Let's be honest, the last thing you want is a car that gives you problems, something that leaves you stranded by the side of the road, wasting airtime calling a tow truck and your insurance company. Though in modern times, cars are way more reliable than yesteryear, and catastrophic failures due to design and manufacturing defects have reduced significantly.
Related: SA's Most Reliable Brands for 2025: Why Subaru, Toyota & Lexus Are on Top
In the above article, we looked at some interesting data from Consumer Reports and WardsAuto, North American-based companies that conduct consumer study reports. A reliability survey was done in 2024 -2025 to ascertain which vehicle brands are the most reliable. Owners were asked about any problems they may have encountered in the previous 12 months, from catastrophic failure to even electric gremlins. Considering the scale of the study, which looked at some 380 000 cars from model years 2000-2025 and even 2026-dated models, this reveals valuable results. Though this study was conducted in North America, a few of the cars mentioned are sold in South Africa.
Top 5 Brands in North America
| Rank | Brand (Score) | Most Reliable (Score) / Least reliable vehicle (Score) |
| 1 | Toyota (66) | 4Runner (95) / Tundra (41) |
| 2 | Subaru (63) | Impreza (80) / Ascent (41) |
| 3 | Lexus (60) | IS (84) / NX Plug-in Hybrid (42) |
| 4 | Honda (59) | Passport (97) / Prologue (25) |
| 5 | BMW (58) | 2 Series (73) / X3 (42) |
What's sold in South Africa from that study?
- Lexus IS
- Lexus NX Plug-In Hybrid
- Lexus UX
- Subaru Crosstrek
- Subaru WRX
- Subaru Forester
- Toyota GR86
- Mazda CX-5
- BMW 2-Series
- BMW X3
What can we ascertain about other vehicles in South Africa?
This can be a bit hard, as we don't exactly have a dedicated Reliability Consumer Study in South Africa like the one mentioned above. However, we can pick up a few things from buyer trends in the AutoTrader Industry Report 2025. Specifically, we'll look at the Top 10 Most-Listed Used Model Averages, which feature proven, reliable vehicles that deliver value to potential buyers. Below are the buying and selling trends we've found:
| Rank | Vehicle | Average Mileage | Average Year Model |
| 1 | Ford Ranger | 82 578km | 2021 |
| 2 | Toyota Hilux | 109 267km | 2019 |
| 3 | Volkswagen Polo | 70 386km | 2020 |
| 4 | Volkswagen Polo Vivo | 52 181km | 2021 |
| 5 | Toyota Fortuner | 109 319km | 2019 |
| 6 | Suzuki Swift | 37 015km | 2022 |
| 7 | Isuzu D-Max | 72 096km | 2022 |
| 8 | Toyota Corolla Cross | 29 035km | 2023 |
| 9 | Toyota Starlet | 36 120km | 2023 |
| 10 | Mercedes-Benz C-Class | 105 703km | 2016 |
So if you're looking for a vehicle, ideally, check out the ones listed in this article, but it also helps to do your own research. If you'd like more info on specific models, please feel free to check out our Buyer's Guide articles section, which is constantly being updated. Start your vehicle buying or selling journey here!
