Lowest Depreciation Cars ???

[Value Motering]

I am at present looking to buy myself a nice 2nd hand car.

I will use it as an every day car, to and from work, Tesco etc etc.

I was until today fairly sure it would be a CLS 320 cdi Facelift with my perfect spec as I intend to own/drive it for 5/6 years, happy to spend about 25K for the right car.

Bumped into a friend at lunchtime today, says I'm nuts spending so much on this car as it will depreciat too fast for a mean fisted bugger like me, he is well aware I like to keep overall costs to a minimum on most things.

I know life is a balance and I know owning/driving a CLS will be much more of a money pit than a Polo Diesel etc etc.

He says I should get a 911, have some fun and when I sell it on, it will work out cheaper than the CLS.

I only need two seats, so a two seated is ok, I do like the outside of the 911, but inside can be a bit short on creatue comforts ???

I've been looking on the net about cars that keep hi value over time, but most info on the first 3 years, little info after that ???

I know 911 keeps hi value over all its life, I know running costs can be hi also.

I do about 12/14K miles per year and don't like fixing or paying for cars to be fixed.

Can anyone suggest a car with similar merits to the CLS for driving and style, but will maintain Value/Re-sale like a 911 for example ???

Cheers in advance.

 

[Deleted member 37751]

If Porsche residuals really are better than a CLS 320, then the 320 CDi would make up for it 10 fold with fuel costs.

 

[Mavster]

Buy the Porsche....

 

[wemorgan]

Buy a sports car at the end of summer then sell at the beginning of the next for value motoring. I sadly think you've missed that boat now.

Just buy the car you're happiest with, as £25k is a lot of money to have any less than.

 

[SportsCoupeRich]

Simply put, fewer cars will offer you the rock solid residuals of a good, cared for 911 whilst offering the same levels of performance and 'wow'.

The issue you will have with a 25k 911 is that i) it will likely be a non-C4S or Turbo 996 which will be pretty old hat in 6 years time and also, as you say, it will likely lack a lot of the comforts and some other things you don't even imagine as being optional (onboard computer, cruise etc).

The CLS is a good choice, as are certain Audi S cars (my S5 I am very comfortable with it's value holding, whilst offering 996 performance (at least off a track), an excellent specced cabin and decent running costs compared to a porsche. Thigs like s6 Avants are very good bets too.

If it were me, and keeping for 6 years, I would get a cayman S. Newer cabin architecture than the 996, more bits generally specced and for 25k a nice 2007 or higher milage 08 do-able.

Like you I only do v. average mileage, maybe 10k a year, so can afford to get a higher mileage one that will be evened out on resale.

 

[Will]

A diesel Mercedes is quite a different car to a 911.

A £25k 911 will still depreciate, and will cost quite a lot more to run than a diesel Mercedes - both on fuel and servicing/repair costs. Possibly higher to insure too?

What you have to decide is, would the additional running costs bother you compared to the lower depreciation whilst you own it - remember that the depreciation is only ever realised IF and WHEN you sell it on in 5/6 years time

How about having two cars - a diesel golf or other VAG car for daily use (12-14k PA), and a special weekend/evening car - say £5-10k for the daily and £15-20k for the special one.

Ok, two lots of RFL and MOTs, but you might be able to save money by insuring the second (special) vehicle more cheaply on a classic/low mileage policy. It won't need as much servicing or repairs with lower usage too, so you could run something with a larger engine or more performance, offset by the saving of fuel in the daily car

With fuel currently set at over £1.30 a litre and sure to rise over the year I wouldn't recommend a petrol 911 for a daily car if you're doing over 1000 miles a month and don't like to spend too much.

All IMHO of course

Just to add - you could still have a nice 911 with 15-20k - maybe an older model that depreciates less, or plenty of nice MBs in that price range - SL (late/mint/special R129 or an early R230), quite a number of AMGs out there that are seriously good value too, etc.

Food for thought!

Will

 

[219]

Sl ?

 

[grober]

A diesel engined CLS isn't the first car that comes to mind as a depreciation proof cheap to run Mercedes. I reckon a nice AMG engined C or E class would be a better bet in the long term.

 

[219]

A bargain priced Bristol Fighter might be a good option ?

 

[steve333]

I am at present looking to buy myself a nice 2nd hand car.

I will use it as an every day car, to and from work, Tesco etc etc.

I was until today fairly sure it would be a CLS 320 cdi Facelift with my perfect spec as I intend to own/drive it for 5/6 years, happy to spend about 25K for the right car.

Bumped into a friend at lunchtime today, says I'm nuts spending so much on this car as it will depreciat too fast for a mean fisted bugger like me, he is well aware I like to keep overall costs to a minimum on most things.

I know life is a balance and I know owning/driving a CLS will be much more of a money pit than a Polo Diesel etc etc.

He says I should get a 911, have some fun and when I sell it on, it will work out cheaper than the CLS.

I only need two seats, so a two seated is ok, I do like the outside of the 911, but inside can be a bit short on creatue comforts ???

I've been looking on the net about cars that keep hi value over time, but most info on the first 3 years, little info after that ???

I know 911 keeps hi value over all its life, I know running costs can be hi also.

I do about 12/14K miles per year and don't like fixing or paying for cars to be fixed.

Can anyone suggest a car with similar merits to the CLS for driving and style, but will maintain Value/Re-sale like a 911 for example ???

Cheers in advance.

Wow-you are sold on a cls one minute then you are considering a 911,2 totally different cars & while the 911 might have better residual value in 5-6 years time it could also cost you a lot more to run than the cls,why don't you settle on a happy medium between the 2 & get a cls500

 

[mattyg]

I'm hoping the Slk i bought last week. Will fit the bill. 57 plate 55AMG MB dealer £26800 was up for £29995

 

[219]

I paid £100 for my Ponton back in 1982 .

