Jake Fallows

Where Does Your Car Rank On List Of Most Likely To Need Repairs? Friday January 26, 2007 So you're looking for a new car and you're wondering about the one thing we all do - price... That's one factor that comes into play when a buyer enters a showroom. But here's another. Cars are complicated machines and can often break down. So reliability is also a huge factor... If that's your yardstick, then you'll want to buy either a Mazda or a Honda. .. A British company called Warranty Direct looked at the repair records of 450,000 cars in the U.K. and the U.S. from 33 different manufacturers and concluded that the two Japanese giants came in first and second when it comes to fewest mechanical failures... Only eight percent of Mazdas that were three to nine years old had to be called back to the shop for major overhauls. Hondas had a similar record, at nine percent. .. Foreign cars made up the bulk of the list, with Toyota, Mitsubishi and even Kia all ranking in the top five... What does that mean for the North American models? More headaches and more visits to the garage. .. The first domestic make to show up on the list is Ford - and it places 14th. Chrysler ranked only 26th... Another American classic is at the bottom of the list when it comes to reliability as the vehicle ages. Jeeps were 46 percent more likely to need parts when they'd been in an owner's hands for a number of years. .. The news is another sign of why foreign cars continue to outsell those manufactured here. And it's showing in the bottom lines. .. On Thursday, Ford announced it had lost nearly $13 billion in 2006 - the biggest annual slump since the company was founded 103 years ago. .. The cars least likely to develop mechanical faults after three-nine years of ownership:.. 1. Mazda: 8.04%

2. Honda: 8.90%

3. Toyota: 15.78%

4. Mitsubishi: 17.04%

5. Kia: 17.39%

6. Subaru: 18.46%

7. Nissan: 18.86%

8. Lexus: 20.05%

9. Mini: 21.90%

10. Citroen: 25.98%

11. Daewoo: 26.30%

12. Hyundai: 26.36%

13. Peugeot: 26.59%

14. Ford: 26.76%

15. Suzuki: 27.20%

16. Porsche: 27.48%

17. Fiat: 28.49%

18. BMW: 28.64%

19. Vauxhall: 28.77%

20. Mercedes: 29.90%

21. Rover: 30.12%

22. Volvo: 31.28%

23. Volkswagen: 31.44%

24. Jaguar: 32.05%

25. Skoda: 32.12%

26. Chrysler: 34.90%

27. Audi: 36.74%

28. Seat: 36.87%

29. Renault: 36.87%

30. Alfa Romeo: 39.13%

31. Saab: 41.59%

32. Land Rover: 44.21%

33. Jeep: 46.36%