Which Car Holds Its Value Best?
If you read, maybe even follow Steve Lang’s advice on car buying, then you know how important and hard it is to fight the dreaded depreciation of your car. The minute you drive it off the dealer’s lot, it has lost a good chunk of its value. Some cars hold their value well, others not so much. Here are the best.
Edmunds has sifted through its data and publishes the truly most valuable players in the field. Edmunds Best Retained Value® Awards recognize the brands and models that have the highest projected residual value after five years.
Honda is a multiple winner. Honda won the 2012 brand award for non-luxury makes for the second consecutive year. Its luxo-division Acura took home the luxury brand award for the first time. Honda’s average projected retained value after five years is 47.9 percent, while Acura’s average projected retained value after five years is 44.6 percent.
If you want a car that holds its value best, buy a truck. A Toyota Tacoma to be exact. After 5 years, it is projected to be worth 57.30 percent of its new car price. The Tacoma is followed by another truck, the Honda CR-V SUV with 54.6 percent.
2012 Best Retained Value Award Winners
CategoryYearMakeModelRetained ValueCompact Truck2012ToyotaTacoma57.30%Convertible $35K-$45K2012LexusIS 250 C46.80%Convertible Over $45K2012FordShelby GT50046.50%Convertible Under $35,0002012MINICooper48.90%Coupe $25K-$35K2012FordMustang46.80%Coupe $35K-$45K2012BMW3 Series44.00%Coupe Over $45,0002012FordShelby GT50047.50%Coupe Under $25,0002012MINICooper50.00%Hybrid2012HondaCivic46.10%Large Heavy Duty Truck2012FordF-350 Super Duty48.60%Large Light Duty Truck2012FordF-15048.40%Sedan $20K-$30K2012SubaruImpreza45.30%Sedan $30K-$40K2012LexusIS 25046.30%Sedan Over $40K2012CadillacCTS42.00%Sedan Under $20,0002012HondaCivic50.00%SUV $25K-$35K2012HondaCR-V54.60%SUV $35K-$45K2012GMCAcadia46.00%SUV Over $45,0002012AcuraMDX44.20%SUV Under $25,0002012SubaruForester44.60%Vans2012HondaOdyssey43.50%Wagon $25K-$35K2012MINICooper Countryman48.50%Wagon Over $35,0002012BMW3 Series42.70%Wagon Under $25,0002012ScionxB47.30%
Bertel Schmitt comes back to journalism after taking a 35 year break in advertising and marketing. He ran and owned advertising agencies in Duesseldorf, Germany, and New York City. Volkswagen A.G. was Bertel's most important corporate account. Schmitt's advertising and marketing career touched many corners of the industry with a special focus on automotive products and services. Since 2004, he lives in Japan and China with his wife <a href="http://www.tomokoandbertel.com"> Tomoko </a>. Bertel Schmitt is a founding board member of the <a href="http://www.offshoresuperseries.com"> Offshore Super Series </a>, an American offshore powerboat racing organization. He is co-owner of the racing team Typhoon.
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Here in rain-drenched, road-salted England, we'd be lucky to achieve these resale value percentages after 3 years! Our cars may be expensive to buy new compared with the US, but the values become much more comparable when buying at 3 years old. It seems you guys have a much longer term outlook on car ownership in the US. Over here, many people still lease or buy a new car every three years, often spending a very large chunk of their disposable income to keep up this neighbour-impressing pretence.
... and a 600 sq ft closet costs $400k in downtown Toronto... just exactly what does that prove? Mileage and condition are everything. If you paid $5,000 more for the Odyssey than a similarly equipped Grand Caravan, do you think you're going to drive it the same way?