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Vehicle Reliability Survey Results: "Times in the Shop"

These are the results from TrueDelta's Vehicle Reliability Survey (VRS) for the year ending September 30, 2007. The survey itself can only be accessed through links in an email sent to panel members.

At this early stage, many sample sizes are small. So only one stat is provided, Times in the Shop, the average number of successful repair trips per year per 100 vehicles (yellow column in the table).

However, results are updated every three months, and each time both the sample sizes and the number of models grows (list of models in the pipeline). When the sample sizes permit it, TrueDelta will report additional stats.

Members can log in here to see results for 74 additional models on which fewer than 25 owners responded (for a total of 145). These are marked with asterisks in the table.

Not a member yet? Read about TrueDelta's research and how to participate by clicking here.

Comments: Some results have comments. To view these, hover the cursor over a result.

Important: TrueDelta grants limited rights to republish the following results. The results for a maximum of three models can be included in an article or thread without our written permission.

Vehicle Reliability Survey (VRS) Results: year ending September 30, 2007
Successful Repair Trips per Year (per 100 vehicles)				Data Characteristics
Year	Make	Model	Trips/Year per 100	Vehicles	Months	Mon/Veh	Odometer
2007	Acura	MDX	46 Fewest Most Double the repair rate reported last time, and a more accurate result. Mostly fit and finish issues, with some minor electrical.	55	289	5.3	6436
2004	Acura	TL*	*	19	165	8.7	39424
2005	Acura	TL*	* Inaccurate result, likely due to marginal sample size. Other model years suggest a repair rate around 25 to 30 repair trips per 100 vehicles.	21	188	9.0	20468
2006	Acura	TL*	*	17	131	7.7	14786
2006	Acura	TSX*	*	13	105	8.1	12200
2006	Audi	A3	55 Fewest Most	28	132	4.7	17644
2007	Audi	A3*	* Very small sample size, but almost exactly the same result as for the 2005. So probably close. Sunroof doesn't seem to be as common a problem area as it has been in the past.	15	67	4.5	6463
2002	Audi	A4 / S4	159 Fewest Most	35	204	5.8	61824
2006	Audi	A4 / S4	26 Fewest Most Marginal sample size. Actual repair rate is probably higher, around 40 to 50 per 100. Which would still be much better than older A4s.	25	140	5.6	22779
2007	Audi	A4 / S4*	* Insufficient sample size. Actual repair rate is probably somewhere between this number and the result for the previous model year.	17	75	4.4	7107
Year	Make	Model	Trips/Year per 100	Vehicles	Months	Mon/Veh	Odometer
2001	Audi	A6 / S6 / RS6*	* Very small sample size. Much lower repair rate for the 2002 suggests that the actual repair rate might be somewhat lower, but still high.	15	64	4.3	74656
2002	Audi	A6 / S6 / RS6*	* Very small sample size. Much higher repair rate for the 2001 suggests that the actual repair rate is higher, and worse than that for the average 2002.	11	69	6.3	59986
2007	Audi	Q7	99 Fewest Most Larger sample size yields lower repair rate than last time. Mostly electrical problems with adaptive cruise, power tilt wheel, MMI, remote key, and so on.	26	109	4.2	8330
2007	BMW	3-Series	52 Fewest Most The 2006 had a similarly low repair rate early on. So there's a good chance that this repair rate will increase as the cars age.	50	232	4.6	5440
2001	BMW	3-Series / M3*	* Very small sample size. Result does not appear accurate. Actual repair rate probably at least twice as high.	22	96	4.4	67917
2002	BMW	3-Series / M3*	*	15	66	4.4	61818
2003	BMW	3-Series / M3*	*	15	60	4.0	45267
2004	BMW	3-Series / M3*	*	22	90	4.1	33056
2006	BMW	3-Series sedan	82 Fewest Most Like the 2007, the 2006s started out with a low repair rate. But the repair rate has increased with each update.	38	265	7.0	18551
2003	Cadillac	CTS / CTS-V*	* Very small sample size, but just a little higher than the result for the 2004 and 2005. So probably about right.	14	72	5.1	43736
Year	Make	Model	Trips/Year per 100	Vehicles	Months	Mon/Veh	Odometer
2004	Cadillac	CTS / CTS-V*	* Very small sample size, but similar to the result for the 2003 and 2005. Actual repair rate might be a little higher.	15	78	5.2	40923
2005	Cadillac	CTS / CTS-V*	* Very small sample size, but similar to the result for the 2003 and 2004. Actual repair rate might be a little lower.	16	77	4.8	21169
