Any - Top 10 Most reliable hatcbacks....are you sure?

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Sat 9 Jun 2018 10:08
Any - Top 10 Most reliable hatcbacks....are you sure? - catsdad
Just scrolled through this Top Ten on the homepage. Full of VW, Ford, VX, etc and not one Japanese car listed.

I assume the underlying methodology is based on claims made. Cars without claims therefore are excluded and cars with infrequent but larger costs are judged "unreliable". Meanwhile those that breakdown more frequently, but are cheap to repair, are judged "reliable".

Thats not how I would judge reliability. Breakdowns over a year or per 10k miles are surely better measures. Cost of repair is important but its its not in itself a measure of reliability.

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Sat 9 Jun 2018 10:27
Any - Top 10 Most reliable hatcbacks....are you sure? - argybargy

The methodology seems suspect, to say the least, given that only Warranty Direct claims information is used.

At best it excludes cars with a long history of reliability, and at worst it could result in someone buying a car which is likely to give them a whole heap of trouble. An early Ecoboost variant of the Fiesta or Focus, for example.

Must try harder, HJ.

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Sat 9 Jun 2018 10:37
Any - Top 10 Most reliable hatcbacks....are you sure? - Leif
Without knowing more, it’s not something I’d take at face value. What is the driver age profile for each car? What is the age distribution for each car? How many vehicles of each type did they insure? And so on. That said, the absence of Italian and French cars does seem reasonable. The absence of Japanese cars is odd. Especially since other surveys suggest VW tend to be middle ranking, and Toyota top ranking, in terms of reliability.
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Sat 9 Jun 2018 14:44
Any - Top 10 Most reliable hatcbacks....are you sure? - madf

We own a 2003 Yaris and a 2012 Jazz. Based on our experience with these cars - a total of 18 years - a Breadown /Policy/Warranty is a 100% waste of money..

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Sat 9 Jun 2018 16:20
Any - Top 10 Most reliable hatcbacks....are you sure? - Chris M

Doesn't matter whether the methodology is correct or not, the survey has achieved its objective. Warranty Direct have gained publicity.

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Sat 9 Jun 2018 18:56
Any - Top 10 Most reliable hatcbacks....are you sure? - SLO76

We own a 2003 Yaris and a 2012 Jazz. Based on our experience with these cars - a total of 18 years - a Breadown /Policy/Warranty is a 100% waste of money..

In 25yrs of driving, done in thousands of different motors I’ve only been stranded once - touch wood. Cars although occasionally annoying are fantastically reliable things considering how complex they are and how little in the way of maintenance most of them receive. That said, I do tend towards more robust brands and simpler specifications both as a dealer and for personal use.
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Sat 9 Jun 2018 22:07
Any - Top 10 Most reliable hatcbacks....are you sure? - Leif

We own a 2003 Yaris and a 2012 Jazz. Based on our experience with these cars - a total of 18 years - a Breadown /Policy/Warranty is a 100% waste of money..

In 25yrs of driving, done in thousands of different motors I’ve only been stranded once - touch wood. Cars although occasionally annoying are fantastically reliable things considering how complex they are and how little in the way of maintenance most of them receive. That said, I do tend towards more robust brands and simpler specifications both as a dealer and for personal use.

Exactly. Cars are far more reliable than in days gone by. I do though suspect that some brands are built to last longer, and some aren’t. My old style Ford Ka fell apart from rust after ten years. Neighbours’ Toyotas, Mazdas and VWs are lasting ages. My VW Up felt well built with thick rust proofing paint on the underside despite being a basic car.

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Sat 9 Jun 2018 19:09
Any - Top 10 Most reliable hatcbacks....are you sure? - Engineer Andy

I agree - most people owning Japanese and Korean built cars (aside from Nissans) don't bother with taking out after market warranties from third parties, if any, as , for the most part, they DON'T NEED THEM. Only those who own ones who've had many owners who've treated the car badly might do so.

All other surveys put these cars at the top. Also, people who own and really look after such cars (private long term owners) often have higher expectations and thus small issues will be sorted out, which owners of other make cars may often not bother to get such 'trivial' problems fixed.

