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Study: The 5 Best Cars to Buy Used

By jeanclaudebmoc / February 27, 2020

2019 BMW 330i

Money expert Clark Howard is a big fan of buying used cars because of their lower prices and the fact that someone else has already taken on their depreciation. But if you choose the wrong used model, you could still overspend.

A recent report from automotive research firm iSeeCars.com confirms that gently used or like-new vehicles offer the greatest savings for car buyers.

According to the report, the average one-year-old used car costs 20% less than its new version. However, some models can be found at even deeper discounts.

Report: Here Are the Top 5 Cars to Buy Used

“The best cars to buy used have lower-than-average resale value for reasons such as their high starting price or because they aren’t the most popular vehicles in their class,” says iSeeCars CEO Phong Ly.

The site did price analysis on more than 6 million new and used cars sold from August 2019 to January 2020 to come up with a list of the best cars to buy used.

Here are some key findings from the report:

  • Most of the cars with the largest price differences are luxury models
  • BMW has the most cars on the list

Here’s a rundown of the top five cars to buy used:

Rank Model % Difference
Used Over New		 Dollar Difference
1. BMW 7 Series -43.4% $47,447
2. Audi A6

 -41.0% $26,199
3. Jaguar XE

 -40.9% $20,586
4. Volvo S90 -40.1% $23,631
5. BMW 3 Series -38.2% $19,241

Here’s a look at the complete list.

Phong says the numbers show that price is not the only driving factor for car shoppers.

“While choosing a used car over a new car is typically associated with the greatest cost savings, sometimes the price difference isn’t that significant,” Phong says. “There are factors that can affect price differences beyond the overall popularity of the vehicle such as redesigns, which were common among the vehicles that made both ends of the list.”

Are you in the market for a used vehicle? Clark recommends as a first step that you get your auto financing worked out. Here are his steps to buying a used car.

More Car Resources From Clark.com:

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