Top 10 Cars with the Highest and Lowest Resale Value at the 5-year Mark

Ordinary cars are the ones that retain the most value after 5 years of use, while luxury cars are the ones that lose the most value.

0
29

Liquidity value is one of the criteria that many car buyers are concerned about. To help consumers make buying decisions, iSeeCars has analyzed and compiled a list of the vehicles with the best resale value as well as those with the worst resale value after 5 years of ownership.

To create this list, iSeeCars analyzed data from over 1.1 million cars sold in the US market from November 2022 to October 2023. According to the study, vehicles in the US now have lower depreciation rates compared to 2019. This is due to reduced production as a result of the Covid-19 pandemic and a limited supply of used cars.

Prior to the Covid-19 pandemic, cars in the US depreciated by an average of about 50% after 5 years of ownership. This rate has decreased to 38.8% in 2023.

25 vehicles with the best resale value after 5 years

According to iSeeCars’ research, the vehicle with the best resale value after 5 years of ownership is the Porsche 911 Coupe with a depreciation rate of only 9.3%, equivalent to $18,094. This indicates a high demand for the Porsche 911 Coupe in the US used car market.

The Porsche 911 Coupe is the vehicle with the best resale value after 5 years of ownership.

In addition to the 911 Coupe, the top 25 list includes 3 other Porsche models, namely the 718 Cayman (ranked 2nd), 718 Boxster (12th), and 911 Convertible (15th). There are also 4 sports car models from other brands, including the Subaru BRZ (ranked 6th), Chevrolet Camaro (7th), Ford Mustang (11th), and Chevrolet Corvette (23rd).

Some sports car models are among the vehicles with the best resale value. We have seen a surge in demand for ‘fun’ cars during the social distancing period to combat the pandemic. This demand continues to be strong in the post-pandemic phase“, explained Karl Brauer, Executive Analyst at iSeeCars.

In addition, half of the top 25 vehicles with the best resale value after 5 years of ownership are from Japanese automakers. These models are mainly from the three major brands Toyota, Honda, and Subaru. Toyota contributes 6 representatives, including the Tacoma, C-HR, Corolla, Tundra, RAV4, and 4Runner. Subaru also has 4 models in the top list, which are the BRZ, Impreza (wagon), Crosstrek, and Impreza (sedan). This is not surprising as Japanese cars have been known for their strong resale value for many years.

Two Korean brands, Hyundai and Kia, have 3 representatives in the top 25. American brands such as Jeep, Chevrolet, and Ford also appear on this list. Meanwhile, Porsche is the only representative of German luxury car brands. Famous brands such as Mercedes-Benz, Audi, Volkswagen, and BMW are completely absent.

Rank Vehicle Average depreciation rate after 5 years Difference from suggested retail price (USD)
1 Porsche 911 (coupe) 9.3% 18,094
2 Porsche 718 Cayman 17.6% 13,372
3 Toyota Tacoma 20.4% 8,359
4 Jeep Wrangler/Wrangler Unlimited 20.8% 8,951
5 Honda Civic (sedan/hatchback) 21.5% 5,817
6 Subaru BRZ 23.4% 8,114
7 Chevrolet Camaro 24.2% 10,161
8 Toyota C-HR 24.4% 6,692
9 Subaru Crosstrek 24.5% 7,214
10 Toyota Corolla 24.5% 5,800
11 Ford Mustang 24.5% 10,035
12 Porsche 718 Boxster 25.1% 20,216
13 Toyota Tundra 25.3% 12,588
14 Kia Rio 5-Door 25.8% 5,006
15 Porsche 911 (convertible) 26% 42,227
16 Honda HR-V 26.2% 7,318
17 Subaru Impreza (wagon) 26.2% 6,927
18 Kia Rio 26.3% 4,959
19 Chevrolet Spark 26.6% 4,784
20 Toyota RAV4 27.2% 8,858
21 Hyundai Accent 27.4% 5,353
22 Toyota 4Runner 27.4% 13,147
23 Chevrolet Corvette 27.5% 22,712
24 Nissan Kicks 27.5% 6,560
25 Subaru Impreza (sedan) 27.8% 7,158
Market Average 38.8% 17,221

Top 25 vehicles with the best resale value after 5 years in the US market

25 vehicles with the worst resale value after 5 years

The top 25 list of vehicles with the worst resale value after 5 years of ownership mainly consists of luxury vehicles. The vehicle with the worst resale value after 5 years is the Maserati Quattroporte with a depreciation rate of 64.5%, equivalent to $90,588. The other four models in the top 5 are all luxury cars, including the BMW 7-Series, Maserati Ghibli, BMW 5-Series (hybrid), and Cadillac Escalade ESV. The remaining 5 models in the top 10 are also luxury vehicles, including the BMW X5, Infiniti QX80, Maserati Levante, Jaguar XF, and Audi A7.