2007	Cadillac / Chevrolet / GMC	Escalade / Avalanche / Tahoe / Suburban / Yukon*	*	21	93	4.4	14376
2006	Chevrolet	Cobalt	39 Fewest Most	25	187	7.5	15733
2006	Chevrolet	HHR	76 Fewest Most	31	267	8.6	25536
2006	Chrysler / Dodge	300 / Charger / Magnum	83 Fewest Most Large sample size. Common problems include leaking seals on the five-speed automatic and, on only the Charger, the trunk lid rubbing paint off the rear fascia.	83	698	8.4	14529
2007	Chrysler / Dodge	300 / Charger / Magnum*	*	10	63	6.3	5556
2005	Chrysler / Dodge	300 / Magnum	94 Fewest Most Leaking seals on the five-speed automatic transmission, a known issue, very common. Myriad other problems, few of which were reported for multiple cars.	34	281	8.3	32299
2001	Chrysler / Dodge	Town & Country / Caravan*	*	12	62	5.2	84758
2005	Chrysler / Dodge	Town & Country / Caravan	62 Fewest Most	30	233	7.8	30515
Year	Make	Model	Trips/Year per 100	Vehicles	Months	Mon/Veh	Odometer
2006	Chrysler / Dodge	Town & Country / Caravan*	*	16	64	4.0	19125
2007	Dodge	Caliber	35 Fewest Most The Caliber had a much higher repair rate when first introduced. Its reliability steadily improved as Chrysler identified and fixed common problems.	50	345	6.9	13107
2005	Ford	Focus*	*	17	51	3.0	31647
2006	Ford	Mustang*	* Very small sample size, but consistent with the result for the 2007, so the actual repair rate is probably low.	18	89	4.9	12831
2007	Ford	Mustang*	* Very small sample size, but consistent with the result for the 2006, so the actual repair rate is probably low.	19	70	3.7	3729
2007	Ford / Lincoln	Edge / MKX	60 Fewest Most Mostly fit and finish issues: assembly errors, loose trim, rattles.	44	181	4.1	5271
2005	Ford / Mercury	Five Hundred / Freestyle / Montego	59 Fewest Most Repair rates were higher when these cars were newer. They're aging well. Newer model years even better.	60	470	7.8	26266
2006	Ford / Mercury	Five Hundred / Freestyle / Montego	33 Fewest Most	29	252	8.7	18758
2007	Ford / Mercury	Five Hundred / Freestyle / Montego*	* Very small sample size. Actual repair rate probably 20 to 30 repair trips per 100 vehicles, which is still low.	17	83	4.9	10880
2007	Ford / Mercury / Lincoln	Fusion / Milan / MKZ	39 Fewest Most	35	153	4.4	7118
Year	Make	Model	Trips/Year per 100	Vehicles	Months	Mon/Veh	Odometer
2006	Ford / Mercury / Lincoln	Fusion / Milan / Zephyr	39 Fewest Most	42	337	8.0	15187
2007	GMC / Saturn	Acadia / Outlook	100 Fewest Most The 2007 Lambdas continue to suffer from a number of issues. Especially common problems include the A/C thermal expansion valve, broken dash top storage compartment lid, broken lumbar adjusters, rocking driver's seat.	96	430	4.5	5374
2008	GMC / Saturn / Buick	Acadia / Outlook / Enclave	36 Fewest Most The 2008 Lambdas are still very new, but so far their reliability appears to be much better than that of the 2007s. This number is so low that an increase to 50 or 60 in future updates would not be surprising.	50	101	2.0	2515
2002	Honda	Accord*	*	14	63	4.5	65952
2003	Honda	Accord	62 Fewest Most	25	175	7.0	58897
2004	Honda	Accord	34 Fewest Most	30	175	5.8	43337
2005	Honda	Accord*	*	23	139	6.0	30540
2006	Honda	Accord	27 Fewest Most	36	315	8.8	17790
2007	Honda	Accord	10 Fewest Most	26	119	4.6	8134
2002	Honda	Civic*	*	13	70	5.4	68829
Year	Make	Model	Trips/Year per 100	Vehicles	Months	Mon/Veh	Odometer
2006	Honda	Civic	36 Fewest Most	41	297	7.2	16896
2007	Honda	Civic	47 Fewest Most	34	127	3.7	7386
2007	Honda	CR-V	32 Fewest Most	46	225	4.9	5560
2007	Honda	Fit	33 Fewest Most	50	332	6.6	10401
1999	Honda	Odyssey*	*	11	65	5.9	139046
2000	Honda	Odyssey*	*	15	88	5.9	113250
2001	Honda	Odyssey*	*	17	87	5.1	71391
2002	Honda	Odyssey	51 Fewest Most	26	187	7.2	69064
2003	Honda	Odyssey	58 Fewest Most	25	208	8.3	58351
2004	Honda	Odyssey*	* Very small sample size, and the result appears to be inaccurate. Actual repair rate probably around 40 per 100, based on results for other model years.	17	109	6.4	40009
Year	Make	Model	Trips/Year per 100	Vehicles	Months	Mon/Veh	Odometer
2005	Honda	Odyssey	49 Fewest Most	36	269	7.5	27981
2006	Honda	Odyssey	32 Fewest Most	44	300	6.8	16003
2007	Honda	Odyssey	51 Fewest Most Double the repair rate reported last time, and higher than that for the 2006. Actual repair rate for both years probably in the 30s. Reported repairs included leaking transmission seal, leaking A/C valve., bad O2 sensor	30	165	5.5	6630
2007	Honda	Pilot*	*	18	77	4.3	5143
2006	Honda	Ridgeline*	*	21	63	3.0	26730
