21/11/2012 16:57
The Mitsubishi Lancer has been acknowledged as the most reliable car of the past 15 years, according to the results of a new comprehensive study.
Automotive experts Warranty Direct have marked its 15th anniversary by compiling their most complex Reliability Index to date.
The list was compiled after the company examined more than 200,000 existing and expired customer policies which ended up covering over 450 individual vehicle models.
Each car was analysed for how often it has broken down, the amount of money forked out to pay for repairs, its total mileage and how old it is.
All of these factors were then calculated to create a Reliability Index rating – the lower the score, the better the vehicle performed in the list.
Warranty Direct detailed that the Mitsubishi Lancer model which was assembled between 2005 and 2008 was the runaway winner of the study, scoring a rating of just six.
The Vauxhall Agila claimed second spot, with eight points, in a top five dominated by vehicles assembled by vehicle manufacturers originating from the Far East.
With a Reliability Index rating of nine, the Suzuki Alto completed the top three, while the Toyota Aygo was fourth - achieving ten points - and the Honda HR-V joint fifth with the Volvo S40 with a score of 16 points.
Duncan McClure Fisher, managing director of Warranty Direct, commented: "Most people looking to buy a used car hold reliability close to the top of their requirements, so the information our Reliability Index now holds is a vital tool for any purchaser.
"Over the years, we've seen countless new technologies introduced to cars – they are now more complex than ever and, while many innovations are geared towards important considerations, like safety, it also means there is more and more that can go wrong."
Posted by Craig Salter