IF YOU’RE seeking reliability in a car, then look east

— because Japanese and South Korean models lead the way, according to a new survey of car repair frequency and costs.

Toyota is the most reliable, with a dependability score of 93 per cent and an average repair cost of £592. It is fractionally ahead of Honda (93 per cent and £535), which will be hoping its new HR-V (pictured right) maintains high standards. The crossover compact sports utility vehicle is priced from £18,000 to £26,000.

Suzuki, at 92 per cent and £424, came third, followed by Mitsubishi (89 per cent, £833), Mazda (88 per cent, £617), South Korea’s Hyundai (88 per cent, £577) and Nissan (86 per cent, £521).

The remaining three top ten places go to Ford (85 per cent, and £421), Subaru (85 per cent, £791) and Peugeot (84 per cent, £406).

The findings come from repair data provided by insurance firm Warrantywise to motoring magazine Auto Express.

By contrast, Britain’s Bentley is bottom of the table in 37th place, scoring just 14 per cent for reliability and a whopping average bill of £1,356.