Falcon depreciates fastest

The humble Ford Falcon depreciates faster than any other car on the Australian market, retaining only 47.9 per cent of its value after two years. The Falcon BF MkII slid from $39,890 when new in 2007 to a mere $19,100 to delight used car buyers but create a financial headache for its first owner.

But though it topped the list for the car to lose more money in two years than any other, information from automotive researchers Glass's Information Services show the Falcon wasn't much different from its rivals, the now-obsolete Mitsubishi 380 SX and the VZ Holden Commodore.

The 380, dumped from Mitsubishi's line up after its Adelaide factory closed last year, retained the same 47.9 per cent as the Falcon and is according to Glass's data, is now worth only $15,800.

Glass's operations manager, Chris D'Sousa, says there should be no surprises that the large car sector — of which the 380, the Falcon and Commodore belong — has been hit the hardest on the used car market because of last year's surge in petrol prices. However, he acknowledges that the niche market of the FPV range resulted in the GT Cobra retaining 92.2 per cent of its value after two years.

On the other side of the ledger, small cars fared much better. The 2007 small car that retained its value more than any other was the Honda Civic Hybrid with a massive 87.6 per cent of its value retained. It is listed as costing $32,990 new and is now $28,900.

But it isn't all good news for the little cars with the worse performer being the Alfa Romeo 147 GTA three-door that fell from $63,990 new to $37,600 now. Even the baby light-car segment has its heroes — the Mazda2 with a whopping 92.1 per cent retained value — and losers. In this case the Proton Satria lost 40.5 per cent of its value, slipping from $18,990 new to $11,300 now.

There were interesting winners in the medium-car class, where the Mercedes-Benz C-Class diesels occupied the top 10 places. Sports car winners were dominated by the Ferrari models — the best is the Scaglietti with a 101.9 per cent retention meaning it's worth more after two years than when new in 2007.

Even more bizarre is the Ford F250 and F350 range that record a retained value of between 112 per cent and 122 per cent. Mr D'Sousa says these cab-chassis and crew-cab trucks wee highly sought after by tow-truck operators and fifth-wheel buyers and, because they were now out of production, the used market has soared.

2007 LARGE CARS (retained value):
THE WORST:
1. Ford Falcon BF — 47.9%
2. Mitsubishi 380 — 47.9%
3. Holden Commodore VZ — 48%
THE BEST:
1. Ford FPV GT Cobra — 92.2%
2. Mercedes E-Class — 72.9%

2007 MEDIUM CARS (retained value):
THE WORST:
1. Saab 9-3 sedan — 56.4%
2. Jaguar X-Type V6 — 56.4%
THE BEST:
1. Mercedes C-Class diesel — 80.8%
2. Ford Mondeo LX — 76.7%

2007 SMALL CARS (retained value):
THE WORST:
1. Alfa Romeo 147 GTA — 58.9%
THE BEST:
1. Honda Civic Hybrid — 87.6%

2007 LIGHT CARS (retained value):
THE WORST:
1. Proton Satria — 59.5%
THE BEST:
1. Mazda2 — 92.1%

2007 SPORTS CARS (retained value):
THE WORST:
1. Citroen C4 VTS — 51.9%
THE BEST:
1. Ferrari Scaglietti — 101.9%

2007 SUV COMPACT (retained value):
THE WORST:
1. Ssangyong Actyon — 54.4%
THE BEST:
1. Mazda CX-7 — 82.7%

2007 SUV MEDIUM (retained value):
THE WORST:
1. Holden Adventra V6 — 56.8%
THE BEST:
1. Toyota Prado diesel — 88.9%

2007 SUV LARGE (retained value):
THE WORST:
1. Ford Explorer — 55.7%
THE BEST:
1. Mercedes GL diesel — 92.2%