( dpa ) - The French car maker Peugeot topped the list last year with more than 80,000 vehicles recalled for technical malfunctions but overall manufacturers ordered significantly fewer recalls than in 2006, Germany's auto-motor-sport magazine said in a survey.
Some 80,000 units of the Peugeot 307 model had to be recalled because of problems with the Anti-Lock Brake System (ABS) and Electronic Stability Programme (ESP), the magazine said after surveying the recalls in 2007. Another 6,900 Peugeot 807 models also had to be recalled.
The General Motors (GM) subsidiary Opel came second with 68,680 units, followed by Fiat with its subsidiaries Alfa Romeo and Lancia.
Even premium car producers such as Audi, BMW and Porsche recalled models, some dating back to the model year 2001, the magazine said. BMW had to recall 6,400 units of the latest X5 and 120d models while Mercedes recalled only 243 units of the G-Range.
But there were also manufacturers with no recalls at all last year including Cadillac, Saab, Seat, Skoda and Subaru.
Owners of the Nissan Qashqai had to be especially patient with four unplanned visits to the workshop for repairs including a defective rear door lock and sharp-edged head airbag holder.
During 2007, some 440,000 units were recalled on the German market compared to more than 700,000 in the previous year, the magazine said.