Most Reliable Cars in the UK 2026
Key findings
- Lexus is the most reliable car brand in the UK in 2026. It tops Auto Trader’s Drivers’ Choice Most Reliable Brand award for the fourth consecutive year, scored 97.01% in the Honest John Satisfaction Index 2025, and led the JD Power Vehicle Dependability Study 2025 in the United States.
- The Lexus NX is the most reliable individual model with a 98.06% score in the Honest John Satisfaction Index 2025. The Honda CR-V is the only model to feature in both Honest John’s and Warrantywise’s 2025 top 10s.
- Japanese brands dominate: Honda, Toyota, Suzuki and Lexus each rank inside the top six of at least one major UK reliability survey in 2025. Honda tops What Car? (96.6%) and Lexus tops Honest John (97.01%).
- Alfa Romeo, Jeep, Land Rover, Fiat, Ford and Mercedes-Benz appear in the bottom 10 of at least one major UK reliability survey in 2025.
How we ranked these
We aggregated five major UK and international reliability indices published in 2025: the What Car? Reliability Survey 2025 (29,697 owners, 199 models), the Honest John Satisfaction Index 2025 (6,000+ UK owners), the Warrantywise Reliability Index 2025 (180,000+ repair requests on cars aged 3–10 years), the Auto Express Driver Power 2025 (Carwow Group + Dynata UK panel), and the Auto Trader Drivers’ Choice Awards 2025. We cross-referenced these against the DVSA MOT testing data for Great Britain (~30 m+ tests/year, published quarterly) and the JD Power Vehicle Dependability Study 2025 (US) as a corroborating long-term-ownership signal.
Brands are ranked by an unweighted average of their published scores in the two largest UK owner surveys (What Car? and Honest John), with placement bonuses for top-three positions in Driver Power, Auto Trader and JD Power. Models are listed in order of the highest verified single-source score, with cross-source matches flagged. We do not invent composite scores: every figure in this report links to its primary source.
Most Reliable Car Brands in the UK 2026
14 brandsBrands ranked by unweighted UK average of What Car? Reliability Survey 2025 and Honest John Satisfaction Index 2025 scores, with ties broken by cross-source appearances. A dash (—) indicates the brand was not included in that survey.
| Rank | Brand | What Car? 2025 | Honest John 2025 | UK avg | Cross-survey notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Lexus | 94.20% | 97.01% | 95.60% | Auto Trader Most Reliable Brand 2025 (4th consecutive year). Topped JD Power US Vehicle Dependability Study 2025. |
| 2 | Honda | 96.60% | 94.31% | 95.50% | What Car? #1 brand 2025. Honda Jazz #4 model in Honest John 2025. |
| 3 | Tesla | 94.50% | 95.29% | 94.90% | Honest John #2 brand. Model 3 ranked #9 model. |
| 4 | Toyota | 95.20% | 94.65% | 94.90% | Four models in Warrantywise top 10 (Yaris, Aygo, Prius, Hilux). Strong placement in JD Power 2025 mass-market segment. |
| 5 | Suzuki | 95.70% | 92.67% | 94.20% | Suzuki Swift Warrantywise #2 model 2025. |
| 6 | Mini | 96.40% | — | 96.40% | What Car? #2 brand. Strong placement in JD Power 2025 (US) — corroborating. |
| 7 | BMW | 94.60% | — | 94.60% | Above-average score in JD Power 2025 (US). BMW 2 Series Honest John #10 model. |
| 8 | Kia | 94.40% | 91.85% | 93.10% | Picanto, Ceed and EV3 across Warrantywise and What Car? top picks. |
| 9 | Skoda | — | 93.08% | 93.08% | Skoda Karoq is the #2 individual model in Honest John 2025. |
| 10 | Porsche | — | 92.50% | 92.50% | Honest John #7 brand 2025. |
| 11 | Mazda | — | 91.60% | 91.60% | Top-three mass-market brand in JD Power 2025 (US). Mazda CX-5 Honest John #8 model. |
| 12 | Hyundai | — | 91.53% | 91.53% | Hyundai Santa Fe and i10 both scored a perfect 100% in What Car? 2025 model tables. |
| 13 | Citroën | 93.90% | — | 93.90% | Strong What Car? score; ranks lower in the Honest John bottom 10 — a notable cross-survey divergence. |
| 14 | Vauxhall | 95.10% | — | 95.10% | Top 5 in What Car? 2025 yet appears in the Honest John lower table. Driver Power 2025 named the Vauxhall Grandland Best Mid-Size SUV, with reliability among its top-rated attributes. |
Most Reliable Car Models in the UK 2026
23 modelsIndividual models with verified high scores in at least one of the major UK reliability indices. The Honest John Satisfaction Index uses a percentage scale; Warrantywise uses a 0–100 reliability score weighted by repair frequency, age at fault, and labour cost.
