Small cars more reliable than limos

IF YOU splash out on a fancy new car, you’d think that the price tag would reflect its quality, not to mention its reliability.

But luxury cars are actually more likely to develop faults than cheaper small cars, research has found. This may be because they are often weighed down with complex electronic gadgets that can easily go wrong.

Consumer group Which? found that 36% of cars costing about £50 000 (R839 555) are likely to have developed a fault in the past year. And such is the sophistication of the latest models that tinkering under the bonnet won’t provide a fix.

By comparison, small city cars costing about £10 000 were the most reliable, with only 25% of owners reporting a fault.

City cars that cost about £10 000 new include the Hyundai i10, the Volkswagen Up, and the Skoda Citigo. A city car is a small car suitable for driving in towns and cities.

Which? said: “If you’d just spent £49 000 on a luxury car what would you expect?

“Leather seats and plenty of features, but probably not lots of trips to your garage to get it repaired. However, the 2017 Which? Car Survey, has revealed that the most expensive class of car on the market is also one of the most prone to faults.”

Looking at other categories, the fault score for compact and large SUVs was 35%. It was 34% for estates and 28% for sports cars.

The survey comes as the automotive industry has been dogged with widespread issues.