The Maserati Quattroporte is the vehicle with the worst resale value after 5 years of ownership.

According to the iSeeCars study, luxury vehicles have an average depreciation rate of 48.1% after 5 years of ownership, while mainstream vehicles have an average depreciation rate of 36.8%. The models with the highest depreciation rates are sedans and luxury SUVs.

People who tend to keep their cars for a long time don’t need to worry about this depreciation rate“, said Brauer. “However, if you constantly switch cars within a few years, especially luxury sedans or SUVs, you will lose a lot of money“.

Rank Vehicle Average depreciation rate after 5 years
1 Maserati Quattroporte 64.5%
2 BMW 7-Series 61.8%
3 Maserati Ghibli 61.3%
4 BMW 5-Series (Hybrid) 58.8%
5 Cadillac Escalade ESV 58.5%
6 BMW X5 Hybrid 58.2%
7 Infiniti QX80 58.1%
8 Maserati Levante 57.8%
9 Jaguar XF 57.6%
10 Audi A7 57.2%
11 Audi Q7 56.8%
12 Cadillac Escalade 56.5%
13 Audi A6 56.3%
14 Volvo S90 55.8%
15 Nissan Armada 55.7%
16 Mercedes-Benz S-Class 55.7%
17 Lincoln Navigator L 55.5%
18 Mercedes-Benz GLS 55.5%
19 Tesla Model S 55.5%
20 BMW 5-Series 55.3%
21 BMW X5 54.7%
22 Lincoln Navigator 54.7%
23 BMW X5 M 54%
24 Range Rover 53.9%
25 Cadillac XT5 53.9%
Market Average 38.8%

Top 25 vehicles with the worst resale value after 5 years in the US market

Electric vehicles have poor resale value

The iSeeCars study found that used electric vehicles have the worst resale value in the US market after 5 years of ownership. The depreciation rate of electric vehicles is higher than the overall average depreciation rate of the market (38.8%).

Used electric vehicles always have a higher depreciation rate than vehicles with internal combustion engines because of the incentives to lower the selling prices of electric vehicles and concerns about battery replacement costs“, commented Brauer. “This trend will continue until electric vehicles no longer need strong incentives to convince buyers and customers are more confident about the long-term ownership costs“.

Rank Vehicle Average depreciation rate after 5 years
1 Tesla Model 3 42.9%
Average of electric vehicle segment 49.1%
2 Tesla Model X 49.9%
3 Nissan Leaf 50.8%
4 Chevrolet Bolt EV 51.1%
5 Tesla Model S 55.5%

Depreciation rates after 5 years of some electric vehicle models in the US market

Hybrid vehicles have good resale value

In contrast to electric vehicles, hybrid vehicles have a high resale value in the market. In the past 4 years, the average depreciation rate of hybrid vehicles has decreased by nearly 20%, from 56.7% in 2019 to 37.4% in 2023. The combination of high fuel prices and familiar technology has helped expand the market for hybrid vehicles and improve consumer demand.

In the list of the top 7 hybrid vehicles with the best resale value after 5 years of ownership, there are 5 representatives from Toyota, including the Prius, Prius Prime, RAV4 Hybrid, Camry Hybrid, and Highlander Hybrid. The other 2 models are the Honda Accord Hybrid and Hyundai Ioniq Hybrid.

Rank Vehicle Average depreciation rate after 5 years
1 Toyota Prius 27.9%
2 Toyota Prius Prime 28.1%
3 Toyota RAV4 Hybrid 29.1%
4 Toyota Camry Hybrid 35.3%
5 Honda Accord Hybrid 36.4%
6 Toyota Highlander Hybrid 36.5%
7 Hyundai Ioniq Hybrid 37.4%
Average of hybrid vehicle segment 37.4%
8 Kia Niro Hybrid 37.6%
9 Toyota Avalon Hybrid 43%
10 Hyundai Sonata Hybrid 43.5%
11 Lexus ES 300h 45.2%
12 Chrysler Pacifica Hybrid 46.1%
13 Mitsubishi Outlander PHEV 46.2%
14 Porsche Panamera 47.5%
15 BMW 3-Series 52.3%
16 BMW X5 Hybrid 58.2%
17 BMW 5-Series Hybrid 58.8%

Depreciation rates after 5 years of some hybrid vehicle models in the US market