What a Car - UK - (2020-04)

42 April 2020 whatcar.com

ADVICE

ToyotaAuris(2007-2013)Reliabilityrating94.7%

Only14%ofAurisownerssaidtheircarhadsufferedafault,with

thefuelsystembeingthemostfrequentlycitedarea,followedby

bodywork,brakesandnon-engineelectrics.Allofthefaultycars

couldstillbedrivenandwereoutofthegaragethesameday,while

three-quartersoftherepairsweredoneforfree,withnoneof

thebillstopping£100.

Hyundaii30(2012-2017)Reliabilityrating83.5%

Ownersreportedthat19%ofi30shadproblems,withthemajority

ofthembeingtodowiththebrakes,followedbyissueswithengines

andtheirelectrics,aswellasgearboxes.Fortunately,mostofthose

carscouldstillbedriven,two-thirdsoftheworkwasdoneunder

warrantyandnobillsexceeded£500.

BMW3 Seriespetrol(2012-2019)Reliabilityrating90.9%

Almost25%ofpetrol-engined 3 Serieshadanissue,althoughmost

wereminorissueswithnon-engineelectricalsystemsandthe

sat-nav.Althoughmostofthecarscouldstillbedriven,theyspent

uptoaweekinthegarage.Halfwerefixedforfree,though,andno

repairbillsexceeded£200.

HondaAccord(2008-2015)Reliabilityrating89.9%

Accordownerstoldus22%oftheircarshadsufferedaproblem;

theexhaustsystemwasthemostcommonculprit,followedbythe

batteryandsuspension.However,allcarscouldstillbedrivenand

halfwerefixedthesameday.Two-thirdsofbillswerebelow£300,

althoughsomewereupto£1000.

Ford Focus diesel (2004-2011) Reliability rating 46.5%

Owners told us that diesel Focus models suffered almost twice as

many faults as petrols; 50% had a problem, compared with 29% of

petrols. Worryingly, the engine and its electrics each accounted for

14% of issues. The battery, brakes, exhaust and suspension were also

problematic. Around half of cars couldn’t be driven, and although

most bills didn’t exceed £200, some were more than £1500.

Volkswagen Golf diesel (2003-2009) Reliability rating 59.4%

A hefty 36% of diesel Golfs had at least one fault. The areas concerned

were diverse, ranging from the air conditioning system, battery and

brakes to engine electrics and suspension. Around a quarter of the

cars were rendered undriveable, and although most of the repairs

cost less than £500, some topped £1500.

Mazda 6 (2007-2012) Reliability rating 59.8%

Owners reported that 28% of Mazda 6s suffered a problem, with the

brakes being the most prevalent, followed by the engine and interior

trim. That might not sound too bad, but nearly half of cars were

rendered undriveable and took more than a week to repair, and a

third of bills cost more than £1500.

Hyundai i40 (2012 on) Reliability rating 61.2%

It’s unusual to find a Hyundai near the bottom of a reliability league,

but a staggering 58% of i40s suffered a fault and a third of them were

with the gearbox. There were also issues with the air conditioning

systems, battery, brakes and suspension. Most cars remained

driveable and more than a third were fixed for free; some owners

paid out £1500 or more, though.

Family cars Executive car

Honda Civic (2012-2017)

What went wrong? Battery 2% Bodywork

2%Engineelectrics2%Interiortrim2%

Toyota Avensis (2009-2015)

What went wrong? Battery 3% Brakes 3%

Fuelsystem3%Gearbox3%Interiortrim3%

Audi A3 diesel (2003-2013)

Whatwentwrong?

Engine22%Non-engineelectrics19%

Bodywork15%Brakes11%

Engineelectrics11%Suspension11%

Gearbox7%Air-con4%Exhaust4%

BMW 3 Series (2005-2012)

Whatwentwrong?

Brakes23%Engine19%Exhaust13%

Air-con10%Battery7%Bodywork7%

Engineelectrics7%Gearbox7%

Interiortrim3%Suspension3%

LEASTRELIABLE LEASTRELIABLE

MOST RELIABLE MOST RELIABLE

RELIABILITY

RATING

97.8%

RELIABILITY

RATING

92.0%

RELIABILITY

RATING

40.0%

RELIABILITY

RATING

50.4%

Owner comment

“It’s well made, has lots of

equipment and is bomb-proof

when it comes to reliability”

Owner comment

“I’ve had the car since 2011

and it’s only had one fault that

was xed under warranty”

Owner comment

“Repair bills have put a £6k

hole in my bank account in

the past year”

Owner comment

“Most components around the

engine are unreliable; so many

things can, and do, go wrong”

JUST 4% OF Civics had an issue,

according to owners, and most

of the areas concerned were

minor. Most problems were

sorted out the same day and

more than half of work was

done for free under warranty;

where owners did pay, repair

bills ranged from £101 to £300.

ALTHOUGH 17% OF owners

told us something had gone

wrong with their Avensis, the

problem areas were mostly

minor. Most of the afflicted

cars could still be driven and

were repaired in less than a

week. Half of them were fixed

for free, but some owners paid

up to £1000.

DIESEL CARS TAKE the bottom

three slots in this class. More

than a third (37%) of diesel

A3s had a fault, and 22% of

them were with the engine –

a serious area. Other problem

areas included bodywork,

brakes, engine and non-engine

electrics and suspension. Most

cars could still be driven, but

around a third of bills ranged

from £500 to £1500.

THE OLDER 3 SERIES is proving

less durable than the newer

model, with 58% of cars

afflicted by a fault. Although

brake issues were the most

common complaint, engine

problems weren’t far behind.

Although three-quarters of

the cars could still be driven,

a quarter of them cost £1500

or more to put right.