Which car has the best residual value? A MINI

A Glass’s Guide report has revealed that the cars with the best residual value in the UK are from MINI, with first year depreciation running at just 16.4 per cent.

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When it comes to buying a car, many of us decide how much we can afford to spend and then go and look for a car that fits our budget.

But what we should really be looking at is how the car we want will be worth in the future – its residual value.

Because the residual value of your car is often where the biggest costs lies, and it has a major impact on monthly payments if you decide to acquire your nice new car on a contract hire or leasing deal.

So the news that the MINI family of cars are the lowest depreciating cars in the UK should make anyone looking for a car in this sectore sit up and take notice.

According to Glass’s, the MINI depreciated by as little as 16.4 per cent in its first year, the strongest residual values of any of the 34 car manufacturers Glass’s looked at, and even the options added by many buyers saw the residual values higher still.

Glass’s Andrew Jackson said:

Considering that MINI operates within a classically high-RV-performing segment, combined with the desirable nature of the brand, meant that even for vehicles aged seven years, the percentage of cost new that can be expected from a MINI was appreciably more than any other brand.

So before you jump in to a new car based on its headline price, have a look at the total cost of ownership over the time you have the car – you’ll probably discover a ‘more expensive’ MIN I will actually cost you less in the long term than a car with a lower headline price.

And that will probably be even more true if you jump in to the new MINI Hatch.