Luxury car resale values: the honest numbers
Premium badges depreciate hardest in South Africa. What BMW, Mercedes-Benz, Audi and the flagships are really worth after three years. Updated for 2026.
- New from
- R 1 399 900
- Retained after 3 years
- 41%
- Worth then
- R 569 689
- ±Monthly
- R 24 468/m
#1 vs #20: the same money, very different outcomes
| # | Car | New from | Kept after 3y | Worth then |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | MG Cyberster | R 1 399 900 | 41% | R 569 689 |
| 2 | BMW i4 | R 1 500 000 | 42% | R 625 155 |
| 3 | BMW i5 | R 1 812 000 | 42% | R 755 187 |
| 4 | BMW i7 | R 2 953 000 | 42% | R 1 230 721 |
| 5 | Mercedes-Benz EQS | R 2 620 500 | 42% | R 1 092 145 |
| 6 | Porsche Taycan | R 2 989 000 | 42% | R 1 245 725 |
| 7 | Volvo ES90 | R 1 590 000 | 42% | R 662 664 |
| 8 | BYD Seal | R 1 007 900 | 44% | R 439 412 |
| 9 | BMW iX | R 2 249 000 | 44% | R 996 181 |
| 10 | BMW iX1 | R 1 210 000 | 44% | R 535 962 |
| 11 | BMW iX3 | R 1 690 000 | 44% | R 748 576 |
| 12 | Lexus RZ | R 1 682 600 | 44% | R 745 298 |
| 13 | Mercedes-Benz EQA | R 1 235 900 | 44% | R 547 435 |
| 14 | Mercedes-Benz EQB | R 1 374 500 | 44% | R 608 827 |
| 15 | Volvo C40 / EC40 | R 1 396 800 | 44% | R 618 704 |
| 16 | Volvo EX90 | R 2 650 000 | 44% | R 1 173 802 |
| 17 | Alfa Romeo Junior | R 819 900 | 47% | R 384 640 |
| 18 | BYD Sealion 7 | R 1 109 900 | 47% | R 520 688 |
| 19 | Deepal S07 | R 995 900 | 47% | R 467 207 |
| 20 | Mini Aceman | R 800 000 | 47% | R 375 304 |
Modelled retention on current new prices, retail basis. Tap any car for its full value page.
How to read this table
Retention percentages compress a lot of money into a small number. The gap between the top and bottom of this list is 6 points, which on these prices means a difference of tens of thousands of rand walking out of your pocket by year 3. Depreciation is the single biggest cost of car ownership in South Africa, bigger than fuel for most drivers, and it is decided the day you choose the model.
Fast depreciators are not automatically bad buys. They are bad NEW buys. Two or three years in, once someone else has paid the steep part of the curve, several cars on this list become genuine bargains. Check their year value pages for the used sweet spot.
Common questions
Which car loses value fastest here?
MG Cyberster: it keeps only 41% of its R 1 399 900 price after 3 years, shedding roughly R 830 211.
How is this ranking calculated?
We apply our 12-tier South African depreciation model to each car's current new price, adjusted for body type, fuel and price band, then rank by projected value retention after 3 years. It is modelled from market data, not a survey.
How big is the gap between the best and worst here?
6 percentage points across this table. On a R500 000 car that is a difference of about R 31 091 at resale time, which is why the model you pick matters more than the rate you negotiate.