2006	Hummer	H3*	* Many H3s in the survey are subjected to severe off-road use. That said, only one reported repair might have been related to such use. Most issues are electrical and trim.	15	126	8.4	22437
2007	Hyundai	Santa Fe	104 Fewest Most The new Santa Fe continues to have a much higher repair rate than other Hyundais in the study. Common problem areas include loose bolts in the front suspension, airbag sensors, leaking A/C valves, loose trim, and rattles.	42	254	6.0	6488
2006	Hyundai	Sonata	38 Fewest Most	37	285	7.7	18368
2007	Hyundai	Sonata*	*	21	117	5.6	8991
2005	Hyundai / Kia	Tucson / Sportage	26 Fewest Most	33	276	8.4	26221
Year	Make	Model	Trips/Year per 100	Vehicles	Months	Mon/Veh	Odometer
2006	Hyundai / Kia	Tucson / Sportage	22 Fewest Most	29	267	9.2	15742
2003	Infiniti	G35	89 Fewest Most Common problem areas include manual transmission, power window regulators, audio controls.	30	175	5.8	62360
2004	Infiniti	G35*	*	22	105	4.8	38514
2005	Infiniti	G35*	*	19	111	5.8	23405
2006	Infiniti	G35	84 Fewest Most Much higher repair rate than for the 2004 and 2005. Though the samples are small for those years, the actual repair rate for all three years is probably around 60 repair trips per 100 cars.	25	143	5.7	13741
2007	Infiniti	G35 sedan	72 Fewest Most About two-thirds of reported repairs involved two known issues: disconnected passenger seat heater and poorly attached sunroof triim. These problems should not affect more recently produced cars.	36	166	4.6	4789
2006	Infiniti	M-Series*	*	22	148	6.7	21291
2007	Jeep	Patriot / Compass*	*	19	71	3.7	6634
2007	Jeep	Wrangler	59 Fewest Most Many Wranglers are subjected to severe off-road use, which could increase the repair rate. The reported repairs were not related to off-road use.	25	122	4.9	6992
2007	Kia	Optima*	*	14	88	6.3	7693
Year	Make	Model	Trips/Year per 100	Vehicles	Months	Mon/Veh	Odometer
2006	Kia	Sedona*	* Though the sample size is insufficient, the result is consistent with that for the 2007 model.	21	134	6.4	9694
2007	Kia / Hyundai	Sedona / Entourage*	* Though the sample size is insufficient, the result is consistent with that for the 2006 model.	19	87	4.6	6149
2007	Lexus	ES*	* Very small sample size. The actual repair rate is probably higher. The ES 350 uses the same automatic transmission that has proven unreliable in the Camry V6.	13	63	4.8	6746
2007	Mazda	CX-7	153 Fewest Most Continues to have a high repair rate. Problems with the O2 sensor, gas cap, and door seals are especially common. The door seal issue should not affect recently produced CX-7s.	31	141	4.5	8447
2007	Mazda	CX-9	53 Fewest Most Unlrelated to the CX-7. Average repair rate so far.	28	90	3.2	4344
2004	Mazda	Mazda3*	*	17	117	6.9	43188
2005	Mazda	Mazda3	26 Fewest Most	29	227	7.8	29789
2006	Mazda	Mazda3	35 Fewest Most	36	313	8.7	16093
2007	Mazda	Mazda3 / MS3	24 Fewest Most	42	247	5.9	5640
2006	Mazda	Mazda5	41 Fewest Most	27	148	5.5	17730
Year	Make	Model	Trips/Year per 100	Vehicles	Months	Mon/Veh	Odometer
2007	Mazda	Mazda5*	*	11	71	6.5	6732
2005	Mazda	Mazda6*	*	13	122	9.4	19623
2006	Mazda	Mazda6 / MS6	33 Fewest Most About half of responses were for the MazdaSpeed6, which likely has a higher repair rate than the regular Mazda6. Sample sizes are too small to provide separate results for each.	25	144	5.8	10972
2002	Mazda	Protege	51 Fewest Most Now includes 2002.5s, which used to be included with the 2003s.	25	118	4.7	79161
2003	Mazda	Protege	54 Fewest Most	28	201	7.2	51876
2004	Mazda	RX-8*	*	16	67	4.2	40045
2007	Mercedes-Benz	GL-Class*	* Very small sample size. So far just a handful of minor problems have been reported, quite good for a complex Mercedes.	18	51	2.8	7039
2005	Nissan	Altima*	*	21	57	2.7	41246
2007	Nissan	Altima	68 Fewest Most Like other Nissans in the study, an average repair rate. Many different problems reported, none of them by more than two owners.	58	246	4.2	4642
2007	Nissan	Versa	67 Fewest Most Largest sample size in the survey. After starting high, the repair rate has leveled off a bit above the average for all cars. Common problems include TPMS, fuel door release, detached trim.	127	569	4.5	6965
Year	Make	Model	Trips/Year per 100	Vehicles	Months	Mon/Veh	Odometer
2006	Pontiac	G6*	*	11	89	8.1	21753
2006	Pontiac / Toyota	Vibe / Matrix*	*	19	82	4.3	14646
2003	Saab	9-3*	* Insufficient sample size, but clearly a high repair rate for the first year of the current 9-3.	19	89	4.7	51888
2004	Saab	9-3*	*	16	73	4.6	33808
2006	Saab	9-3	75 Fewest Most	32	224	7.0	12763