| # | Model | Body type | Verified score | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Lexus NX | Mid-size SUV | 98.06% | Honest John 2025 (#1 model overall) |
| 2 | Skoda Karoq | Mid-size SUV | 97.69% | Honest John 2025 (#2) |
| 3 | Toyota Corolla | Hatchback / Estate | 96.94% | Honest John 2025 (#3) |
| 4 | Honda Jazz | Supermini | 96.81% | Honest John 2025 (#4) |
| 5 | Hyundai Kona | Compact SUV | 96.30% | Honest John 2025 (#5) |
| 6 | Toyota RAV4 | Mid-size SUV | 96.19% | Honest John 2025 (#6) |
| 7 | Honda CR-V | Mid-size SUV | 95.96% / 83.4 | Honest John 2025 (#7) AND Warrantywise 2025 (#8) |
| 8 | Mazda CX-5 | Mid-size SUV | 95.20% | Honest John 2025 (#8) |
| 9 | Tesla Model 3 | Executive saloon (EV) | 94.58% | Honest John 2025 (#9) |
| 10 | BMW 2 Series | Compact executive | 94.42% | Honest John 2025 (#10) |
| 11 | Hyundai Santa Fe | Large SUV | 100% | What Car? 2025 (perfect score) |
| 12 | Hyundai i10 | City car | 100% | What Car? 2025 (perfect score) |
| 13 | Kia EV3 | Compact SUV (EV) | 100% | What Car? 2025 (perfect score) |
| 14 | Toyota GR Yaris | Hot hatch | 100% | What Car? 2025 (perfect score — no faults reported) |
| 15 | Toyota Yaris | Supermini | 92.8 | Warrantywise 2025 (#1 model) |
| 16 | Suzuki Swift | Supermini | 88.6 | Warrantywise 2025 (#2 model) |
| 17 | Toyota Aygo | City car | 88.6 | Warrantywise 2025 (#2 model) |
| 18 | Kia Picanto | City car | 86.8 | Warrantywise 2025 (#4) |
| 19 | Toyota Prius | Hybrid hatchback | 86.1 | Warrantywise 2025 (#5) |
| 20 | Kia Ceed | Hatchback / Estate | 85.3 | Warrantywise 2025 (#6) |
| 21 | Toyota Hilux | Pickup | 84.0 | Warrantywise 2025 (#7) |
| 22 | Vauxhall Grandland | Mid-size SUV | Class winner | Auto Express Driver Power 2025 — Best Mid-Size SUV; reliability among top-rated attributes |
| 23 | Citroën C1 | City car | 82.8 | Warrantywise 2025 (#10) |
The Honda CR-V is the only model in 2025 to appear in both the Honest John and Warrantywise top 10s, making it the most cross-source-verified reliable model on this list.
Most Reliable Electric Cars in the UK 2026
Electric vehicles passed the three-year mark in volume only recently, so long-run survey data is thinner — but 2025 is the first year EVs feature near the top of every major UK reliability index.
| Model | Score | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Kia EV3 | 100% | What Car? Reliability Survey 2025 — perfect score |
| Tesla Model 3 | 94.58% | Honest John Satisfaction Index 2025 — #9 model overall |
| Hyundai Kona (incl. Electric) | 96.30% | Honest John Satisfaction Index 2025 — #5 model overall |
| Tesla (brand average) | 94.9% | What Car? 94.5% / Honest John 95.29% |
Pre-2020 EVs record higher rates of high-voltage cabling and 12 V auxiliary battery advisories at MOT — both items now subject to new explicit DVSA inspection criteria from the January 2026 MOT rule changes.
