Cars that dodge repair bills and cost the least to fix

Which cars go to the repair shop the least often? And which will have the smallest repair bills? In a just-released study by auto repair website CarMD, Toyotas do the best job of keeping you away from repair bills, and Hyundai vehicles cost the least if you do need something fixed.

And this year for the first time, CarMD lets you look up the most likely repairs on your own vehicle, which could help you troubleshoot a problem. Fill in your year, make and model, and in most cases, you can see which repair is most frequent when the check engine light goes on in your car.

CarMD also sells a$139.95 diagnostic device, with an accompanying smartphone app, that reads computer codes on your car and tells you the car’s likely engine-related problem before you go to a mechanic. Plus, it provides an estimate of a reasonable cost for the repair.  

CarMD’s annual study is based on data from its national networks of mechanics. This year’s survey covered 4.7 million vehicles from model years 1996 to 2016 and looked at the repairs made on them in the year ending Sept.  30.

The individual vehicle with the best combination of infrequent repairs and low mechanics’ cost is the 2012 Honda CR-V compact SUV.

In this year’s rankings, CarMD separates out individual auto brands instead of ranking only by parent auto manufacturers. For instance, instead of ranking only General Motors, the study gives Chevrolet, Buick, Cadillac and GMC each its own score.  

In the rankings of least frequent repairs and least costly ones, only Hyundai and Jeep appear on both lists.

Here are details on various winners in different aspects of the CarMD study:

• Repair frequency: Toyota, Honda, Nissan, Audi and Volkswagen are the top five at staying away from the repair shop. Among Detroit-based brands, Buick is eighth and Jeep ninth.
  
• Repair costs: Hyundai is the lowest at $318 per average visit. Mazda ($335) and Kia ($339) round out the top three. The rest of the top 10 are all Detroit-based: Chevrolet ($347), Chrysler ($348)  Dodge ($351), Jeep ($358), GMC ($363), Ford ($373) and Buick ($373).
• Individual cars: In  ranking specific vehicles, the top three are the same on both least frequent and least expensive repairs. The Honda CR-V is first, the Toyota Tundra pickup is second best and Toyota Camry sedan third.

With a look at the full report, you can see further details on these rankings, including the best three vehicles for least frequent and least costly repairs in eight categories, from compact sedans and hybrids to SUVs and pickups.