HONDA'S CR-V has been crowned as the most reliable 4x4 vehicle on British roads.
A survey of warranty claims involving 150,000 cars up to eight years old gives the Japanese firm's British-built sport utility the best score for reliability out of a total of 20 all-drive models.
Based on how often vehicles break down, average repair cost and time spent in the garage service bays, the Warranty Direct findings are revealed as Honda dealers are taking delivery of 2010 model-year versions of the car.
'This is great news, but it only reinforces our own findings. Over the last four years, more than 55 per cent of CR-V sales in the UK have been to customers who made repeat purchases as a result of reliability and strong residual values. Honda's reputation is built on delivering peace of mind and never letting the customer down,' said spokesman Paul Ormond.
Latest versions of the model will be available with a new power unit - the i-DTEC - and an automatic gearbox for diesel models and Swindon-based Honda of the UK Manufacturing is expected to produce more than 30,000 examples for more than 60 markets this year.
Highest-placed European car in the survey is the newer incarnation of Land Rover's Freelander, the perennial 4x4 favourite.
Said Warranty Direct spokesman Duncan McClure: 'This vehicle has traditionally fared badly in our studies, so it is promising to see an improvement from this flagship model.
'But it is telling that the bottom half of the list is dominated by European cars and the top half is populated largely by Japanese vehicles, which still hold sway overall.'