2007	Saab	9-3*	* With a larger sample size, the reported average would likely be higher, at least 50 per 100. Previous two model years around 70 per 100.	14	72	5.1	7472
2007	Saturn	AURA	86 Fewest Most Slight increase in repair rate from last time. GM does not appear to be addressing problems quickly enough. Wide variety of reported problems, none especially common.	91	587	6.5	6983
2004	Saturn	VUE*	* Very small sample size. Problem rate is half that reported for the 2006 and 2007, suggesting that this result is not accurate.	17	48	2.8	41938
2006	Saturn	VUE*	*	17	91	5.4	19835
2007	Saturn	VUE*	*	18	74	4.1	6770
Year	Make	Model	Trips/Year per 100	Vehicles	Months	Mon/Veh	Odometer
2005	Subaru	Legacy / Outback	52 Fewest Most	37	344	9.3	25898
2006	Subaru	Legacy / Outback	6 Fewest Most	25	186	7.4	16398
2007	Subaru	Legacy / Outback*	*	12	83	6.9	12422
2006	Subaru / Saab	Impreza / WRX / 9-2X*	*	16	108	6.8	13685
2006	Suzuki	Grand Vitara*	*	23	174	7.6	14747
2007	Suzuki	SX4	35 Fewest Most	31	136	4.4	6713
2002	Toyota	Camry*	* Very small sample size. Actual problem rate likely around 75. One of the four reported problems occurred to a very high mileage car.	15	48	3.2	76375
2007	Toyota	Camry 4	48 Fewest Most Much higher problem rate for the V6 owing to problems with the six-speed automatic transmission.	40	251	6.3	8829
2007	Toyota	Camry Hybrid*	* Much higher problem rate for the V6 owing to problems with the six-speed automatic transmission.	20	104	5.2	12212
2007	Toyota	Camry V6*	* Much higher problem rate for the V6 owing to problems with the six-speed automatic transmission.	17	87	5.1	11195
Year	Make	Model	Trips/Year per 100	Vehicles	Months	Mon/Veh	Odometer
2005	Toyota	Corolla*	* Very small sample size. Actual problem rate certainly not zero, but should be under 30 repair trips per 100 cars per year, and probably under 20.	15	68	4.5	43632
2007	Toyota	FJ Cruiser	19 Fewest Most On the FJ Cruiser forum there's much discussion of cracked inner fenders. This problem hasn't shown up in TrueDelta's survey, with 65+ owners responding.	66	308	4.7	10429
2004	Toyota	Prius*	*	17	85	5.0	52871
2005	Toyota	Prius	13 Fewest Most	42	270	6.4	36885
2006	Toyota	Prius	8 Fewest Most	52	477	9.2	14149
2007	Toyota	Prius	9 Fewest Most	44	270	6.1	6633
2006	Toyota	RAV4	48 Fewest Most	43	421	9.8	12919
2007	Toyota	RAV4	9 Fewest Most	25	138	5.5	5167
2004	Toyota	Sienna	59 Fewest Most	30	222	7.4	47144
2005	Toyota	Sienna*	* Small sample size. Repair rates for other model years suggest that this one is likely around 50 repair trips per 100 minivans per year.	19	113	5.9	29566
Year	Make	Model	Trips/Year per 100	Vehicles	Months	Mon/Veh	Odometer
2006	Toyota	Sienna	16 Fewest Most Decent sample size, but repair rates for other years suggest that the actual repair rate for the 2006 is higher than this low figure, perhaps around 40.	34	291	8.6	15426
2007	Toyota	Sienna*	* Very small sample size. Result inflated by one minivan with multiple problems. Actual repair rate probably around 40 repair trips per 100 vehicles.	16	53	3.3	3377
2007	Toyota	Yaris	0 Fewest Most Actual repair rate certainly not zero, but clearly very low.	33	151	4.6	10907
2006	Volkswagen	Jetta	29 Fewest Most Includes 2005.5s. Unusually low for a VW, was higher in earlier sets of results. 2006.5-2007s have twice the repair rate.	58	541	9.3	20092
2000	Volkswagen	Jetta / Golf	107 Fewest Most	25	168	6.7	108315
2001	Volkswagen	Jetta / Golf*	* Small sample size, but result consistent with other model years.	21	121	5.8	83851
2002	Volkswagen	Jetta / Golf*	* Small sample size, but result consistent with other model years.	15	109	7.3	75560
2003	Volkswagen	Jetta / Golf*	* Small sample size, but result consistent with other model years.	22	140	6.4	76057
2007	Volkswagen	Jetta / Rabbit	55 Fewest Most Includes the 2006.5 Rabbit and GTI.	49	304	6.2	10247
2000	Volkswagen	Passat*	* Very small sample size, but the actual repair rate is almost certainly high, if not this high.	11	76	6.9	110197
Year	Make	Model	Trips/Year per 100	Vehicles	Months	Mon/Veh	Odometer
2002	Volkswagen	Passat	140 Fewest Most	25	146	5.8	69342
2003	Volkswagen	Passat*	*	18	114	6.3	73096
2006	Volkswagen	Passat	71 Fewest Most	38	353	9.3	17210
2007	Volkswagen	Passat	70 Fewest Most	35	189	5.4	9397
2005	Volvo	S40 / V40 / V50*	* Includes 2004.5 S40.	17	86	5.1	30453
2001	Volvo	S60 / S70 / V70 / XC70*	*	13	62	4.8	100065
2004	Volvo	S60 / S70 / V70 / XC70*	*	21	65	3.1	39815
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Definitions

