New Passat Clinches Prestigious Award
Text from Volkswagen AG. A tradition of success: Passats have without exception always received Germany鈥檚 coveted 鈥淕oldenes Lenkrad鈥?award. And the new model is no exception. Wolfsburg, 10 November 2005 - Upholding the successful tradition of all its predecessor generations, the new Passat again takes the honours as winner of the Bild am Sonntag newspaper鈥檚 鈥淕oldenes Lenkrad鈥?(golden steering wheel) award. Highly regarded internationally, the prestigious prize this year celebrates its 30th anniversary. On the occasion of the award ceremony in Berlin on Wednesday evening, Dr Wolfgang Bernhard, CEO for the Volkswagen brand, said, 鈥淭he new Passat impressively shows that it has the stuff of a winner. The awarding of 鈥淕oldenes Lenkrad 2005鈥?to Passat reflects the recognition which this model currently enjoys on the German market. Volkswagen models have traditionally always been successful when it came to the 鈥淕oldenes Lenkrad鈥?award. Previous winners of this coveted prize have also included the Polo, Golf, Touran and Touareg. The new Passat has been available as a saloon since March of this year and as a variant since August 19. The Passat comes with a choice of four fittings packages: Trendline, Comfortline, Sportline and Highline.
The Volkswagen Golf struggled for reliability in last year鈥檚 Driver Power survey, but what a difference 12 months can make. The Mk7 hatch is now in the top 10 most reliable family cars on the market with a 91.60 per cent rating, while just 15 per cent of owners reported a problem. Check the suspension though, as it鈥檚 the most common issue, while many owners also complained that servicing costs are too steep. The third-generation Octavia has been on sale since 2013 and is one of the most popular family cars around thanks to its blend of practicality and low running costs. It鈥檚 also a car you can depend on, finishing a respectable ninth in its class and 16th overall for reliability in this year鈥檚 Driver Power survey. A lot of owners reported faults (34.1 per cent), but the high reliability ranking suggests that most issues are not serious. The high-riding Mk1 MINI Countryman was replaced in 2017, but the original car scores well for reliability with an impressive 92.04 per cent - good enough for eighth place on our list.
Interior trim causes the most complaints among respondents, but reports of other issues are rare (13.9 per cent). Maintenance bills are high if you don鈥檛 have one of the pre-paid TLC packs, though. The Mk3 SEAT Leon has been available since 2012, but its age is no factor when it comes to reliability as the sporty hatch comfortably makes the top 10 most reliable used family cars on sale. It鈥檚 similar to the Mk7 Volkswagen Golf under the skin, which sits in tenth place on this list, with owners of both reporting almost the same amount of problems. The styling of the ninth-generation Honda Civic has always polarised opinion, but reaction is mostly positive when it comes to reliability. With a score of 92.60 per cent, the hatchback is the seventh most reliable used family car money can buy. On the rare occasions things do go wrong (11.3 per cent), Civic owners taking part in the survey say electrics are often to blame. The Mk4 CR-V just edged out the Civic to claim the honour of most reliable used Honda with a Driver Power score of 92.72 per cent.
Just 11.1 per cent of respondents mentioned that the family SUV had gone wrong, with electrical and gearbox issues the main problem, while reasonable dealers鈥?charges were also commended. The Skoda Yeti excelled in last year鈥檚 Driver Power reliability survey, and despite a slight drop, the quirky SUV still has much to offer. A score of 92.86 per cent sees it just creep into fourth place, while just 15.9 per cent of owners said that they have had a problem - with electrics being the biggest gripe. Toyota鈥檚 Prius continues to impress as a used choice, with reliability standing out in our 2018 Driver Power survey. The pioneering hybrid scored an impressive 93.17 per cent, suggesting there is nothing to fear from those hi-tech mechanicals. Although 20.7 per cent of owners reported a problem, the high ranking means issues are unlikely to have been major. The Mk2 Toyota Auris, which was on sale between 2012 and 2018, may not set pulses racing from a design perspective, but there is no doubting its reliability. It sits second on our list of the most reliable used family cars with a score of 94.63 per cent, which is also good enough for fourth place across all sectors, with just 6.9 per cent of owners reporting issues. The Toyota RAV4 is officially the most reliable used family car in our 2018 Driver Power customer satisfaction survey. It鈥檚 also the third Toyota on this list. In fact it鈥檚 the third Toyota in the top three, suggesting the Japanese brand is still at the forefront when it comes to reliability. Reported issues are scarce (15.4 per cent), with respondents tending to mention the brakes if they did have trouble.
