Jeep Wrangler is King of Value Retention, New Survey Shows

iSeeCars.com study reveals the Wrangler (and Wrangler Unlimited) only depreciates by 27.3 percent after five years.

They say that your new car starts depreciating the second you drive it off the lot. As the miles accumulate, every spilled drop of coffee, run in with a pothole, and parking lot scratch all but ensure that you’re going to take a bath once it comes time to trade the thing in. But what happens when you drive your new car off of the lot and onto a trail? For Jeep Wranglers, life only gets easier with value maintenance.

According to iSeeCars.com, a company that tracks the car market, nothing on (or off) the road fights depreciation like the Jeep Wrangler. After more than five years of regular ownership, the Wrangler (and Wrangler Unlimited) depreciate just 27.3 percent. If that sounds high, keep in mind that the average car depreciates 50.2 percent over the same five-year span. In case you were wondering, the Nissan Leaf depreciates the most, losing an astonishing 71.7 percent of its value.

“Jeeps are known for retaining their value due to their enduring popularity, as well as their durability and performance across all terrains,” says Phong Ly, CEO of iSeeCars. And to us, it makes a lot of sense that the Wrangler is depreciation-proof. For one, Jeep can’t build them fast enough. Plus, if the CJs, YJs, TJs, and JKs have taught us anything, it’s that generations tend to stick around for about a decade. And as many frugal car shoppers know, why buy a brand new model when the five-year-old one is almost identical? This ensures that both old and new Wranglers fly out of Jeep dealerships like clockwork.

Then there’s the fact that Wranglers are infinitely customizable, always cool, and offer a truly unique driving experience. When you put it all together, it seems like a foregone conclusion that the Wrangler would top this list. We’d like to get a look at this picture in another five years, but we’ve already got a feeling that the Wrangler will still be on top.

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James Derek Sapienza

James Derek Sapienza has worked as a writer and editor in the world of automotive journalism since 2015.

He has a BS in History at SUNY Brockport, with a focus on American popular culture. A fan of the classics with a special interest in German cars, he is a proud owner of a 1991 W124 Mercedes. He is a frequent contributor to Mustang Forums, MBWorld, 5Series, Rennlist, and more.

Sapienza can be reached at JDS.at.IBA@gmail.com