Trips/year per 100 (VRS Score) -- average number of successful repair trips per year per 100 vehicles; number of successful repair trips reported by owners divided by months of data, then multiplied by 12 (to annualize), then multiplied by 100
Graph -- pointer shows how the model compares to others from the same model year
Vehicles -- number of vehicles for which owners provided data
Months -- total number of months for which these owners supplied data
Mon/veh -- average number of months of data per vehicle
Odometer -- average odometer reading during these months, in miles

General Notes

Models marked with an asterisk* have very low sample sizes. At best, the results for these models, which are visible only to logged-in members, provide a very rough estimate of their reliability.

Ultra-low repair rates: Any result under 20 repair trips per 100 vehicles is likely a result of the small sample size, and should be expected to increase to 20 or so in future updates.

New models often start out with high repair rates, and then improve during the model year as the manufacturer identifies and addresses common problems. The next set of results, which will be posted in February, should indicate any changes.

In general, the absolute differences are not large. The most reliable models tend to require a repair trip once every three or four years, while the average model requires one about once every two years and the least reliable models average about a trip a year.

Methodology

Description of the research process.

Only successfully completed repairs are currently included in the analysis. Recalls and problems fixed with just a reflash or warning light reset are not included.

Two refinements were made to the data analysis process beginning with the previous results:

Each refinement affects about ten percent of the results, and the impact is only larger than 10 repair trips per hundred in a handful of cases.

This time around, the asterisked results include models with as few as 10 responses if the total number of months reported on is at least 60. The minimum remains 15 responses when the number of months reported on is between 45 and 59.

The accuracy of TrueDelta's results will increase as the sample sizes and the number of months per vehicle grow (confidence intervals).

Thank you

Everyone who helped make this fifth set of results possible, thank you.

The previous set of results can be viewed here.

You can help provide more comprehensive and more precise future results by joining the panel.

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