By TOBY WALNE
If you’re looking for advice on which car models are the most reliable, who is going to know more than the mechanics that work on them week in week out?
Some cars appear on their forecourts with alarming frequencies thanks to ongoing issues, while others pass their MOT with flying colours every year, not to be seen again for another 12 months.
Motorists are facing repair costs around a fifth higher than last year, due to a supply shortage of parts and elevated inflation – so picking a reliable one is increasingly important.
That’s why we’ve asked three mechanics with over 80 years’ experience between them which cars they recommend – and their tips for ensuring you don’t run into problems.
Paul Lucas knows a thing or two about motors, having first picked up a wrench in the late 1970s as a graduate engineer working on cars for British Leyland.
Over the past five decades he has put his head under the bonnet of thousands of vehicles. Starting in Coventry working on Jaguar motors, he later enjoyed a spell helping build the Eurofighter for British Aerospace, before setting up Lucas Sports Cars.
For a modern vehicle, Lucas would opt for a £26,000 petrol-fuelled Ford Puma.
He believes Ford is one of the few motor manufacturers that continues to focus on petrol-driven for the future rather than turning to electrics.
Paul Lucas has been a mechanic since the 1970s, and has worked on cars of all types
Lucas recommended the Ford Puma as a petrol option that is extremely reliable
Lucas says: ‘The internal combustion engine is still the best way to power a car, as far as I am concerned. I know electrics are getting better but until there are more power points around the country many of us will still suffer from range anxiety – being worried about running out of juice in the middle of nowhere without any charge point.’
But Lucas believes the extra sophistication that modern cars possess means there’s more that could go wrong.
He recommends taking out a five-year warranty for any new vehicle. Lucas says: ‘They are jam-packed full of sensors that have a tendency to go wrong. You need a degree in computing and lots of expensive electronic detector equipment for a diagnosis of a problem – even before you get the garage to fix the car. Forget doing it yourself. I believe £100 a month for an extended warranty would be money well spent when you consider that a garage bill will often end up costing more.’
Repair bills for the most popular vehicles rose by 20 per cent last year, according to car repairer Warrantywise – with costs to fix vehicles typically more than £1,000.
Pushed on choosing an electric car, an option Lucas would consider is BYD Atto 3 SUV, at £37,000. He says: ‘Functional and not fun. Electrics can be boring. But if you must take the plunge, they are good value for money.’
Car mechanic Przemek Chamack has worked on cars for the past two decades and is owner of the SG9 Auto Service & Tyres in Hertfordshire. He works on everything – from boy-racer Peugeot 205 GTIs to vintage classic Aston Martin V8 Vantages.
For reliability Przemek points to the army of taxi drivers who come to him for their Toyota Corolla hybrid cars to be serviced, sometimes with 250,000 miles on the clock without having had any mechanical problems. A new hybrid 1.8 litre Toyota Corolla costs from £30,000.
A popular taxi car, the Toyota Corolla can handle the mileage with little-to-no breakdowns
The Corolla is also available comercially and now has a hybrid option
He says: ‘The engines are built like tanks and if you look after the vehicle, you shouldn’t have much trouble with this car. The secret is in the oil change. I recommend most vehicles change their oil every 6,000 miles or so. This might seem a lot and may be more frequent than even a manufacturer’s recommendation, but keeping oil clean and free of dirt enables engines to run smoothly for years.’
Mechanic Thomas Peterson, of Dipstick’s Tyres and Exhausts in South Woodford, east London, believes for reliability you cannot go far wrong with a Japanese workhorse such as the Honda HR-V small hybrid SUV, costing from £32,000 new. Peterson, who has been a mechanic for just under a decade, believes hybrids are the perfect halfway house for those who want to get a feel for EVs.
He says: ‘These Hondas are made to last. Nothing too fancy, but they are practical cars built to get you from A to B. They are also relatively easy to work on if required. This is important as no matter how well you look after your car it might occasionally let you down. Hybrids offer a great way for motorists to dip their toe into electrics safe in the knowledge that it also has a petrol engine when required.’
Mechanic Thomas Petersonyou cannot go wrong with a Honda HR-V small hybrid SUV
All three mechanics believe older models are often more reliable. New technology such as advanced driver-assistance systems (ADAS) warning lights to detect hazards in the road and electronic stability control (ESP) monitors that stop you skidding in an emergency are useful but also mean there are more parts that could break.
Lucas says: ‘For me a 20-year-old 1.6 litre Mk1 Ford Focus is top for reliability. It was designed before all the unnecessary bells and whistles came in and even lets you start the car with a real key rather than press a button. I bought mine 15 years ago for £500 and have no regrets.’
Lucas says: ‘For me a 20-year-old 1.6 litre Mk1 Ford Focus is top for reliability'
Przemek also believes most modern cars are less reliable than those that were built before 2008. He says this is because after this date there were more emission restrictions put on cars, such as tightly controlled catalytic converters, exhaust gas recirculation (EGR), selective catalytic reduction (SCR) and particulate filter (DPF) systems that can put dirty emissions from the car back into the engine.
He says: ‘I drive a second-hand Audi A6 that came out in 2007. This is a reliable motor that offers one of the most comfortable rides – and you can buy a great example for £4,000. I am six foot and six inches tall so struggle with some of new and smaller modern vehicles.’
Peterson would opt for a classic, such as a 1990s Ford Escort RS Cosworth, believing it offers the best from a golden era for motoring enthusiast and is more fun than a modern car. But he admits with prices typically starting at £40,000 you may struggle to justify the high price tag.
Przemek says: ‘Don’t get me started on the Range Rover. It does not matter whether it is new or old – I have experienced a wide range of problems with their electrics that needed fixing, such as faulty alternators or batteries unexpectedly draining. In my opinion they overcomplicate everything and can be unreliable and expensive to repair.’
With a new hybrid three-litre flagship Land Rover Range Rover from £100,000 it is a major investment – and one Przemek believes may not be the best one you make.
Lucas is not a fan of its smaller sibling sports utility vehicle (SUV), the Range Rover Evoque. This costs from £40,000. He says: ‘This is sold as an aspirational car that shows you are successful. But for a mechanic I would have to say it gives off a different vibe. They are packed with lots of electrics that can go wrong.’
Land Rovers and Range Rover Evoques are disliked by mechanics, who say the complicated electrics are 'prone to breakdowns'
Peterson's least favourite vehicle is the all-electric Smart ForTwo car
Peterson’s least favourite vehicle is the Smart Car. The model that is produced by Smart Automobile, a joint venture between Mercedes-Benz and Chinese firm Geely. He dislikes the all-electric Smart ForTwo car. The all-electric Smart EQ ForTwo is priced from £20,000. The petrol-driven ForTwo from £10,000 was discontinued last year. He says: ‘This electric car has a range of 99 miles – but in real-life driving it can be less than 60 miles. On paper this might seem enough, but unless you only ever going to drive to the shops and back and never leave town it seems like an impractical and fairly useless car to have.’ The mechanic says he sees older Smart Cars in the garage with a variety of problems, from electrical failures on the braking system to broken air conditioning units.
Peterson suggest for such a small range vehicle you might be better off – and save yourself money – by taking public transport or catching a taxi for your trips instead.
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