I should think I'd do OK depreciation-wise with it , were I ever to consider selling .

 

[NewMB]

Any MINI...... more or less depreciation safe. Cooper S for fun...

 

[Value Motering]

I'm hoping the Slk i bought last week. Will fit the bill. 57 plate 55AMG MB dealer £26800 was up for £29995

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I'm not sure what the car is, but it's nice to know you managed to get 11% of the sticker price.

The CLS's I have been very tempted with at MB dealers would swing the deal to take it away at 11% off the sticker price.

I have been interested in 3 different MB dealers on a CLS, asked if they wood take an offer, they said no, if car don't sell at sticker price, they will trade it out of the MB dealer network to local dealers.

Is 11% normal ???

 

[st13phil]

The reality is that - with few exceptions - any fairly recent car will depreciate significantly in value over a period of 5-6 years.

Some cars depreciate less than others, but that assumes that they are meticulously maintained which is a bit worrying as you also say that you don't like spending money on maintenance. You should bear in mind that anything of the Porsche ilk can produce eye-watering maintenance bills that are significantly greater than those for a diesel CLS which, when all is said and done, is based on a W211 E-Class.

Ultimately, if you're intending to live with a car for 5-6 years then depreciation (within reason) shouldn't be the main influencing factor in the purchase decision. Driving around in something you don't like that much for that length of time because it'll be worth £14k instead of £12k when you come to sell it is false economy on a grand scale.

 

[steve333]

I think you need to factor in how much you consider is acceptable for a car you are going to spend circa £25k now to depreciate over the next say 4 years,for example,i spent £23k on a 21/2 year old 1 owner cls500 with just under 20k on the clock(fsh)last year,the car was £67k when new so lost £44k inside it's 1st 3 years,looking at the same cars that are now 6 years old & sell for about £15k would mean if i sold mine when it's 6 years old i would have lost £8k on what i paid for it.With that in mind i think it's safe to say most of the depreciation is indeed within the 1st 3 years

 

[Value Motering]

If it were me, and keeping for 6 years, I would get a cayman S. Newer cabin architecture than the 996, more bits generally specced and for 25k a nice 2007 or higher milage 08 do-able.
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Nice quote from a previous post, tks.

I think the Cayman is a great looking car, the inside looks ok as well, same friend says a Boxter is a poor mans car, Cayman is in between Boxter and 911, I think in Met Grey it looks better than Boxter and 911.

For info, my budget is not fixed at 25K, could be less, could be more, if I found a great car that suited and held great value I would be more happy to buy that one than a cheaper car than dropped off the cliff.

My view on the CLS 320 cdi, I think it's a great balance on just about all my needs, however if there is a car I have not thought about, then may be I should, I can't think of any better car than the CLS at the moment.

On another point/poster, yes a much newer E class cdi is very close, but they still very £ and new, so their value will tend to be a little quick to drop for a while, an older model E is good, but they very common Merc, but very good, that's for sure, Taxi men don't get so much wrong.

XK and XF have been mulled over, but would rather the CLS, however that XF 3.0 Diesel is a very good balanced car indeed, MPG/Co data looks very very strong, it will be interesting to see how re-sale values go over the next few years.

Cheers for all the info so far.

 

[Will]

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I'm not sure what the car is, but it's nice to know you managed to get 11% of the sticker price.

The CLS's I have been very tempted with at MB dealers would swing the deal to take it away at 11% off the sticker price.

I have been interested in 3 different MB dealers on a CLS, asked if they wood take an offer, they said no, if car don't sell at sticker price, they will trade it out of the MB dealer network to local dealers.

Is 11% normal ???

I don't really see how people think they're getting a great deal with a discount on an overpriced used car in the first place.

The dealer is making a profit on almost every single car that they sell, even with a discount. If I were to price a car for 11% more than I would accept, then reduce the price to make you think you've got a great deal, I think I'm the winner

The trick is understanding a car's true value, and not overpaying - not just negotiating down the advertised price to what it is truly worth

IMHO of course

Will

 

[steve333]

I don't really see how people think they're getting a great deal with a discount on an overpriced used car in the first place.

The dealer is making a profit on almost every single car that they sell, even with a discount. If I were to price a car for 11% more than I would accept, then reduce the price to make you think you've got a great deal, I think I'm the winner

The trick is understanding a car's true value, and not overpaying - not just negotiating down the advertised price to what it is truly worth

IMHO of course

Will

Exactly how i have bought my cars in the past,know what you want,know what it's worth & don't pay any more than you want to

 

[Value Motering]

I think you need to factor in how much you consider is acceptable for a car you are going to spend circa £25k now to depreciate over the next say 4 years,for example,i spent £23k on a 21/2 year old 1 owner cls500 with just under 20k on the clock(fsh)last year,the car was £67k when new so lost £44k inside it's 1st 3 years,looking at the same cars that are now 6 years old & sell for about £15k would mean if i sold mine when it's 6 years old i would have lost £8k on what i paid for it.With that in mind i think it's safe to say most of the depreciation is indeed within the 1st 3 years

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Nice post, if my miles were below 6K a year, then I would also be looking at the CLS500 instead of the cdi, and I recon anyone doing less than 3/4k per year no question the 500 or AMG wins all the way, when I go on the filter on Autotrader, select fuel type, think 15% ish are Petrol, si I think a 4/5/6 years old 500/AMG will be the the one that ticks the maintain hi re-sale value at anytime in the future, also of note, the big Petrols have very hi spec, guess people who splash that sort of dosh, want all those toys, I thought of the 350 Petrol, but that sits in a strange middle, however, down the road, 350 Petrol could be very sort after, ie not Diesel and some people could think it's a 500 or 6.3, D-badged of course.....