Least Reliable Car Brands in the UK 2025
Brands appearing in the bottom 10 of at least one major UK reliability survey published in 2025. Inclusion here doesn’t mean every example is unreliable — service history and individual MOT record always matter more than brand averages.
| Brand | What Car? 2025 | Honest John 2025 | Verdict |
|---|---|---|---|
| Alfa Romeo | Not ranked | Bottom of table | Honest John’s lowest-rated brand 2025. |
| Jeep | Not ranked | Bottom 3 | Bottom three in Honest John 2025. |
| Land Rover | 90.4% (#26) | Bottom 10 | In the bottom 10 of both major UK reliability surveys. |
| Fiat | 90.1% (#28) | Bottom 10 | In the bottom 10 of both What Car? and Honest John. |
| Ford | 90.5% (#24=) | Bottom 10 | In the bottom 10 of both surveys. |
| Mercedes-Benz | 90.6% (#22=) | Bottom 10 | In the bottom 10 of both surveys despite premium pricing — repair complexity and cost penalise scores. |
| MG | 88.9% (#30, last) | Not in top or bottom | What Car?’s lowest-rated brand 2025. |
| Nissan | 89.9% (#29) | Mid-table | Recent Qashqai and Juke generations dragged on the brand average. |
What this means if you’re buying a used car
Brand reliability averages are useful when shortlisting, but the single best predictor of how a specific used car will behave is its own MOT history. A well-maintained example of a “bottom-table” brand can outperform a neglected example of a “top-table” model by an order of magnitude. Before buying any used car in the UK, run a free MOT history check by registration to see every test, every advisory, every mileage reading, and every dangerous defect that vehicle has ever recorded.
The DVSA publishes anonymised MOT test results as open data, but does not publish per-make pass rates directly — third-party services aggregate the raw data into model and age cohorts. Read our Common MOT Faults database for the specific defect categories that drive failure rates on every popular UK make and model, or run a free vehicle check for the car you’re considering.
For a deeper read on which surveys to trust and why their results diverge, see our analysis of MOT failure rates by make in 2026 and the broader most reliable small cars by MOT data.
Check any car’s MOT history before you buy
Free, instant, official DVSA data. Enter a registration to see every MOT test, advisory and mileage reading on record.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the most reliable car brand in the UK in 2026?
Lexus. It tops Auto Trader’s Drivers’ Choice Most Reliable Brand award for the fourth consecutive year, scored 97.01% in the Honest John Satisfaction Index 2025, and topped the JD Power Vehicle Dependability Study 2025 (US) for the third year running. Honda and Toyota follow closely behind across UK surveys.
What is the most reliable car model in the UK in 2026?
The Lexus NX leads the Honest John Satisfaction Index 2025 with 98.06%. The Toyota Yaris tops the Warrantywise Reliability Index 2025 (which weights repair frequency and cost). The Honda CR-V is the only model in 2025 to appear in both Honest John’s and Warrantywise’s top 10s, making it the most cross-source-verified single model.
Are Japanese cars more reliable than European cars in the UK?
On aggregate, yes. Four Japanese brands — Honda, Toyota, Suzuki and Lexus — appear in the top six of at least one major UK 2025 reliability survey, and Toyota Group models (Yaris, Aygo, Prius, Hilux) hold four of the top 10 model slots in Warrantywise 2025. That said, Skoda, Mini, BMW and Porsche all rank well in at least one major survey.
Which used cars should I avoid for reliability?
Models from Alfa Romeo, Jeep, Land Rover, Fiat, Ford and Mercedes-Benz appear in the bottom 10 of at least one major UK reliability survey in 2025. Always check a vehicle’s individual MOT history before buying — a well-maintained example of a “bad” model can still be sound, and a neglected example of a “good” model can be a liability.
How do I check a specific car’s reliability before I buy it?
Run a free MOT history check by registration. The DVSA record reveals every test the vehicle has had, including pass/fail outcomes, advisory notices, and mileage readings — far better evidence than brand averages. MOT Checkup queries the official DVSA database in real time.
Are electric cars more reliable than petrol or diesel cars?
EV reliability is improving fast. The Kia EV3 scored a perfect 100% in What Car? 2025, and Tesla Model 3 ranked #9 model in Honest John 2025. Tesla as a brand placed #2 in Honest John and #7 in What Car?. Older EVs (pre-2020) record higher rates of high-voltage battery and 12 V auxiliary system advisories at MOT, but the trajectory is positive.
Why does the same brand score very differently in different surveys?
