This may be a bit dated by now:

Top 10 Lists

Top 10 Cars With the Best Residual Value for 2003
Date Posted 05-07-2003
The percentage following the car is the total amount of depreciation that takes place based on five years and 15,000 miles per year. The smaller the number, the better. Keep in mind that the depreciation percentages are based on the national TMV price plus typical options plus destination charge.

BMW Z8 — 45.86%
Mercedes-Benz CLK — 45.96%
Mini Cooper — 46.68%
Porsche 911 — 46.91%
Porsche Boxster — 47.42%
Lexus SC 430 — 47.49%
Acura TL — 47.68%
Honda S2000 — 47.93%
Dodge Viper — 48.00%
Lexus GS 300 — 48.34%


Least
Top 10 Lists

Top 10 Cars With the Worst Residual Value
Date Posted 05-07-2003
The percentage following the car is the total amount of depreciation that takes place over five years and 15,000 miles per year. The bigger the number, the worse it is. Keep in mind that the depreciation percentages are based on the national TMV price plus typical options plus destination charge.

Kia Spectra — 74.11%
Kia Rio — 73.65%
Dodge Intrepid — 72.19%
Dodge Neon — 71.50%
Kia Optima — 71.11%
Hyundai Accent — 70.84%
Mercury Sable — 70.75%
Buick Park Avenue — 69.99%
Chevrolet Cavalier— 69.57%
Buick Century— 69.55%



Most:

http://www.edmunds.com/reviews/list/...8/article.html

Least:

http://www.edmunds.com/reviews/list/...0/article.html

 

The Hyundais and Kias will probably not be on that "10 Worst " list for much longer. Both brands....Hyundai more so than Kia ( which it owns )......have seen explosive growth in both their sales and their reputations lately as the word got out that they now build good cars at good prices with a super warranty. The low, depressed values as used vehicles reflect their former positions at the bottom of the ladder quality-wise.....but that is now way outdated. Both companies....again Hyundai more so than Kia...now build respectable cars. Consumer Reports and J.D. Power both give them much better rankings and reliability records than just a few years ago.

What will take some of their places on the "10 Worst " residual values list?

My predictions are the Chris Bangle BMW's, the Pontiac Aztek, and the Volkswagen Phaeton.

 

I think Hyundai and Kia are selling well because of their warranties. Last night on the freeway, aSonata (probably 2000 model) passed me up and the car was making loud screeching noises. I slowed down because I thought some part on that car was gonna give up and send the vehicle out of control.

 

http://money.cnn.com/2004/02/26/pf/autos/alg_stars/

 

Hyundais...and especially the Sonata....have improved significantly even since 2000. They still lag somewhat, though, in engine efficiency....both in gas mileage and HP/torque per liter.

 

Hyundai has made one of the most impressive turns as far as initial quality goes, but only time will tell how reliable they really are. I don't doubt now the quality of Hyundai's products, but I think it'll be 5+ years before people really start noticing it. The general public isn't as knowledgable as some of us here who are automotive news fanatics. As poor a form of communication as it is, word of mouth is what will ultimately end up deciding Hyundai's long term value. Sure the car might be just as good at 50K miles as it was day one, but if the majority of the general public still thinks they're poorly made then they simply won't buy them.

 

Updated List:

02/24/2004 - Updated 01:45 AM ET

http://www.usatoday.com/money/2004-02-24-residual.htm


Tops after 3 years

Automotive Lease Guide (ALG) has issued a new rating system that shows which new vehicles do the best at holding their value over three years. Vehicles are rated Five-Star if they were among the top 10% among 260 measured by ALG. Four-Star vehicles were among the next 20%. Three-Star vehicles were among the middle 40%. Two-Star vehicles were among those rating in the next 20%. And One-Star vehicles ranked in the bottom 10%.

