Germany logged 3.7 million roadside call-outs last year. The four-year-old EV broke down half as often as the four-year-old petrol car
The ADAC breakdown statistics for 2026 put electric cars below combustion cars in every age bracket measured — and name the same component as the leading cause for both.
Meridians Technik-Redaktion
Published 31 August 2026 · Updated 31 August 2026 · 6 min read
AutomotiveThe short answer
- For its 2026 breakdown statistics, Germany's ADAC analysed its roadside call-outs from 2025: almost 3.7 million of them, 1.6 percent more than the year before.
- Among four-year-old cars, the breakdown index for electric vehicles was 6.5 against 12.5 for combustion cars. For five-year-olds the ADAC puts the gap at 40 percent.
- The most reliable three-year-olds, by the ADAC's figures, were the BMW i3 at 0.4 and the Tesla Model 3 at 0.7; among combustion cars, the Mini and the BMW X2 at 0.8 each.
- The data is a record of ADAC call-outs rather than a random sample of the German fleet. And the single leading cause is the same for both drivetrains: the 12-volt battery.
Whether electric cars are more reliable than combustion cars is usually settled with opinions. Germany has a data series that settles it with dispatch records instead: the ADAC breakdown statistics. For the 2026 edition, published on 23 April 2026, the club analysed its 2025 call-outs — its patrols went out almost 3.7 million times, 1.6 percent more often than the year before. The evaluation covers 158 model lines from around 27 brands, first registered between 2016 and 2023. The result is less ambiguous than the debate around it.
What the index actually measures
The ADAC works with the Pannenkennziffer, or PKZ: breakdowns per 1,000 registered vehicles of a given model year. Lower is better. Because cars break down more as they age, the figure only means something within a single age bracket. That is exactly how the club reports it for electric and combustion cars registered between 2020 and 2023:
- Two years old — electric 2.1 — combustion 5.8 (breakdowns per 1,000 registered vehicles, call-outs in 2025)
- Four years old — electric 6.5 — combustion 12.5
- Five years old — electric 10.3 — combustion 17.4; the ADAC describes the gap as 40 percent lower for the electric cars
The best figures — and the outliers
Among three-year-old cars, the ADAC names the BMW i3 with an index of 0.4 and the Tesla Model 3 with 0.7 as the most reliable; looking only at combustion cars, it is the Mini and the BMW X2 at 0.8 each. At the other end, the club names the Toyota C-HR, which by its account ranks among the least reliable cars in its class across numerous model years, and says the same applies to the manufacturer's RAV4, Yaris and Yaris Cross, and Corolla. Among electric cars, the ADAC flags the comparatively high breakdown numbers of the Hyundai Ioniq 5. So the statistics are not a verdict on drivetrains: there are conspicuous EVs and very dependable combustion cars.
The cause is the same on both sides
The most useful finding is not in the drivetrain column. In 2025, 45.4 percent of all breakdowns traced back to the 12-volt battery, up from 44.9 percent the year before — far ahead of engine and engine electronics (21.8 percent), starter, alternator, electrical system and lighting (10.4 percent), tyre damage (8.9 percent) and locking systems (6.8 percent). In an electric car this is not the traction battery but the same small 12-volt battery that sits under the bonnet of a petrol car. Anyone who wants to spend less time on the hard shoulder gains more from a battery with capacity left in it than from the choice of drivetrain.
What the numbers do not say
Three limits apply. First, this is an analysis of ADAC call-outs, not a representative sample of every car in Germany. Second, a breakdown index says nothing about cost: a car can rarely strand you and still run up expensive workshop bills — for that, the TÜV Report and its defect rates is the better source, because it measures a different event, the periodic roadworthiness inspection. Third, electric cars in the fleet are on average driven differently from combustion cars. Against that, the ADAC states plainly that combustion cars suffer more breakdowns than electric vehicles at every age, so the finding is not confined to a single model year.
Regardless of drivetrain, the broader trend is the striking one. For ten-year-old cars, the ADAC puts the probability of a breakdown at 3.1 percent in 2025, down from 6.5 percent in 2015; for five-year-old cars it fell from 3.6 to 2.1 percent. A ten-year-old car today strands its driver less often than a five-year-old car did then.
Sources
Every factual claim above is traceable to these documents. Check them — that is why they are here.
- ADAC Pannenstatistik 2026, press release of 23 April 2026 — „Die Gelben Engel waren fast 3,7 Millionen Mal im Einsatz, was eine Steigerung um 1,6 Prozent im Vergleich zum Vorjahr bedeutet.“; „Ein vier Jahre altes Elektroauto wies 2025 eine PKZ von 6,5 auf, gleich alte Verbrenner lagen schon bei 12,5.“; best three-year-olds BMW i3 (0.4), Tesla Model 3 (0.7), Mini and BMW X2 (0.8 each); outliers Toyota C-HR, RAV4, Yaris (Cross), Corolla and Hyundai Ioniq 5 (retrieved 31 Aug 2026)ADAC Presse
- ADAC Pannenstatistik 2026 — two-year-old cars 2.1 breakdowns per 1,000 vehicles (electric) against 5.8 (combustion); five-year-olds 10.3 against 17.4 and „um 40 Prozent geringer“; causes 45.4 / 21.8 / 10.4 / 8.9 / 6.8 percent; 158 model lines from around 27 brands, first registrations 2016 to 2023; breakdown probability of ten-year-old cars 6.5 percent (2015) against 3.1 percent (2025) (retrieved 31 Aug 2026)ADAC
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