OSV’s research has revealed that British-made cars, such as Vauxhall, Roll Royce, Jaguar and Landrover, retain the most value in the first 12 months after purchase, an impressive 65.5% of their original value.
Compared to vehicles produced by the likes of France and Italy, which on average retain only 46.2% and 46.7% respectively, it shows that the British lion still has a significant roar.
The next best country for value retention is the home to the Volvo, Sweden, coming in at 64.7%. From there it decreases as follows:
Country % of value retained after first 12 months
Germany 61.1
US 60.7
Japan 56.9
Romania 56
South Korea 54.5
Czech Republic 51.7
However, while this ranking in the international depreciation table is extremely positive for the UK’s manufacturing reputation, it is probably of little comfort to UK drivers who stand to lose the most money on their vehicle purchases, with the average car losing £18,922 in the first year.
Compare this to Romania, where drivers can expect to lose no more than £4,730 in the first 12 months after purchase and Brits look pretty hard done by.
Italian drivers lose an average of £16,219 while the careful German drivers lose roughly £13,016 of their vehicle’s value.
French-made cars may not fare so well, but their drivers are only fourth on the value retention list, losing only £9,460 in the first year.