Are Toyota models reliable? Most and least reliable models revealed
In our annual Reliability Survey, we ask readers to rate the dependability of cars aged up to five years old. Here we list the most and least reliable models in the Toyota line-up...
The Toyota brand is renowned for building cars that are reliable and frugal. In fact, it was a pioneer of hybrid technology with the Prius, the world's first mass-produced hybrid vehicle, which was launched in 1997.
In spite of the complexity of having both an engine and an electric motor, Toyota's hybrid models have proved exceptionally dependable. Many Toyota models are in the top three of their class for reliability, including the RAV4, which is the second highest scoring family SUV with a rating of 98.8%.
The brand's petrol models have a great reliability record, too. For example, the Toyota Aygo X is one of only two models to have achieved a perfect 100% reliability rating in the latest What Car? Reliability Survey. The other model to score 100% is the 2014-2021 Lexus NX, a model that's part of Toyota's luxury brand.
The Toyota brand sits in sixth place in the latest survey, with a rating of 96.1%. This is a little down on the previous year, when it was in second place with a score of 97.4%.
Overall, the brand has a low fault rate of 14% and the two main areas of concern for owners were the 12-volt battery and bodywork issues. The car maker covered the cost of repairs in 75% of instances, and two-thirds of cars were back on the road in a day or less.
Here we're looking at reliability data for Toyota models aged up to five years old; you can find information on older models in our older car reliability round-up. Where models are available in more than one body style, such as hatchback and estate, our data covers all versions.
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Most reliable Toyota models
1. Toyota Aygo X (2021-present)
Reliability rating 100%
- Most common faults: none
- Average repair cost: n/a
- Typical time off road: n/a
The Aygo X is a rare thing these days — it's a small, affordable car that doesn't have an electric motor. The only power option if you want an Aygo X is a 71bhp 1.0-litre petrol engine that’s free from any turbocharging or hybrid electrical assistance. It's not the fastest city runabout, but it can hold its own on urban streets. Other points in its favour include low running costs — it'll achieve more than 50mph in real-world driving, slow depreciation and and cheap insurance.
On top of those positives, it's hugely dependable: Toyota’s tiniest and most affordable car has outdone its bigger siblings with a perfect reliability rating of 100%. This indicates that not one of the Aygo Xs in our survey had any glitches at all. That means not a single Aygo X owner has needed to seek assistance from dealers at all in the previous 24 months.
Reliability rating 98.8%
- Most common faults: 12-volt battery 2%, hybrid battery pack 1%
- Average repair cost: 83% £0, 17% £101-£200
- Typical time off road: 34% less than one day, 51% one day to a week
The Toyota RAV4 was offered as a conventional hybrid and a plug-in hybrid (PHEV), but the hybrid has been dropped from the new line-up, so is no longer offered new. Still, the PHEV that remains is an impressive choice that will do up to 46 miles officially on pure electric power, and it'll achieve up to 50mpg when the batteries are depleted.
Just over 2% of RAV4 owners had any problems with their cars, mainly relating to the 12-volt or drive battery/charging system. While 50% of faults stopped cars from being driven, 83% were fixed in less than a week and the same proportion were fixed for free. Those who had to pay for repairs were asked for less than £200.
Toyota RAV4 review
3. Toyota GR Yaris (2020-present)
Reliability rating 97.4%
- Most common faults: Non-engine electrics 5%
- Average repair cost: 100% £201-£300
- Typical time off road: 100% more than a week
The The GR Yaris is one of the most characterful and entertaining hot hatches of the decade. It's barely larger than a Mini Cooper, but it is in the same performance league as larger, more powerful hot hatches such as the Honda Civic Type R and VW Golf R because it has one of the world’s most powerful three-cylinder engines.
Only 5% of the Yaris GRs reported on had any problems, and these were restricted to the electrics. It wasn't great news for the small percentage of cars that did go wrong: according to owners, no cars were put right for free, leaving them with bills of up to £300. They also all had to wait more than a week to get their cars back.
Reliability rating 96.8%
- Most common faults: 12-volt battery 8%, non-engine electrics 3%, air-con 1%, bodywork 1%, brakes 1%
- Average repair cost: 73% £0, 18% £1-£100, 9% £301-£500
- Typical time off road: 83% one day or less, 27% one day to a week
The first generation Toyota C-HR is boldly styled, handsomely equipped and very well made. It's good value used, too, and is available with a 1.8-litre hybrid engine a turbocharged 1.2-litre petrol. The latter is our preferred option because it's punchy and matched to a slick, six-speed gearbox.
The C-HR is proving pretty durable: only 14% of the C-HRs in our survey had any issues, and most were with the 12-volt battery. Although most problems were dealt with in a day or less, some owners had to wait up to a week to get their cars back, and a small percentage were left with bills of up to £500.
