went wrong?
Bodywork6%Brakes6%
Suzuki Swift (2010-2017)
What went wrong?
Battery6%
Fiat 500 (2008on)
Whatwentwrong?
Air-con9%Gearbox9%Suspension9%
Battery6%Exhaust6%Non-engine
electrics6%Bodywork3%Brakes3%
Engineelectrics3%Interiortrim3%Steering3%
Peugeot 207 (2006-2012)
Whatwentwrong?
Engine19%Air-con14%Gearbox14%
Suspension14%Exhaust10%Bodywork5%
Brakes5%Steering5%
LEASTRELIABLE LEASTRELIABLE
MOST RELIABLE MOST RELIABLE
RELIABILITY
RATING
97.8%
RELIABILITY
RATING
98.6%
RELIABILITY
RATING
69.3%
RELIABILITY
RATING
63.2%
Owner comment
“Cheap to own, fun to drive
and ridiculously reliable,
plus parts are cheap”
Owner comment
“It hasn’t let me down and
I haven’t had to have any
major work done on it”
Owner comment
“It’s suffered one fault after the
next, including one the day after
it came out of the garage”
Owner comment
“I’m always waiting for the
next thing to break on it”
AGE IS NO barrier to being
dependable, as Peugeot’s 107
demonstrates; it dates back
to 2005 and went off sale six
years ago, yet it has a superb
reliability record. Only 12% of
cars had a problem, and the
only areas concerned were the
bodywork and brakes. All cars
were fixed the same day, with
no bills exceeding £100.
THE SWIFT IS small and almost
perfectly formed when it
comes to reliability. Only 6%
of cars suffered a problem,
and the only area affected
was the battery. All cars were
back on the road the same
day, with repair bills ranging
from £51 to £100.
The 500 struck problems
in 11 of our 14 different
categories. Owners told
us that 32% of their cars
suffered a fault, with the air
conditioning, gearbox and
suspension all cited as big
areas of concern. A third of the
cars couldn’t be driven and
repair bills of £300 to £500
were common, with some
costing up to £1500.
A SHOCKING 57% of 207s
had a fault, with 19% of them
suffering engine problems
and the air conditioning,
gearbox and suspension each
accounting for 14% of issues.
Most cars could still be driven
and around half were fixed
the same day, and while most
work cost a few hundred
pounds, some owners paid
up to £1000.