Fleets say Honda Civic and Ford Transit are top for reliability

The trade publication Fleet News has surveyed contract hire and leasing companies in order to establish which cars and vans have the best reliability records; the study covers fleets representing over a million vehicles.

Where cars are concerned, Japanese and German models – perhaps predictably – dominate. In fact, all of the ten most reliable cars are from German or Japanese-owned groups, although the Mini (8) and Toyota Avensis (9) are actually built in the UK – and future Honda Jazzes (3) will be.

Most reliable car (Fleet News survey):

1.Honda Civic

2.BMW 3 Series

3.Honda Jazz

4.Honda Accord

5.BMW 5 Series

6.Audi A4

7.Mercedes Benz C-Class

8.Mini

9.Toyota Avensis

10.Volkswagen Golf

Among vans, though, the picture is rather different. The Vauxhall Astravan (2) is built in the UK – as are many Ford Transits (1) – although these days, lots Transits are made in Turkey, alongside the smaller Transit Connect (3). Mercedes' Sprinter – popular among van-drivers because of its zippy performance – was the fourth most reliable van, according to the survey.

Most reliable van (Fleet News Survey):

1.Ford Transit

2.Vauxhall Astravan

3.Ford Transit Connect

4.Mercedes-Benz Sprinter

5.Volkswagen Transporter