You can't beat Japanese car reliability

You can't beat Japanese car reliability

Japanese manufacturers have dominated a poll of the Top 100 most reliable used cars over the past decade.

The list, compiled by independent mechanical breakdown insurer, Warranty Direct, found that every car in the Top 10, and an amazing 16 out of the Top 20, were Japanese models. The Honda Accord was at number one.

Models were ranked according to the frequency of failure and based on a database of over 55,000 vehicles. Last year, over 7.5m Britons spent �25bn buying a used car - nearly seven times the number of people who bought a new car privately.

The Top Ten Most Reliable Used Cars according to Warranty Direct:

Pos Model

1 Honda Accord

2 Subaru Forester

3 Mazda MX-5

4 Mitsubishi Carisma

5 Toyota Yaris

6 Honda Civic

7 Nissan Almera

8 Honda CR-V

9 Toyota RAV4

10 Nissan Micra

The highest placed non-Japanese model was the British built Jaguar X-Type in 13th with the mighty German automotive industry first appearing at number 25 with the sporty executive Mercedes-Benz SLK according to Warranty Direct.

Used car expert, James Ruppert says: "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 produced by Warranty Direct back this up."

Volvo�s S/V40 was the highest placed Swedish manufacturer in 15th, with the nation�s most popular manufacturer, 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.

"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," says Duncan McClure Fisher of Warranty Direct.

"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."