DT: Moneysupermarket.com Reliability Survey
The Daily Turismo was contacted by the guys at Moneysupermarket.com and asked if we wanted to share some of their most recent data a reliability study (based on UK vehicles) and of course we agreed! We had a lot of fun sharing their previous info graphic on zombie proofing stuff, but this one is a bit more serious.
Honda Tops Reliability Study
Japanese car brands came out on top in a reliability study carried out by MoneySupermarket.com and Warranty Direct, with Honda finishing just head of Suzuki and Toyota. This has been calculated by looking at the average number of failures and their severity for each model which is produced by car manufacturers; calculating a Reliability Index (RI) score which dictates positions. The average RI score is 100 and the lower the number, the more reliable manufacturers vehicles tend to be. This helps to illuminate how impressive Honda’s score of 30.75 actually is.
However, Japanese manufacturers didn’t get it all of their own way. Ford vehicles have the cheapest average repair costs and the Kia Picanto was found to be the most reliable individual vehicle, with the South Korean manufacturer finishing an impressive 5th on the overall rankings for manufacturers.
MoneySupermarket has produced the following infographic based on the results, which could prove to be particularly useful if you are on the lookout for a new (or used) car:
Big thanks to the fellows at MoneySupermarket.com for letting us share this infographic, be sure to check them out if you need any car insurance in the UK.
Interesting information. Thanks. It would appear reliability and simplicity of design go hand in hand, as evidenced by the fact (for example) that Toyota (53.27) is more reliable than Toyota's upscale brand, Lexus (76.43).
Couldn't find either Acura or Infiniti on the list, but no doubt they must rank lower on reliability than their parent companies, Honda and Nissan.
Meanwhile the Smart car dwarfs its parent company Mercedes in reliability, 68 versus 164.08.
Because of this, people should be cautious of the conclusions they are drawing from what is (somewhat) a comparison of apples with oranges.
The results are highly influenced (and limited) by the methodology used, and where the data came from. MoneySupermarket.com clearly states that the data comes from Warranty Direct, an aftermarket warranty company.
So the results represent a fairly limited slice of the overall car market. Only used cars old enough and with high enough mileage to no longer be covered by a manufacturer's original (and/or CPO) warranty. Only cars that buyers felt they needed an extended warranty for. Only cars covered by this particular aftermarket warranty company. And perhaps most importantly, only repairs car owners considered worthwhile making a warranty claim for (i.e., the more expensive repairs large enough to bother paying the deductible).
But the methodology is even more skewed. The scoring seems to be as focused on "average repair cost" as "frequency of mechanical problems." Actually, that last part doesn't give a complete picture either, because the warranty company wouldn't know how often repairs were made where the car owners didn't bother filing a claim.
Considering all these factors, the results make sense. You expect to see the higher-end European brands at the bottom of the list. And there they are. Similarly, you'd expect to see inexpensive, fairly basic cars from Japanese brands at the top. And yes, there they are.
By the way, Acura and Infiniti aren't adequately represented on the list because the data is from the UK market. Nissan only launched it's Infiniti brand in the UK in 2010, and Honda doesn't sell Acura-branded cars in the UK (or Europe) at all.