Five star vehicles
Acura, NSX, RL
GMC Yukon
Honda Odyssey, Accord
Infiniti G35
Volvo C70,S60,V40,V70
Nissan Frontier
Porsche GT2
Toyota 4Runner, Celica, RAV4, Sequoia, Tacoma, Tundra
Mercedes Benz CLK
Mini Cooper
Lexus ES330, GS300, GS430, GX470, RX330, SC430

Four star vehicles
Acura RSX
BMW 5 Series, 3 series, Z4
Chevrolet Avalanche, Silverado 2500, S-10 pickup, Suburban, Tahoe
Dodge Dakota, Ram 2500 and 3500 pickup, Viper
Ford F350 Super Duty pickup
GMC 2500 Sierra pickup, Yukon XL
Honda Civic, CR-V, Pilot, S2000, Infiniti I35
Hyundai Santa Fe
Infiniti I35
Jaguar X-Type
Lexus IS300
Mazda Miata, RX-8
Mercedes C-Class, E-Class
Nissan 350Z, Altima, Pathfinder, Sentra, Xterra
Porsche 911 Carerra 4
Saab 9-3
Subaru Impreza, Outback Sport
Toyota Avalon, Camry, Solara, Highlander, Land Cruiser, Matrix, Sienna
Volkswagen GTI, Jetta, New Beetle, Passat
Volvo XC90

Thee star vehicles
Acura MDX,TL,TSX
Audi A4, A6, A8, TT
BMW 7 Series, X3, X5
Buick Ranier, Rendezvous
Cadillac CTS, DeVille, Escalade, SRX, XLR
Chevrolet Colorado, Corvette, Silverado 1500, Monte Carlo, Trail Blazer, Monte Carlo
Chrysler 300M, Crossfire, Pacifica, PT Cruiser, Sebring Convertible
Ford Econoline, Escape, Excursion, Expedition, Explorer, F 150, F250, Mustang, Ranger, Thunderbird
GMC Canyon, Sonoma, Envoy, Sierra 1500
Honda Element
Hummer H2
Hyundai Sonata
Infiniti FX, M45, Q45
Jaguar S-Type, XK-Series
Jeep Grand Cherokee, Liberty, Wrangler
Kia Sedona, Sorento
Land Rover Freelander, Range Rover
Lexus LS430, LX470
Lincoln Aviator, Navigator, Town Car
Mazda 6, Tribute, MPV, Truck
Mercedes-Benz CL, G Class, M Class, S Class, SL Class, SLK Class
Mercury Marauder, Mountaineer
Mitsubishi Outlander
Nissan Maxima, Murano, Pathfinder, Quest
Pontiac Grand Prix, Vibe
Porsche 911 Carerra, 911 Turbo, Boxster, Cayenne
Saab 9-3 convertible, 9-5
Scion xA, xB
Subaru Baja, Forester, Outback, Legacy
Toyota Corolla, MR2
Volkswagen Golf, Touareg
Volvo S40, S80

Two star vehicles
Buick LeSabre, Park Ave
Cadillac Seville
Chevrolet Blazer, Cavalier, Express, Impala, Venture
Chrysler Concorde
Dodge Caravan
Ford Crown Victoria, Focus, Freestar, F150 Heritage
GMC Safari, Savana
Hyundai Elantra, Tiburon, XG350
Jaguar XJ
Land Rover Discovery
Mazda's Mazda3
Mercury Grand Marquis, Monterey
Mitsubishi Eclipse, Endeavor, Galant, Lancer, Montero, Montero Sport
Oldsmobile Bravada, Silhouette
Pontiac Aztek, Bonneville, Grand Am, Montana
Saturn Ion, L300, Vue
Suzuki Aerio, Grand Vitara, Verona, Vitara, XL7
Toyota Echo
Volkswagen Phaeton
One Star
Buick Regal, Century
Chevy Astro, Classic, Malibu, Tracker
Chrysler Sebring sedan
Dodge Intrepid, Neon, Sprinter, Stratus
Ford Taurus
GMC Safari
Hyundai Accent
Isuzu Ascender, Axiom, Rodeo
Kia Optima, Rio, Spectra
Mercury Sable
Mitsubishi Dimante
Oldsmobile Alero
Suzuki Forenza