These are the most reliable car brands for 2017

When looking to buy a car, reliability remains at the top of the list. With South Africans owning their cars longer than ever, having confidence your car is dependable is a top priority.

The 2017 Vehicle Dependability Study (VDS) by market research company JD Power has released its details of the most dependable manufacturers and models over the past year in the United States.

Lexus and Porsche tie to rank highest in vehicle dependability among all nameplates, with a score of 110 PP100.

The study looked intensively at car problems original owners of 2014 model-year vehicles experienced during the past 12 months.

Overall dependability was determined by the number of problems experienced per 100 vehicles (PP100), with a lower score reflecting higher quality.

“We find buyers are increasingly avoiding models with poor reputations for dependability, so manufacturers can’t afford to let quality slip, particularly on their best sellers,” said Dave Sargent, vice-president of global automotive at JD Power.

“While many expensive and niche vehicles do have excellent quality, the fact is most consumers are shopping in the high-volume mainstream segments. The good news is that consumers don’t have to spend a lot of money to get a very dependable vehicle.”

This is the sixth consecutive year of Lexus topping the nameplate rankings in the VDS.

Toyota (123 PP100) follows them in the rankings, moving up one rank from 2016, while Buick – General Motors  – (126 PP100) and Mercedes-Benz (131 PP100) round out the top 5.