Hybrids offer a great balance between fuel efficiency and range, allowing you to take extended trips without needing to recharge your battery and reduce your fuel costs by achieving over 60 miles to the gallon. Here are 6 of the most reliable hybrid cars you can get.
2022 - Present Volvo XC40 Hybrid, from £21,980
Offered as both a plug-in hybrid or self-charging, the XC40 is Volvo’s premium compact SUV, packing in as much style as it does safety. As standard it comes equipped with LED headlights, a digital gauge cluster and City Safety. In terms of reliability, the XC40 scores very highly on What Car?’s reliability index, with an impressive 97% rating. This shouldn’t be all that surprising, considering Volvo’s reputation for quality engineering. Most faults recorded were in relation to the air conditioning, hybrid battery pack or the 12v battery. The XC40 comes with a dependable petrol-electric powertrain, with a 1.5-litre turbocharged petrol engine. Interestingly this is closely related to the engine used in the current generation of hybrid London Taxis, which are designed to be reliable and efficient above all.
2019 - 2024 Toyota RAV4 2.5 VVT-h from £19,890
For a reliable car, especially a hybrid, you should definitely consider a Toyota. Having both one of the best reliability ratings on the market and over 20 years of experience in making class-leading hybrids, their models feature both reliability and practicality. The 2019 to 2024 generation RAV4 combines a bulletproof powertrain with a modern and muscular exterior. Being a full-size SUV - at least for the UK - it has nearly 600 litres of boot capacity, with the seats up. The RAV4 scored excellently on the What Car? reliability survey, at 98.8%, one of the highest ratings in 2024. Power comes from a 2.5-litre petrol engine and hybrid motor combo, Toyota claims it provides up to 50 MPG. With a 0-60 time of 6 seconds for the plug-in version, and 8.4 seconds for the front wheel drive self-charging version.
2017 - 2021 Hyundai Kona 1.6 h-GDi from £14,990
The fact that Hyundai offers a 5-year and unlimited mileage warranty, means they are confident in the reliability of their cars. The Kona is a great example of this, with an excellent reliability rating. It is a compact SUV offering good practicality, able to accommodate 5 adults and their luggage. Its boot capacity is around 445 litres. In reliability terms, the Kona Hybrid is one of the highest-rated cars of its type, with a 99% What Car? score. What's more, most of these faults had to do with electrical systems not related to the engine, such as the sat nav/infotainment screen. The hybrid version of the car was by far the most reliable version, too. Inside, the Kona features an Android Auto/Apple Car Play enabled 10.5” infotainment system, as well as a 360-degree camera for easy manoeuvring. Over 52 MPG is claimed by Hyundai, making the Kona reasonably cheap to run too.
2017 - 2022 Honda CR-V 2.0 h i-MMD from £22,990
In 2000, Honda actually beat Toyota to be the first brand to sell a hybrid car in the UK, with the first generation Honda Insight. It pipped the Prius by almost an entire year. Since then Honda has made loads more hybrid models, all with very respectable reliability ratings. The CR-V is one of Honda's most popular models in recent years, owing to the general trend towards SUVs, the 2.0 hybrid combines the best of both worlds, a dependable hybrid-electric system and a spacious interior with plenty of features packed in. The hybrid CR-V made between 2018 and 2023 scored an impressive 97% in What Car?’s reliability survey, though some of the few faults did arise from the hybrid system.
Exterior styling-wise, the CR-V has seen a gradual evolution since the first generation released in 1997. The new one fits in well with other SUVs and benefits from not featuring the sloping rear roofline that many do. Inside, a large touchscreen infotainment system takes care of the rear camera, Apple Car Play and other tasks.
2016 - 2022 Kia Niro 1.6 GDi from £19,490
Kia offers a 7-year warranty on their cars, meaning a Niro hybrid made after 2018 will still have the manufacturer's warranty, impressive for a sub-£20,000 purchase, especially when you consider all the features on offer. The Niro hybrid is great for those who want a slightly higher driving position, but not a full-blown SUV. With the plug-in hybrid system paired to its 1.6-litre turbocharged engine, the Niro should be able to achieve over 70 MPG. Further to its great efficiency, to say the Niro Hybrid scored well on the reliability front is an understatement, with no reported faults achieving a 100% rating in 2023! Exterior styling is rather conventional, to be honest. It lacks the outlandish angular lines of many hybrid cars of this era, it would easily blend in with cars made 10 years earlier. This isn’t always a bad thing, though. The interior, something you’ll see a lot more of, is modern and understated. It features a sleekly-integrated infotainment screen, and high-quality leather upholstery - on the higher trim levels anyway.
2021 - Present Hyundai Tucson 1.6 T-GDi MHEV from £23,990
As the second Hyundai on this list, the Tucson is a crossover/SUV that comes available with the same 1.6-turbo petrol-hybrid system found in the Kona. I’d recommend the 180 version, over the less powerful 150, as the Tucson is a sizable chunk of car to move. Regardless of what engine the fuel efficiency is still pretty good, at 47.1, but not quite on par with the most expensive model, the plug-in hybrid version.
Reliability is strong, with the Tucson hybrids scoring an average of 94% over What Car?’s survey. Most issues were not mechanical, meaning it should prove a pretty dependable steed. The luggage capacity is 577 litres, which is a lot, especially when considering that can be with 5 adults on board too.
Infotainment comes from the usual large touchscreen in the centre of the dash. The steering wheel design is interesting, with ‘C’ shaped accents mirroring the front. Overall the Tucson presents a pretty good package for a reliable and efficient SUV.