Volkswagen Passat vs Buick Regal: which is more reliable?
The Buick Regal is clearly ahead of the Volkswagen Passat on the federal record: 82/100 against 71/100 across every model year we score.
The record, side by side
Volkswagen Passat
- 11 model years scored
- 2,372 owner complaints on record
- about 17 complaints per year on the road
- 58 recall campaigns, 32 safety-critical
- best year 2019 (95/100) · worst 2014 (26/100)
Buick Regal
- 10 model years scored
- 633 owner complaints on record
- about 3 complaints per year on the road
- 28 recall campaigns, 12 safety-critical
- best year 2017 (92/100) · worst 2011 (42/100)
Mean score is the average across model years from 2013 on, where both records are comparable. How the score works.
Year by year: Passat against Regal
The comparison that decides the purchase. A nameplate is not one car — a redesign can move the record sixty points inside two years, and the two nameplates rarely move together.
What owners actually complain about
Volkswagen Passat
- Air Bags — 1,181 complaints
- Electrical System — 370 complaints
- Engine — 311 complaints
Buick Regal
- Engine — 169 complaints
- Electrical System — 159 complaints
- Exterior Lighting — 127 complaints
They do not fail the same way: the Passat's complaints concentrate in Air Bags, the Regal's in Engine. That difference matters more to a buyer than the score gap, because it says which repair bill you are taking on.
Years to avoid on each
Volkswagen Passat — avoid: 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015.
Buick Regal — avoid: 2011.
A year scores below 45 on complaints per year of exposure and recall campaigns. Every car’s years to avoid.
What each costs today
A recent used Volkswagen Passat prices at about $23,600 and a Buick Regal at about $19,800 — the Buick Regal is roughly $3,800 less, and they return 28.0 against 26.0 MPG combined.
Class-level estimates re-priced to your country, not a valuation of one car. Method.
FAQ
Is the Volkswagen Passat or the Buick Regal more reliable?
On the NHTSA record the Buick Regal scores 82/100 against the Volkswagen Passat's 71/100, averaged across every model year we hold. The Buick Regal carries about 3 complaints per year on the road against 17 for the Volkswagen Passat.
Which Volkswagen Passat and Buick Regal years should I avoid?
Volkswagen Passat: 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015. Buick Regal: 2011. Each of those scores under 45 out of 100 on complaints per year of exposure and recall campaigns.
What goes wrong on the Volkswagen Passat and the Buick Regal?
The largest complaint group on the Volkswagen Passat is Air Bags (1,181 complaints); on the Buick Regal it is Engine (169).
Is the Volkswagen Passat or the Buick Regal cheaper to own?
A recent used Volkswagen Passat prices at about $23,600 and a Buick Regal at about $19,800, before insurance and the maintenance band. Both pages carry the five-year running-cost figure.