Each survey measures something slightly different. What Car? weights fault severity by repair cost and days off the road. Honest John blends reliability with broader satisfaction. Warrantywise uses actual repair claim frequency on its warranty book. JD Power measures problems-per-100-vehicles in long-term ownership. Vauxhall is the clearest example of how this matters: a top-five brand in What Car? 2025 (95.1%) yet a bottom-of-table brand in the Honest John 2025 ranking.
How often is this research updated?
MOT Checkup refreshes this report every six months as new editions of the underlying surveys are published. The next scheduled update is October 2026, after the autumn 2026 What Car? and Auto Express Driver Power releases.
Sources & methodology
Every figure in this report is sourced. Surveys cited are the most recently published 2025 editions; we re-aggregate when each publishes a refreshed edition. 32 citations below.
- 1What Car? Reliability Survey 2025 — brand rankingsPrimary survey · www.whatcar.com
- 2What Car? Most Reliable Cars 2025 — model rankingsPrimary survey · www.whatcar.com
- 3Honest John Satisfaction Index 2025Primary survey · www.honestjohn.co.uk
- 4Heycar — 2025 Honest John Satisfaction Index summarySurvey mirror · heycar.com
- 5Warrantywise Reliability Index 2025 — top 10 modelsPrimary survey · www.warrantywise.co.uk
- 6Warrantywise Reliability Index 2025 — hubPrimary survey · www.warrantywise.co.uk
- 7Warranty Solutions Group — UK’s most reliable manufacturers 2025 (Lexus, Toyota, Suzuki)Industry analysis · warrantysolutionsgroup.co.uk
- 8Auto Express Driver Power 2025Primary survey · www.autoexpress.co.uk
- 9Carwow — Driver Power 2025 manufacturer rankingsPrimary survey · www.carwow.co.uk
- 10Auto Trader Drivers’ Choice Awards 2025Award · www.autotrader.co.uk
- 11JD Power 2025 Vehicle Dependability Study (US)Corroborating survey (US) · www.jdpower.com
- 12Motoring Research — JD Power 2025 winners and losersIndustry analysis · www.motoringresearch.com
- 13GOV.UK — MOT testing data for Great BritainOfficial government data · www.gov.uk
- 14DVSA MOT test results by class of vehicle (CSV)Official government data · www.gov.uk
- 15DVSA Open Data MOT PortalOfficial government data · open.data.dvsa.gov.uk
- 16GOV.UK — The MOT testOfficial guidance · www.gov.uk
- 17GOV.UK — DVSA MOT inspection manualOfficial guidance · www.gov.uk
- 18Lexus UK — reliability and ownershipManufacturer source · www.lexus.co.uk
- 19Toyota UK — reliability statementManufacturer source · www.toyota.co.uk
- 20Honda UK — reliability and qualityManufacturer source · www.honda.co.uk
- 21RAC — Most reliable car brandsConsumer guide · www.rac.co.uk
- 22AA — Most reliable cars guidanceConsumer guide · www.theaa.com
- 23Carwow — Most Reliable Cars 2025Consumer guide · www.carwow.co.uk
- 24Auto Express — Most Reliable Cars 2025Consumer guide · www.autoexpress.co.uk
- 25Which? — Reliability researchConsumer guide · www.which.co.uk
- 26Consumer Reports — Vehicle reliability methodologyMethodology reference · www.consumerreports.org
- 27ADAC Pannenstatistik (German breakdown stats — corroborating)Corroborating survey (DE) · www.adac.de
- 28Department for Transport — vehicle licensing statisticsOfficial government data · www.gov.uk
- 29MOT Checkup — Free MOT History CheckTool · motcheckup.co.uk
- 30MOT Checkup — Common MOT Faults by Make and ModelTool · motcheckup.co.uk
- 31MOT Checkup — Free Vehicle CheckTool · motcheckup.co.uk
- 32MOT Checkup — Stolen Vehicle CheckTool · motcheckup.co.uk
About this research
Published: 2026-05-05. Geography: United Kingdom. Next scheduled review: October 2026. Authors: MOT Checkup Editorial Team.
Conflicts of interest: MOT Checkup operates a free MOT history check service. It has no commercial relationship with any of the brands, manufacturers or surveys cited in this report. We do not accept payment for inclusion or ranking.
Corrections: spotted an error? Email info@motcheckup.co.uk with the source and we will update the page within 5 working days.