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Sat 9 Jun 2018 19:22
Any - Top 10 Most reliable hatcbacks....are you sure? - gordonbennet

All other surveys put these cars at the top. Also, people who own and really look after such cars (private long term owners) often have higher expectations and thus small issues will be sorted out, which owners of other make cars may often not bother to get such 'trivial' problems fixed.

Food for thought there chaps.

I wonder if people who buy into the more robust (as SLO correctly phrases them) makes and models are slightly more mechanically minded than others, even if they don't actually sling themselves underneath whirling spanners about, or is there some other reason.

Whilst many posters here don't buy Japanese petrols (for a variety of reasons), it's become pretty much taken for granted knowledge that if you want a standard vehicle likely to give you no grief then either Japanese (or now coming up fast) Korean cars are the way to go.

The thing is you don't need to be a whizz bang mechanical genius to maintain your reasonably simple (as all of the mst reliable tend to be) car, keep the oils and coolant in good condition, look after the brakes and tyres, change the cambelt on time, treat it with a ittle mechanical sympathy and you're 90% there.

A for the survey, given the better warranties on Japanese cars, and the even better ones on Korean, cars, they're already often several years ahead of other makes, i don't suppose many owners feel the need to chuck their money at an afermarket warranty they are most unlikely to try to claim on.

Edited by gordonbennet on 09/06/2018 at 19:27

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Sat 9 Jun 2018 21:01
Any - Top 10 Most reliable hatcbacks....are you sure? - Manatee

It's inexplicable.

Looking at WD's website, the Golf (90) is beaten by the Mazda 3 (79), and the Polo (24) is beaten by the Mazda 2 (21).

The Honda Jazz scores 11.

I didn't check any others.

Edited by Manatee on 09/06/2018 at 21:03

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Sat 9 Jun 2018 22:40
Any - Top 10 Most reliable hatcbacks....are you sure? - Alby Back
It's all a bit of a ball of chalk though isn't it? Apart from an Espace which was rubbish, I've not had any significant problems with any car in 40 odd years. Nigh on 40,000 miles a year over that period and apart from normal servicing and consumables, I can count the unexpected repairs or problems I've had to deal with on the fingers of one hand. Most of them weren't Japanese or manuals, and for three of the four decades they've been diesels.

There's an awful lot of tooth sucking nonsense talked about reliability. If you look after your car, it'll by and large look after you.

Edited by Alby Back on 09/06/2018 at 22:41

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Sun 10 Jun 2018 00:02
Any - Top 10 Most reliable hatcbacks....are you sure? - Avant

True - and if you'd been doing 4,000 miles a year instead of 40,000 you'd probably have had more trouble. Cars like to be driven.

When I was working I did 20,000 to 30,000 a year, and even in semi-retirement both cars do about 10,000 a year. Touch wood, like you we've had very few problems, our one 'rubbish' car being a Fiat in the 1980s. Unlike you I had seven reliable Renaults - but that was in the 'sweet spot' period between 1980 and 2000: after Renault had discovered how to make them start reliably from cold, but before the disastrous fall in quality after 2000, which I suspect was when you had your Espace.

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Sun 10 Jun 2018 13:47
Any - Top 10 Most reliable hatcbacks....are you sure? - madf

Two most unrelaible cars I have driven?

Rover 800.. clutch failure, HG failure, numerous electrical fault.

Audi A4 TDI 1997 - long list of faults - ssupension, exhaust aircon..none stopped it being driven but it was a POC.

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Mon 11 Jun 2018 10:14
Any - Top 10 Most reliable hatcbacks....are you sure? - argybargy

Two most unrelaible cars I have driven?

Rover 800.. clutch failure, HG failure, numerous electrical fault.

Audi A4 TDI 1997 - long list of faults - ssupension, exhaust aircon..none stopped it being driven but it was a POC.

The most unreliable car I ever owned was also an 800. Almost certainly clocked, wonderful to drive when it was working, but rarely on the road without problems for more than a couple of weeks. The throttle potentiometer went, meaning that the car would drive itself without any help from me. The gearbox had to be replaced...the HG went and was "fixed" by the garage I bought it from, after a fashion. The sort of "fashion" that involves people who don't give a flying ferret for their customers. The electrical system had a mind of its own. In the end it became such a money pit I part-exed it on, and to my astonishment I saw it still being driven locally 2 years later.

