For the second consecutive year, Toyota and Lexus are the nonluxury and luxury brands, respectively, with the best resale values, according to the annual Kelley Blue Book Best Resale Value Awards. The distinction is based on how well 2013 models are projected to retain their original list price after five years of ownership, because depreciation is often the greatest expense owners will incur during this period.
Toyota and Lexus also held the top spots for the 2010 model year, but were ousted for 2011 by Subaru and BMW.
According to the used-car pricing service, the average vehicle, no matter the brand, is expected to retain about 38.2 percent of its original value after five years, which means that a $50,000 new car today would be worth about $19,100 after five years.
The average Toyota, however, is expected to retain 44 percent of its original list price, while a Lexus is expected to retain 43.7 percent, Eric Ibara, director of residual consulting for Kelley Blue Book, said in a telephone interview.
In third place was Honda, with the average Honda expected to retain about 43.2 percent of its original value. Subaru was fourth at 42.7 percent; Porsche was fifth at 41.3 percent.
Residual values in the survey reflect projected future auction values for vehicles in average condition with 75,000 miles at the end of a five-year lease or ownership period. Low-volume vehicles or those with a list price of more than $60,000 are excluded from consideration for the awards, except in the luxury and high-performance categories.
Last year the average vehicle was expected to retain 35.7 percent of its original value after five years, compared with this year’s 38.2 percent.
“What we are seeing is basically better vehicles,” Mr. Ibara said. “Over the past year we have seen vehicles holding their value better.”
In addition, some redesigned vehicles were described as significantly better than the previous models, so their residual values are higher. Two examples were the 2013 Ford Fusion, which went up 10.8 points in residual value, and 2013 Mercedes-Benz GLK, which went up 11 points.
The Toyota FJ Cruiser was the vehicle with the highest resale value, at 63 percent. Second was the Toyota Tacoma, at 57 percent, and third was the Jeep Wrangler, at 55.4 percent.
The 10 vehicles from the 2013 model year expected to achieve the best resale value were, in alphabetical order by brand: the Honda Civic and CR-V; Jeep Wrangler; Lexus LX; Porsche Cayenne; Scion tC; and four Toyotas: the FJ Cruiser, Land Cruiser, Tacoma and 4Runner.
There were also winners in 22 categories, ranging from subcompact car to full-size pickup. In alphabetical order, they were: Chevrolet Camaro SS, Camaro V-6 and Volt; Ford Fusion; Honda Accord, Civic, Civic Si and Fit; Infiniti EX; Jeep Wrangler; Lexus GS 350, IS, LX and RX 450h; Porsche Cayenne and Panamera; and Toyota Avalon, FJ Cruiser, Sequoia, Sienna, Tacoma and Tundra.
Combined, 12 Toyota and Lexus models received Best Resale Value Awards this year, and half of the Top 10 models were from either Toyota or Lexus.
In the electric car category, which includes all-electrics and plug-in hybrids, the Volt led with a residual value of 30 percent. Next was the Prius Plug-In Hybrid at 29.5 percent and third was the Focus Electric at 26 percent. The 2013 Nissan Leaf was not included, because the 2013 model hadn’t yet been released by Nissan, Mr. Ibara said.
For more information about the survey’s winners, click here.
An earlier version of this post, based on information from Kelley Blue Book, misstated the projected average resale value for 2013 model vehicles and the projected resale value for the Ford Fusion. The overall average is 38.2 percent of original value, not 38.6 percent, and the Ford Fusion figure is 10.8 percent, not 11 percent.