Car Manufacturers With the Fewest Vehicles Recalled

Car Manufacturers With the Fewest Vehicles Recalled

by Sean Jackson

AxleGeeks used data from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration to identify the brands with the fewest vehicles recalled since Jan. 1, 2015.

When considering the overall quality of a car, factors from safety to fuel efficiency must be examined. Dependability also undoubtedly plays an important role. Better construction not only means greater confidence in your investment, but also fewer trips to repair manufacturer defects.

The data experts at AxleGeeks sought out the car brands with the fewest vehicles affected by safety recalls since Jan. 1, 2015. With data from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, we ranked the brands from most to fewest affected vehicles. However, the total volume of cars produced by a given manufacturer is unavailable, making it impossible to determine what percentage of a brand's vehicles ultimately fall victim to manufacturer defects. Lower volume of production will naturally lead to fewer vehicles affected by recalls. An authority on cars and car brands, AxleGeeks recently launched an app to provide users with the latest information on the go.

Note: While we considered recalls reported after Jan. 1, 2015, they do not necessarily affect vehicles made in 2015 and, in fact, are more likely to affect older models.

#10. Hyundai

Total Number of Recalled Vehicles: 1,568,871
Total Number of Recalls: 15

Since 2015, Hyundai administered 15 recalls that affected nearly 1.6 million vehicles.

#9. BMW

Total Number of Recalled Vehicles: 1,568,305
Total Number of Recalls: 19
Brands: BMW, Mini

BMW has issued 19 recalls since 2015, affecting over 1.5 million models and surpassing totals reported by other luxury manufacturers such as Mercedes- Benz.

#8. Mercedes-Benz

Total Number of Recalled Vehicles: 1,203,210
Total Number of Recalls: 22
Brands: Mercedes-Benz, Smart

In 2016, the luxury manufacturer issued recalls on just under 850,000 models, more than doubling the amount of models affected in the previous year.

#7. Kia

Total Number of Recalled Vehicles: 962,169
Total Number of Recalls: 8

Kia witnessed a spike in recalls since 2015, with over 950,000 models affected, close to a six-fold increase from 2014. Despite the surge in recalls, it still reported fewer vehicles impacted by recalls than Ford and Chevrolet.

#6. Volkswagen Group

Total Number of Recalled Vehicles: 695,682
Total Number of Recalls: 21
Brands: Audi, Porsche, Volkswagen

Since 2015, Volkswagen Group has issued 21 recalls affecting nearly 700,000 vehicles affected.

#5. Subaru

Total Number of Recalled Vehicles: 617,218
Total Number of Recalls: 6

With just over 600,000 models reported for recalls, Subaru reported far fewer affected vehicles than other manufacturers like Hyundai and Chrysler.

#4. Land Rover

Total Number of Recalled Vehicles: 241,103
Total Number of Recalls: 10

The luxury manufacturer issued 10 recalls affecting over 200,000 of its models.

#3. Tesla

Total Number of Recalled Vehicles: 59,415
Total Number of Recalls: 1

Tesla administered only one recall since 2015 that affected just under 60,000 vehicles.

#2. Volvo

Total Number of Recalled Vehicles: 45,318
Total Number of Recalls: 15

Volvo has issued 15 recalls since 2015, affecting just 45,000 models — a far fall from totals reported by luxury competitors like BMW.

#1. Jaguar

Total Number of Recalled Vehicles: 13,427
Total Number of Recalls: 5

With just five recalls issued since 2015, only 13,427 Jaguar models were affected by recalls.

Note: Because total production numbers for each brand are unavailable, we are not able to calculate the percentage of vehicles ultimately needed repairs due to manufacturer defects. Lower volume of production will naturally lead to fewer vehicles affected by recalls.