What Car? Reliability Supertest 2007 - Conclusions

When you buy a car, reliability is a key consideration, so this survey will be crucial to your decision-making process.

It would be easy just to opt for the cars at the top of the table, but there are a few things worth taking into account.

On the face of it, Rover performed well, coming 9th overall, but its cars are the youngest in the survey and have the lowest annual mileage. Rover may well be further down the list in years to come.

So who was the star performer? In our view, the BMW 3 Series Compact takes some beating.

It finished an impressive ninth overall, even though it is the second-oldest car in the survey. The average repair bill was just £192, too.

The disappointment? The Lexus GS300: 123rd, with 46% needing repairs. This, however, shouldn't stop you buying the sturdy IS200, which came 15th.