Cheapest cars to fix in SA

The Isuzu KB, seen here on Ongeluksnek Pass in Lesotho,
is South Africa's third most affordalbe bakkie to fix.
(Photo: Alwyn Viljoen.)

Pinetown's legendary parts nerd Malcolm Kinsey has released the 28 edition of his annual report on the cheapest cars to fix in South Africa.

Doublecab bakkies are the best-selling vehicle type in SA, led by the Toyota Hilux, and Toyota credits the bakkie's success to its hard work to keep the costs of service, repair and crash parts relatively low. 

This year's Kinsey Report again lists the Hilux 2.8 GD as having the lowest basket price and most affordable repair percentage. The Nissan Navara is second and Isuzu KB 300 third.

Kinsey said the GWM Steed 6 also gets a look-in with impressively low servicing parts costs. 

The Datsun Go is the cheapest vehicle overall
to repair and maintain in South Africa. 

Among the popular hatches, the VW Polo 1.2 TSi had both the most economical basket and best basket to purchase price of the car – a good indication of all round value for money. It also scores first in repair and crash parts  and 2^nd in service. Second overall goes to the Renault Sandero which scores well in all three sections. Third is the Renault Clio, which just edges out the Ford Fiesta 1.0T by R191.

Malcolm Kinsey

Kinsey said among small city cars, the Datsun Go is the cheapest to maintain or repair, followed by the Polo Vivo, which boasts the lowest percentage of parts cost to price of vehicle and second lowest crash parts cost. Third is the Hyundai i10, which scored well on crash parts. The Tata Bolt fared well in the repair costs category (2^nd) and service costs (3^rd)  but was knocked back by the price of the rear fender, which includes the whole side of the vehicle from the front door. 

See the full list of executive saloons and single cabs here  or in Witness Wheels.

(First published in The Weekend Witness)