Conversely I had a Renault Megane Scenic which, I discovered after buying it, was a notoriously unreliable brand. However, I never had a smidgeon of trouble with it in 2 years of ownership. Odd, that.

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Mon 11 Jun 2018 11:12
Any - Top 10 Most reliable hatcbacks....are you sure? - gordonbennet

The most unreliable car I ever owned was also an 800.

One of the best cars i ever owned was a Rover 827, facelift model, manual box with the Honda 2.7 engine.

Ex police driving school in a lovely mid blue, the print out service history from the force garage was to die for, the only recurring issue was front brake disc warping, which continued during my ownership (i was a bit faster driver in those days) so you could reckon on a set of discs every 20k or so if you gave it some welly, apart from that the car was fault free, still pulling at a genune 140, quiet and very comfortable to travel in, 196/65 x 15 tyres as i recall which were cheap as chips and gave a baby smooth ride.

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Sun 10 Jun 2018 15:25
Any - Top 10 Most reliable hatcbacks....are you sure? - John F

True - and if you'd been doing 4,000 miles a year instead of 40,000 you'd probably have had more trouble. Cars like to be driven.

I disagree with this old chestnut of motor trade dogma. A car is just a machine, albeit a complex one. The more you use it the more likely its bits will wear out or break. My job was intense, necessitating living nearby and thus a low annual mileage of only 4-5000m per annum. After 10years my 1980 TR7 (now 38, still going strong) had only 50,000m on the clock . I think just 15,000m per annum would have killed it (and probably most other cars of that era) despite my best efforts.

In 1991 I inherited my ancient mother's 1983 Triumph Acclaim with only 4,000m of mostly short shopping trips. Apart from a bit of superficial rust it was in perfect condition and had been no trouble - we put another 40,000m on it as a work/dogsbody car before selling it.

Regular use is more important for longevity, not high mileage.

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Sun 10 Jun 2018 18:18
Any - Top 10 Most reliable hatcbacks....are you sure? - SLO76
“Regular use is more important for longevity, not high mileage.”

Have to agree and this is one point I disagree with HJ on. I often bought cars from elderly people who were giving up driving or from relatives of the deceased. These were usually older cars with very low mileages but all drove like new and gave no trouble at all. Where I disagree with yourself John is the need for regular maintenance which is largely why these older low milers were in such good mechanical order. Most of these had records showing annual oil changes and none came back to bite me. £100-£150 a year for a basic service is a small price to pay for longterm reliability.
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Mon 11 Jun 2018 09:48
Any - Top 10 Most reliable hatcbacks....are you sure? - Octane

In the workshop where I was an apprentice there were many ex forces men who regarded those people who bought Japanese cars were traitors to this country. I received many distressing impromptu lectures when confessing to the ownership of a Honda motorbike. Sadly by the 1970's the British car industry was clearly going the way of the motorbikes. Despite our good innovation and design skills the quality of our mass production was going down and that in other countries was going up. In my working lifetime the situation has completely changed so that now motorists proudly proclaim ownership of reliable Japanese machinery and a good deal of it is made in this country. When there were half as many cars on the road as today I loved my old BMC 1100 which fell to bits as I drove but I could never go back to it.

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Mon 11 Jun 2018 10:56
Any - Top 10 Most reliable hatcbacks....are you sure? - John F
Where I disagree with yourself John is the need for regular maintenance which is largely why these older low milers were in such good mechanical order.

No disagreement here. My TR7 gets a regular oil change every 6000m (sometimes before if the oil is many years old) as per the owners manual recommendation. It rightly says nothing about having to change it just because 365 days has gone by. This is just an example of the motor trade drumming up unnecessary business. At 38yrs old the engine works perfectly and requires no top-up between oil changes. The only interference, apart from having to change a leaky water pump, was to remove the cam cover 30yrs ago to check the valve clearances. They were fine, needing no adjustment. Similarly our 18 going on 19yr old Focus gets a change every 10 or 12,000m, which occurs every eighteen months or so. Again, the engine is still in good condition at 130,000m.

Most of these had records showing annual oil changes

That's where we disagree. And that is the inflexible b*****-minded mindset of so many in the British engineering industry that refused to accept new ideas and resulted in the domination of our roads by the products of the more intelligent races of the east. Recently I visited the 'transparent' factory in Dresden where the electric Golf is made. Guess where the robots which make it are made.....

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