The Used Pickup Truck With the Worst Resale Value
Value is important when buying a new pickup truck, but it’s also important when selling a used one. Whether you’re trading in at a dealer or selling on Craigslist, you want to get your money’s worth. Sometimes, used trucks can hold their value astonishingly well—even selling for more than new ones. But depreciation usually hits new trucks hard. And according to a recent iSeeCars survey, there’s one in particular with the worst resale value of them all.
Ford F-150: the used truck with the worst resale value
Despite the Ford F-150’s best-selling title, it actually has the worst truck resale value. iSeeCars reports an average 5-year depreciation of 46.5%. However, as Autoblog notes, that’s actually partly due to the F-150’s sales.
Basically, there are so many used F-150s available, the used market’s a little flooded. Autoblog also notes that for 2015—the best used F-150 model year—the F-Series’ platform switched from steel to aluminum. In the process, the truck became lighter and more fuel-efficient, which explains its popularity.
Although the F-150 depreciates the most of any truck, it actually depreciates less than the average vehicle. According to iSeeCars, across all segments, the average vehicle depreciates by 49.6%.
Toyota Tacoma: the used truck with the best resale value
As we’ve noted, used Toyota Tacomas can sometimes sell for more than new. The Tacoma isn’t only a popular truck, it also retains its value very well. iSeeCars reports a 5-year average depreciation of 32%. In fact, Autoblog notes that only the Jeep Wrangler holds its value better.
A Toyota Tacoma in that age-range would also make an excellent used truck. It avoids the notably poor 2007 model year. The 2015 model year is particularly reliable, although the 2016 and 2017 model years have had some issues.
Used pickup values overall
Interestingly, used pickup trucks actually hold their resale values fairly well. iSeeCars reports that, on average, used trucks depreciated 42.7% over a 5-year period. That’s less than the industry average of 49.6%. iSeeCars reports that this is likely due to pickup trucks’ durability and their popularity. Although, as in the case of the F-150, popularity and sales figures are not necessarily the same.
We’ve previously noted that new Ram 1500s tend to depreciate fairly rapidly. However, this appears to be only in the short term. Over a 5-year period, the Ram 1500 actually retains more of its value than the Ford F-150. The Ram depreciates 45.2% over 5 years—more than the average truck, but less than the industry average.
The only domestic-brand truck that depreciates less than the national truck average is the Chevrolet Silverado. It depreciates 42% on average over 5 years. The Silverado actually holds its value slightly better than its GMC platform-sibling. The GMC Sierra depreciates slightly more than the average pickup, at 43% over 5 years. It’s possible that, as GMC is seen as a luxury brand, that some Sierra owners see their trucks as outdated, and so trade them in sooner.