'They just keep going': Australia's most reliable cars – according to real people (2024)

Car reliability is a hard thing to measure, given it can vary so much depending on make, model, conditions, driving habits, maintenance schedule and more.

Still, it remains high on the priority list of today's new-car buyers. While many brands offer lengthy warranties and capped-price servicing, there's perhaps no better way to judge reliability than via the real-life experiences of others.

To find out which models have the best track record – based on the experiences of real people – Drive headed to the Australian Auto Aftermarket Expo.

There, we asked automotive industry gurus from mechanics to executives and even race car drivers, 'What are the most reliable cars you've ever owned?'.

"I started when you were either on the blue side of the fence or the red side of the fence," Stephen Bird, a longtime Repco employee and member of theAustralian Automotive Aftermarket Association(AAAA), told Drive.

"I started on the ride side of the fence with my first car, which was a HK Holden, but quickly moved to the blue side of the fence and had heaps of different Fords. The Ford Territory was probably my favourite for its functionality, but when they stopped making those I jumped over another fence and I’m now a very proud Jeep owner... so that will upset a few people!"

To say that champion race car driver and qualified mechanic Craig Lowndes knows his cars would be a massive understatement. But one car in particular stole his heart and never let it go.

"I’m going to go back a few years to my first road car, a 1966 Mk1 Ford Cortina," he told Drive.

"I’m a qualified motor mechanic but I was brought up on carburettors, not fuel injection, so for me, old school is good school."

Lowndes still drives his Cortina on the weekends, but says his daily driver is a Chevrolet Silverado.

Asked about the most reliable car of her driving career, Reilly Smith, a technical marketing specialist at Brembo, told Drive "It would have to be my 2010 Mk6 Golf R.

"She's given me no dramas. I feel like I need to find some wood to touch now, though! My HiLux is going to be so jealous!"

"Toyota LandCruiser by far," David Forsyth, the national mobile tool store manager for Repco, said of his most reliable car.

"The number-one choice – don't buy this other rubbish, get a LandCruiser!"

"I own Land Rovers – they're not that reliable but they're a great car, I recommend them highly," admitted Matt Douglas, category manager for tolls and equipment at CoolDrive Auto Parts.

"Probably the most reliable car I have is my current car, which is the Subaru Outback."

"My most reliable car has been the garden-variety Camry hybrid vehicle," Dickson Leow, General Manager of Infinitev, told Drive.

"It has had no problems for almost five years, all it takes is regular maintenance."

"I drive a Jeep Wrangler so no comment," said Courtney Lorking, partnerships manager for Mechanic.com.au.

"But the Toyota Yaris and Toyota Corolla will survive the zombie apocalypse at this point."

Tiffany Conway, the director of membership, marketing and events at the AAAA, wanted to give a "big shout-out to Honda".

"I've had about four [Honda cars] and they just keep going," she told Drive.

Stephen Hill, trademarking technical specialist for Brembo, told Drive his most reliable car was a 1992 Toyota Corolla hatchback with a manual transmission.

"It was probably the most fun car as well," he added, "It had about 170,000-odd kilometres on it."

Andrew Kan, who works in marketing for CoolDrive Auto Parts, said his Hyundai i30 has been his most reliable car.

"But I currently own an Alfa Romeo, so we'll see how that goes," he added.

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