Revealed . . . the 100 most reliable cars of past ten years
The list, compiled by Warranty Direct, found every car in the Top 10, and 16 out of the Top 20, were Japanese.
There are cars in the top echelons many regard as boring and bland. But they never seem to give much trouble.
Cars were ranked according to the frequency of failure from a database of more than 55,000 vehicles.
Highest-placed non-Japanese car was the Jaguar X-TYPE in 13th.
And Germany makes its first entry at Number 25 with the sporty executive Mercedes-Benz SLK.
Used car expert, James Ruppert said this week: "I am regularly asked what car to buy that won't break down and I always reply, anything Japanese. This is based on my experience and it is great to see that the real life statistics back this up."
Volvo's S/V40 was the highest placed Swedish manufacturer (15th place) with Ford delivering its best ranked model, the Ka, in 22nd.
Hyundai's Lantra was the pick of the Koreans and the Citroen Xsara was the best-placed French model at number 26.
Duncan McClure Fisher of Warranty Direct said: "Obviously reliability is not the main reason why someone might choose one model over another, but it is still an important consideration for the majority.
"However, used car buyers are considerably more cautious. Japanese models may not be the most charismatic but you're unlikely to spend a great deal of money and time in the garage keeping it on the road."
- Eddie Cunningham
