Driver Power exclusive test
The cars YOU voted best in 2008’s Driver Power survey go head-to-head with their latest rivals.
The annual Auto Express Driver Power report reveals the results of the UK’s most influential car owner satisfaction survey, and is required reading for anyone looking for their perfect new model.
Every year, more than 30,000 drivers rate their vehicles in 10 key areas, ranging from reliability to performance. From these results, each model then gets a percentage score, so we can name the top 100 cars in the UK – as rated by you.
So what makes a Driver Power winner? Regular readers of the report – now in its seventh year – will know that it’s certainly not sales success. Many of the UK’s most popular cars from the likes of Vauxhall, Volkswagen and Fiat have regularly failed to live up to the standard set by rivals that sell in far smaller numbers to much more satisfied customers.
To find the secret behind the success of some of the best-loved models in Driver Power, we have brought together four class winners from the 2008 survey, and lined them up against a quartet of alternatives – all of which we think should offer just as much to the discerning buyer, if not more.
A regular supermini favourite in Driver Power is the Honda Jazz. You tell us you can’t get enough of its flawless reliability and amazing versatility, but is it not a bit long in the tooth now? We put it head-to-head with one of the most stylish superminis of 2008 – in the shape of the new Mazda 2 – to see how long the Jazz’s reign can last.
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Move up to the full-sized family car class, and one model finished head and shoulders above all others. The Skoda Octavia topped the Driver Power top 100, with superb ratings in all 10 categories. So how has it stolen a march over Auto Express’s current Car of the Year, the Ford Mondeo? Lexus is another maker which has always received glowing reviews from customers, and has been rated the country’s top manufacturer in every Driver Power survey. We’ve brought the Japanese company’s IS compact executive model together with a tough new competitor in the shape of Audi’s latest A4.
Our final clash puts two cars from the same brand face-to-face. A tremendous Driver Power debut saw the latest Land Rover Discovery soar to the top of the 4x4 class in the 2008 report. But could its position be under threat here, where it comes under fire from its little brother, the Freelander compact SUV?
THE HEAD TO HEAD BATTLES FROM THE BEST IN EACH CLASS:
Supermini test: Honda Jazz vs Mazda 2
Family car test: Skoda Octavia vs Ford Mondeo
Compact executive car test: Audi A4 vs Lexus IS
4x4 test: Land Rover Discovery 3 vs Land Rover Freelander 2