Used Toyota C-HR review
5. Toyota Corolla (2018-present)
Reliability rating 96.4%
- Most common faults: 12-volt battery 5%, bodywork 3%, non-engine electrics 3%, interior trim 2%
- Average repair cost: 84% £0, 16% £1-£200
- Typical time off road: 64% one day or less, 28% more than a week
The Toyota Corolla is a great family car. It's comfortable, well made, well equipped and remarkably frugal in real-world driving. And the Corolla's hybrid engines make it an ideal solution for drivers who don’t want a diesel, find petrol cars too inefficient and are not ready for an electric car.
It has an impressively low fault rate: only 15% of the cars we were told about went wrong. Toyota and its dealers covered the cost of most repairs, and two thirds of faulty cars were back on the road in a day or less, ensuring minimal disruption for owners.
Toyota Corolla review
6. Toyota Yaris Hybrid (2020-present)
Reliability rating 93.5%
- Most common faults: 12-volt battery 15%, hybrid battery pack 3%, bodywork 2%, brakes 2%
- Average repair cost: 69% £0, 25% £100-£300
- Typical time off road: 60% one day or less, 20% more than a week
The Toyota Yaris Hybrid has some important strengths, not least its superb fuel economy, excellent reliability and generous standard kit. It's a great option if you're after a small car, but aren't ready to go fully electric because it's a regular hybrid so it can run on petrol like a conventional car, but it also has the ability to do short, low-speed stints on electricity alone.
Although the Yaris Hybrid has a fault rate of 20%, most of the issues were with the 12-volt battery and two-thirds of cars were in and out of the workshop in a day or less. Most cars were fixed for free, but some owners had to pay up to £300.
Least reliable Toyota model
1. Toyota Yaris Cross (2021-present)
Reliability rating 93.1%
- Most common faults 12-volt battery 15%, bodywork 3%, non-engine electrics 2%, hybrid battery pack 1%, non-engine electrics 1%, sat-nav/infotainment system 1%
- Average repair cost: 77% £0, 14% £100-£500
- Typical time off road: 64% less than a day, 15% more than a week
The Yaris Cross is an SUV version of the Toyota Yaris hatchback. It is longer and wider than its sibling, and has a higher driving position. Like the Yaris, it's only available only as a regular hybrid and uses a 1.5-litre three-cylinder petrol engine in conjunction with an electric motor. That's a good thing because it means it's extremely frugal.
Although the Yaris Cross sits at the bottom of the Toyota reliability league table, it's not an unreliable car — it's just the lowest-scoring of a group of very dependable models. Overall, 24% of the Yaris Cross models reported on went wrong, and like the Yaris, the main issue was with the 12-volt battery. Just over three-quarters of cars were fixed at no cost to owners, and almost two-thirds of issues were resolved in a day or less.
Reliability of Toyota models aged up to five years old
| Rank | Make and model | Score |
| 1 | Toyota Aygo X (2021-present) | 100% |
| 2 | Toyota RAV4 (2019-present) | 98.8% |
| 3 | Toyota GR Yaris (2020-present) | 97.4% |
| 4 | 2016-2023 Toyota C-HR | 96.8% |
| 5 | Toyota Corolla (2018-present) | 96.4% |
| 6 | Toyota Yaris Hybrid (2020-present) | 93.5% |
| 7 | Toyota Yaris Cross (2021-present) | 93.1% |
To read the reliability data for other car classes follow these links:
Most and least reliable cars overall
Most reliable car brands
Most reliable family cars
Most reliable executive cars
Most reliable luxury cars
Most reliable small SUVs
Most reliable family SUVs
Most reliable large SUVs
Most reliable seven-seaters
Most reliable electric cars
Most reliable electric SUVs
Most reliable sports cars
Most reliable diesel cars
Most reliable petrol cars
Most reliable hybrid cars
How the research was carried out
To compile the What Car? Reliability Survey, conducted in association with MotorEasy, we asked thousands of car owners to give us the lowdown on how reliable their car had been over the previous 24 months.
First we asked them to tell us if the car had suffered a fault, and, if so, how much each problem had cost to put right and how long it had kept the car off the road. The responses for these two factors were weighted and added up for each make and model, enabling us to create a unique reliability rating for each.
The latest What Car? Reliability Survey contains responses from 29,967 people, giving us enough data to report on 199 models aged up to five years old from 31 different car brands.
About the report author
Claire Evans has been a motoring journalist for more than 30 years, working on consumer issues for a great deal of that time. After a stint as the advice columnist for Carweek magazine in the 1990s, she also spent six years working on motoring content for Which?. It is here she oversaw the running of the charity's annual used car reliability survey.
Claire launched the What Car? Reliability Survey in 2017, and since then has helped thousands of buyers choose the most reliable new cars and SUVs, as well as the most dependable used cars.
